  | Full Text Reviews: Bulletin for the Center... - 12/01/2011 After Anna helped her father successfully pitch a new doll line to F.A.O. Schwartz in The Doll Shop Downstairs (BCCB 10/09), her immigrant family is doing just fine for themselves in their New York neighborhood. The same cannot be said for Anna’s cousin Tania, sent by her mother to America after World War I food shortages impoverish their Russian home. Anna is thrilled to have someone her exact age in the house, so much so that even when Tania turns out to be awkward and shy and even when Anna’s sisters give up on the poor girl, Anna keeps trying to befriend her cousin. Tania isn’t the only lost soul Anna is trying to save, however, as she attempts to rescue a cat and her crippled kitten from a nearby apartment, despite her father explicitly forbidding her to do so. Like its predecessor, this is a charming period piece that capitalizes on the nostalgia for its historical era without losing its emotional resonance with young readers. The black-and-white line illustrations are pleasingly romantic, primarily featuring Anna and her siblings dressed much like a certain American Girl Doll, along with the occasional furry kitty. Between the cats, the dolls, and the cozy family drama, what’s not to love? KQG - Copyright 2011 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. School Library Journal - 12/01/2011 Gr 2–5—This companion to The Doll Shop Downstairs (Viking, 2009) features Anna, now 11 years old. She's concerned about a mother cat and her three-legged kitten in need of a home. If only she could convince her father to change his mind about having pets in the shop. She is also worried about her cousin, a shy and skittish girl from Russia. While the doll that Anna makes for her seems to comfort Tania, there is still a lot of sadness in her cousin. Can Anna help her acclimate to her new life, or does the answer to Tania's happiness actually lie in the fate of the cat and kitten? This is a sweet and old-fashioned story, similar in style to Sydney Taylor's All-of-a-Kind Family (Wilcox & Follett, 1951), set in World War I-era New York. Sensitive readers will relate to Anna's desire to make everything right for her cousin and, because the cat and kitten have a happy ending, the book is a fine choice for animal lovers as well.—Elizabeth Swistock, Jefferson Madison Regional Library, Charlottesville, VA - Copyright 2011 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 12/01/2011 It’s 1915, 11-year-old Anna and her two sisters look forward to the arrival of their cousin, Trudie, sent by her mother to escape hard times in Russia. But Trudie is fearful, withdrawn, and speaks no English, and she is difficult to befriend. The girls’ determination to save an injured kitten provides the book’s turning point. That may sound a bit pat, but both the immigrant theme and the cat story are grounded with starkly realistic details. Illustrated with appealing drawings, Anna’s vivid first-person narrative makes this a worthy sequel to The Doll Shop Downstairs (2009) and a fine choice for fans of the All-of-a-Kind Family series. - Copyright 2011 Booklist. Loading...
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