Everything that happens has a ring of truth to it, even if the details aren't quite like they would be today. They bake brownies, they worry about their teacher not liking them, and they get into a whopper of a fight when Ellen slaps her friend. The kids still seem as real as when they were written. not so much.)īut you know what? It doesn't matter. How can she show Austine how sorry she is Newbery Medal-winning author Beverly Cleary brings her warm humor to. When is the last time you saw a class full of Ellens and Austines, Otises and Lindas? Ramona is a name that passes the test of time. Ellen desperately wants her best friend back. If it was old-fashioned back in the 50s, and this was the first I'd ever heard of it in the 90s, just think how foreign it must seem to today's third-graders! (And let's put a little note for the names. (When's the last time you saw that sort of cowboy mania? Oh right - back in the 50s, when this was published.) And let's not forget the infamous woolen undies. Otis has a full cowboy outfit (with spurs) and we're told that MOST of the children in the school have a cowboy hat, or even a neckerchief. But then Ellen does something terrible, and now Austine isn't speaking to her.Show More everyplace else).

That is, until she meets Austine-and discovers that Austine has the same secret! Soon the girls are best friends who do everything together-attending dance class, horseback riding, and dodging pesky Otis Spofford. Keywords: humor, friends, friendship, secret, ballet, being different, mistakes, forgiveness, getting along, 8 year old, 9 year old, 10 year old, 11 year oldĮllen Tebbits has a secret that she'll never share with anyone. Louis Darling, who has provided the wonderful illustrations, has already made his decision. The children who read it will decide for themselves. Ellen Tebbits is as funny as Henry Huggins. There have been Japanese, Spanish, and Swedish television programs based on the Henry Huggins series, PBS-TV aired a ten-part series based on the Ramona stories, and one-hour adaptations of the three Ralph S. This whole book is a cause for rejoicing, for Mrs. The best friend was Austine, and the secret was that Ellen was wearing woolen underwear. But by the time the dancing lesson was over (surely the most devastating dancing lesson on record), Ellen had found a best friend and shared her secret. Best friends do not have secrets from each other, and Ellen had a secret she did not want to share with anyone. Ellen Tebbits The part of third grade Ellen Tebbits likes most is having Austine Allen for her best friend. Still, as she walked to the Spofford School of the Dance one Saturday, she was almost glad she had no best friend.

Her best friend had just moved away and she missed her.

Ellen was eight years old and wore bands on her teeth.

Ellen tebbits series