AGES 7-12 + ADULTS
(adults must accompany children and participate in the program; children will NOT be admitted to the building without an adult)
Friday, May 31
6:00-8:00pm (dinner and dessert will be served)
Registration is required and runs through Friday, May 24

In Family Book Club, we examine classic works that have been challenged or banned and discuss their pros and cons. This month, we will read anf discuss Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh. Participants (adults and children) are expected to read the book prior to the program.* Each family will receive a gift copy of the activity book Over 50 Secret Codes at the end of the program. Space and food are limited, so please make sure to register and mention EACH adult and child who wants to attend!

*To check out a library copy of Harriet the Spy, please come to the Children's Desk. 

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh has delighted kids and outraged some adults for more than 50 years. Spying is a serious business that requires concentration, patience, and an ability to think fast and write faster. Meet Harriet M. Welsch, 11-year-old girl spy and irreverent rebel.

Fitzhugh’s classic novel Harriet the Spy, first published in 1964, introduced realism in the form of a flawed main character to an unsuspecting audience. Controversial and charismatic, Fitzhugh’s Harriet was a revolutionary personality bound to stir up dynamic discussion. The publisher recommends the book for ages 8-12.

Harriet M. Welsch is an 11-year-old sixth grader with a vivid imagination, a bossy attitude, and a freakish ability to hide in one spot for hours while observing her targets. The only child of a well-to-do New York couple, Harriet lives with her parents, a cook and a nurse named Ole Golly. She has two best friends, Sport and Janie, who are used to Harriet’s take-charge attitude and play along with her imaginary games.

Although independent in her spy adventures, Harriet is a girl who depends on routine. Each day follows a schedule including coming home after to school for cake and milk before she takes off on her spy route. After school, she puts on her spy gear and canvases the neighborhood.

Whether hanging out in a dark alley listening to the Dei Santi family, clinging to a window ledge to spy on Mr. Withers and his cats, or wedging herself tightly into a dumbwaiter to hear Mrs. Plumber’s theatrical phone calls, Harriet will wait for hours to hear something she can write down in her precious notebook.

Life is neat and predictable for Harriet until the day she discovers that Ole Golly has a boyfriend! Dependent on Ole Golly for stability and routine, Harriet is distraught when the nurse announces that she’s getting married and leaving Harriet to start a new life in Canada. Harriet, shaken by this change in routine, focuses more on her spying and writes copious hateful notes about friends and neighbors.