I think this story is pretty stupid. I picked it up thinking it would be good and it wasn't. It is not. Sara is absolutely horrible to her little sister. She makes way too much mischeif. But you can understand why she says some of the things she says. I would not recommend this book unless you like books that scare you and make you check ahead to let you know whether things will be all right.

Mrs. Sherwood, who is Emily's (narrator) mother and some of us agree: Sara Slater is a bad influence. The girls are 12, and Sara teaches Emily how to smoke. Sara teaches her to trick Sara's little sister. And when Emily stands up to her bad influence, they fight. And Emily's a good child. Sara's just a bad influence for all 12-year-old girls who may read this.

I read this when I was somewhere between 10 and 12 years old, and I absolutely loved it! I could relate to this too, because I had a friend like Sara growing up. She wasn't perfect, a little rough around the edges and we had some fights, but in the end she was a true friend, like the Sara in the book.

Let me start by saying that I am a big fan of author Mary Downing Hahn. I've read several of her books and enjoyed them all. So imagine my disappointment with this book which has no story, no plot, no drama. It does show an interesting look at the times her mother lived in (1913) and the type of home life she had. But it should have stayed as a personal account for her own family. With all her talents as a writer, why couldn't Ms. Hahn have given her readers a story, an adventure, or at least some conflict? This book can "set the scene" for readers who know nothing about pre-World War I times. But then they should go on to other more exciting books from this era such as "The Ornament Tree," "Over the Waves," or "In The Time of Angels."

I thought that this book was very good. I think that children at any age can relate to the struggles that Anna faces with her mother, father, her aunt and uncle, her friends and school. I really enjoyed the whole setting of the book because it was around the time of WWI and this was the time when people did not have too much. I think all children will really enjoy this book.