Pine Island Visitors by Polly Horvath
Publisher: Margaret Ferguson Books
Special thanks to Penguin Books for sending a copy for review.
Summary:
Fiona, Marlin, Natasha, and Charlie McCready have been adopted by their unlikely guardian, Al, and finally settled into their new home on Pine Island in British Columbia.
Then they receive a letter from Mrs. Witherspoon who took care of them after their parents died telling them that she is coming to visit for three months—an inordinate amount of time for a houseguest. Accommodating a fifth person in the tiny house is hard enough, but to their horror, Mrs. Weatherspoon arrives with a companion, her childhood friend, Jo.
Jo has opinions about everything—what they should eat, how they should behave—and she doesn’t hesitate to express them. And sweet Mrs. Witherspoon seems to have fallen under her spell. When she and Jo announce that they are going to extend their stay even longer, Fiona and Marlin are beside themselves. Fiona hates rocking the boat, but there must be a way to get rid of these grown-up bullies so she and her sisters can have the life they wish to lead (Goodreads).
Thoughts:
Polly Horvath’s Pine Island Visitors tells the story of the McCready sisters’ move to a new home on Pine Island and their new life without their mother after she passes away. 15 year old Fiona takes the responsibility of looking after her sisters and managing the household expenses. The McCready sisters’ worries grow when they receive an unexpected visit from their aunt, Mrs. Weatherspoon, and her friend, Jo. Without their mother, the sisters cope with their grief and new financial obligations while also tolerating a houseguest with whom they have a bad history with.
As the McCready sisters move to Pine Island in British Columbia to forget their past and aim for a fresh start, Fiona shoulders the responsibility of looking after her sisters, attending highschool, and managing unwanted houseguests. I really like Fiona’s character due to her selflessness and open-minded qualities; for example, when Fiona receives a letter from Mrs. Weatherspoon, who wants to stay at Pine Island for three months after her sister Helen passed away, Fiona is the only McCready sister who doesn’t strongly oppose the idea. Mrs. Weatherspoon is the sisters’ guardian now, but she proves to be unreliable as she moves away from the kids to spend time with Helen instead. Despite the younger sisters’ hatred for Mrs. Weatherspoon, Fiona is forgiving towards Mrs. Weatherspoon despite her neglect and respectfully allows her to stay. Fiona’s willingness to understand other people’s perspectives teaches me forgiveness and allows me to understand that people who seemed untrustworthy in the past sometimes deserve a second chance. I admire that even though Fiona gets stressed from balancing school and managing the household as a teenager, she always puts her sisters’ priorities before herself.
In contrast, I disliked Mrs. Weatherspoon from the start because she is an adult who cannot deal with her sister’s death nor support herself financially, so she forces these kids to take care of her. Mrs. Weatherspoon arrives with her friend Jo, who is critical and rude. Jo shows up uninvited and without a prior relationship with the girls. Mrs. Weatherspoon’s unresolved issue of leaving the girls when she was supposed to be their guardian never gets addressed, which contributes to her lack of character development. I think the addition of Mrs. Weatherspoon is a missed opportunity for Fiona and Mrs. Weatherspoon to have conversations about dealing with the death of a loved one.
The plot was quite predictable. The majority of the story revolves around the McCready sisters adjusting to their new lifestyle and dealing with two annoying guests. Through that process, the sisters become closer to each other and learn to disregard Jo’s unwanted criticism. The message I got from the plot is that challenging times in life are temporary, and life can get easier if you are optimistic. Even though I don’t like how Mrs. Weatherspoon’s neglect is left unresolved, I appreciate that this story emphasizes how the girls learn to forgive Mrs. Weatherspoon for prioritizing her sister over them, as she is not their legal guardian. Overall, the ending is satisfactory as the sisters find support in each other, and they feel capable of living without a parent.
Pine Island Visitors is a decent coming-of-age novel from Horvath. The story doesn’t excessively highlight the negative aspects of the girls’ grief or their difficult predicament. Rather, the story shines light on the McCready sisters’ support for one another through difficult times. Although the plot may be anticlimactic, Fiona’s open-minded worldview and love for her sisters are memorable. I’m not sure if I would strongly recommend this book to anyone my age as I feel there are better alternatives for stories about overcoming grief and strong sibling dynamics. Nonetheless, this novel is an easy read that has its heartwarming moments. The prequel novel Pine Island Home probably would have given me a better understanding of the girls’ past lifestyle, and I will consider reading it in the future.
Reviewed by Jen Y.