The misunderstandings of Charity Brown

A decade after the end of WWII, the event's repercussions still feel alive in Britain, where 13-year-old Charity Brown, who is recovering from polio, contends with whirlwind familial changes. Charity and her older siblings Ted, Faith, and Hope have been brought up as Lucasites, a strict Christian sect. Their charismatic, good-hearted father runs the Lucasites's London-based missionary society, and the family has always lived in financial precarity, believing "the Lord will provide." When a wealthy elderly member of the sect dies and leaves his mansion to the Browns, the family moves in, devoting themselves and their new home as a refuge to the "weary and heavy-laden." Their first guest, Mr. Fisher, is a shell-shocked German Christian minister who was tortured by Nazis; getting to know him along with her new German Jewish neighbor Rachel Stern opens Charity's eyes to the world outside the Lucasites. As she ponders prejudice, her own implicit biases, and the ambiguities of faith, Charity's earnest, questioning voice also pulls readers into the lively ambiance of her high-spirited family. Drawing from childhood experiences, according to an author's note, Laird (The Name Game) crafts a novel that is at once entertaining and thought-provoking. All characters present as white. A glossary concludes. Ages 9--11. (May)

Thirteen-year-old Charity Brown, youngest of four, is dealing with the lingering effects of polio and starting to question the beliefs and rules of her parents, who adhere to the precepts of a strict Christian sect. "We had to avoid places where the Devil might lurk, like cinemas, or those coffee bars with juke boxes that play wickedly sinful pop music." The family's plain, thrifty, and restrained domestic life changes drastically when the Browns come into an unexpected inheritance that includes a mansion and decide to set up a kind of hostel for the "weary and heavy-laden." Set in postwar London, this narrative touches on antisemitism, racism, and the oppression of women but folds these issues deftly into a child-centered story of a spirited girl who feels inadequate, longs for a friend, is embarrassed by her parents' behavior in public, and frets about how the idea of a loving God can be reconciled with the sorrows of the world. The tone here, warm and gently funny, matches the setting, as well-orchestrated scenes of family dinner disasters, a teenage brother with attitude, not having the right clothes, an adored auntie who is a bit "fast," and a short-lived crush could have been plucked from a mid-twentieth-century children's novel. A nuanced portrait of growing up outside the mainstream. Sarah EllisJuly/August 2024 p.130 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

The latest from acclaimed author Laird follows a girl's coming of age in postwar England. After firmly placing the story in the 1950s by describing 13-year-old Charity's serious bout with polio, the author sets the stage for further change as the Brown family is shocked to inherit a grand home from a fellow member of their strict Christian sect, the Lucasites. They move into Gospel Fields, intending to make it "a haven of peace and beauty for the weary and heavy-laden." Along with this sudden change in circumstance, Charity navigates returning to school after her illness. She feels different because she's not allowed to do the worldly things the other young people do. In her first-person narration, Charity, whose father is Scottish and mother comes from New Zealand, contemplates faith and community and describes her efforts to befriend neighbor Rachel Stern, who's Jewish. The wider world and its complexities come to her through her older siblings' arrivals and departures, her exposure to new cultural opportunities, and her parents' welcoming of people into their home (including a German with shell shock, a young man from India who's convalescing, and a medical student from Nigeria). This evocative, character-driven novel informed by the author's own childhood will resonate with contemporary readers who are asking questions and seeking their own paths. An atmospheric tale told in sparkling prose of a close-knit family caught up in a changing world. (author's note, glossary) (Historical fiction. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.