Those Darn Dithers (Laurel-Leaf Books) - Softcover

Grade 4-7-The original, eccentric Dither family is back. Cousins in spirit to Helen Cresswell's equally irrepressible Bagthorpes, the Dithers enjoy a summer that turns out quite different from everyone's expectations. Holly is off to fame and fortune as a featured performer in the Wild West show at the Paradise Club, where she may meet someone to replace Warren, the boy back home. Emmet is trying to produce his own big show, a vaudeville extravaganza the like of which the town has never seen. Great Aunt Emma is trying to get her newest secret invention to work. Uncle Leopold leaves town to decide whether his magnus opus is ready for the publisher or the trash. Archibald would just like his best friend Carl to return to normal; Carl has been visited by his sister's ghost urging him to keep a forgotten promise. And those are just the main plots and characters that Hite juggles with aplomb. He is a master at wordplay. Earthy visual imagery ("air was as clammy as wet diapers") sets the scenes firmly in place. Yes, the unexplainable is definitely present: a ghost with communication problems, a problematic invention, and the magic of a full moon. Romance is in the air for many of the characters; love knows no boundaries, it ebbs and flows across time and geography. The value of loyalty among friends, lovers, and siblings is subtlety praised. Although it is not necessary to have read Dither Farm (Holt, 1992), readers just meeting this cast of characters will want to go back for a "proper" introduction to this warm and bighearted family.
Marilyn Payne Phillips, University City Public Library, MO
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Return to whimsical Willow County in this charming sequel to Dither Farm (1992). Readers who haven't yet met the Dither family will be delighted to make the acquaintance of witty, warm, nine- year-old Archibald, absent-minded philosopher Uncle Leopold, operatic baby Angeline--the cast of characters is larger than life and entirely lovable. Although the last adventure focused on Archibald's kidnapping, Hite opts for a gentler tale of how the various Dithers spend their summer. Uncle Leopold suffers a crisis of confidence about his tome, The Comprehensive Guide, while his wife designs and builds an astral projection device. Archibald struggles to help his adult friend, Carl, shrug off a depression, while his older brother Emmett and friend Warren create vaudeville acts, and sister Holly breaks into show business riding horseback. Everyone heads off in separate directions, and all come neatly together in a spark of magical realism. Younger teens will appreciate the quirky adventures, while older ones will enjoy the deft comic spirit that informs the entire work. Hilarious. (Fiction. 12+) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.