Book Review: Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
Children’s books are often filled with magical kingdoms, a quest for treasure chests, or happy-go-loving families to encourage little kids into reading more. But even for adults, these children’s books often teach us things that adulthood has made us forget. Isn’t that why so many adults love Harry Potter, Mark Twain, and still watch Disney Movies?
Pollyanna is a little angel
The protagonist of this book is a little orphan named Pollyanna who has recently lost her father and is now going to live with her Aunt Polly. Though the two share the same home, their personalities are polar opposite. Pollyanna is a little angel who can find something to be glad about in any circumstance. If she is forced to live in an attic with no carpets of pictures where she must not open the windows either, she will be glad for that too. It is this optimism of hers that she has learned from her father and goes on to spread among others as well.
The Glad game
The Glad Game is a central theme in the book that asks each character to learn to be glad for something even when all things are going wrong. If you break one leg, you should be glad that you didn’t break two. The religious aspect of this optimism becomes evident when Pollyanna talks about her father who counted the number of times God said to Rejoice and be happy in the bible, calling them ‘Rejoicing text’. This religious touch became a backdrop more than an overwhelming force in the book. But it did provide the background of the origins of the Glad Game.
Character-driven Plot
On a general note, this book is character-driven that puts the spotlight on Pollyanna but even other characters like Aunt Polly, Nancy, Thomas, The Man, Mrs snow are given equal space. Apart from the sheer optimism of the little girl, the storyline reveals the inner connections between these people who have grown apart over the years, but now their lives intertwine because of Pollyanna. The storyline comes together towards the last chapters, but even then, it is the innocence of Pollyanna and her circumstances that make the reader keep turning pages better than any plot twist or intrigue from the story itself.
Better than any self-help book
This is the kind of book one can read on the low days to feel motivated again. It just tells you to always see the silver lining especially when it is hard to do. The book was quite heart-warming and I was GLAD I read it. The kind of life lessons that we often look for in self-help books was given by Pollyanna in her everyday actions and thoughts. I especially liked the part where she tries to convince Aunt Polly that if one does his/her ‘duty’ all the time and remains dutiful, when will they have to time to live? And living is more than just breathing. It does teach one to take a step back and introspect about the things that matter in life. And it sounds much better coming from the mouth of a little girl than any ‘life-guru’.
Pollyanna Quotes
Though the book isn’t necessarily quote-worthy and is more of overall experience, there were still some sentences that were too good.
“… there is something about everything that you can be glad about if you keep hunting long enough to find it.”
“Oh, of course, I’d be BREATHING all the time I was doing those things, Aunt Polly, but I wouldn’t be living. You breathe all the time you’re asleep, but you aren’t living.”
“What men and women need is encouragement. Their natural resisting powers should be strengthened, not weakened … Instead of always harping on a man’s faults, tell him of his virtues.”
