The Trolls [Paperback]

Polly Horvath (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Aunt Sally is beyond any of Melissa, Amanda, and Pee Wee’s expectations. She has come all the way from Vancouver Island, Canada, to take care of the children while their parents are away, and right from the start, Aunt Sally enchants them with tales of her childhood with their father. Odd characters figure largely in the stories, like Maud, a hunter rumored to have killed eighty cougars; Great-uncle Louis, a health nut who insists everyone should gnaw on sticks for extra fiber; and Fat Little Mean Girl, the star of a cautionary tale involving witchcraft and candy. All of Aunt Sally’s reminiscences lead up to a crucial story about trolls, sinister creatures who supposedly lurked along the shore at night. The trolls had the power to change Aunt Sally’s life forever, and their legacy may change the lives of the three present-day children as well.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"All Sunday, the children made the most of Aunt Sally. She finished their Halloween costumes, proved a tireless player of cribbage and I Doubt It, read Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle stories out loud, using just the right expression, and never put a lid on the cookie jar. She was, all in all, the most satisfactory grownup the children had ever known."

Transported into their lives not with an umbrella like Mary Poppins, but equally as dramatically, Aunt Sally is introduced to the Ohio-dwelling Anderson family when Mom and Dad are off to Paris and in dire need of a last-minute babysitter. Aunt Sally, however, was not Mr. Anderson's first choice. Aunt Sally is his sister, and part of a past he would rather forget.

Ten-year-old Melissa, 8-year-old Amanda, and 6-year-old Frank (alias Pee Wee) know nothing of their aunt, except that every year she sends a Christmas card from Vancouver Island with a picture of a moose with tree lights strung on it. Still, it doesn't take long for the children to warm up to her, this unusual, beehive-sporting, sparkly-eyed woman who lets them draw monsters with her eyeliner, uses string beans as walrus tusks at dinner, and tells extraordinary stories about her family history, all of which she insists are true, even the ones about the trolls. The eerie troll story in particular gives us a glimpse into the psyche of the children's father--young Robbie at the time--who is left on the beach by his siblings as an offering to the trolls, in the event that trolls existed. Even though the search parties found him, he was still somehow missing: "...I guess knowing that your own trusted family could give you away, even in jest, well, it changes things. It changes things forever.... He wasn't, in the end, ever with us again."

Aunt Sally's other stories--including the ones about the Fat Little Mean Girl and Maud who shot 80 "cougars"--are fascinating, truly hilarious, artfully timed, and wonderfully detailed, and readers will be as entranced as the Anderson children. Polly Horvath has concocted a superb, funny, poignant book that stares both the fantastical and factual parts of family history in the eye and doesn't look away. "What trolls?" said their father when he came back from Paris. "Doris, did you unpack my gray sweater?" (Ages 8 to 12) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

When the baby-sitter cancels at the last minute, Aunt Sally fills in and shares plenty of tall tales in this National Book Award finalist, about which PW said, "Horvath's dry humor runs like a current through the book, sweeping readers along in the breathless anticipation of the next bit of absurdity." Ages 8-12.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Square Fish; First Edition edition (September 30, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031238419X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312384197
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #357,366 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful! My kids were howling for more, November 17, 1999

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Trolls (Hardcover)

When the sensible baby sitter comes down with plague, and all other avenues are exhausted, Aunt Sally is allowed into the house for a week of emergency baby sitting. And what stories she brings with her! Did the family really chew sticks? Did the neighbor shoot cougers? And... will Pee Wee have to dress as a stepsister for Halloween? This story has its dark moments. The wacky beginning leads to more wistful stories of loss and family estrangement, but it ends on a hopeful note. My 8 & 10 year olds enjoyed it immensely.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Parents and children to enjoy together, July 26, 2001

By 

"abookbug" (Dublin, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Trolls (Paperback)

I read this book laughing out loud, sometimes with such gusto that tears streamed down my cheeks! Unlike some books targeted toward younger audiences, it doesn't "talk down" to the reader-which can often produce a watered-down and sleepy result. With an engaging, imaginative plot and language rich in flavor and tone, "Aunt Sally" spins a yarn that children and their parents can both enjoy "eavesdropping" into. Parts of the book deal with less carefree issues, but they are presented with such warmth and humor that it makes the moral (kindness) an entirely un-adverse pill to swallow. Don't expect the main focus of the plot to center around magical creatures, though. This is a story about Family, and all the crazy things that make a family what it is.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sally learns and teaches, February 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Trolls (Hardcover)

Aunt Sally brings family history to the Anderson children, something that their father has neglected to do. She gives them humorous accounts of her brothers and sister as they grew up in a place that she describes in beautiful, loving prose. The children are enchanted. Best of all, however, is the way she treats Melissa, Amanda and Frank with respect. The children learn to enjoy Aunt Sally, and she leaves them with a lot of food for thought. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I could relate it to my father's family, to my brothers, and also to my own children. It's thought-provoking and humorous at the same time . . . not an easy thing to do. I found it a gentle reminder to value one's family.