My sons and I absolutely loved this book! I laughed out at Astrid's antics and her witty banter with her godfather (and best friend), Gunnvald.
Astrid loves her Norwegian village of Glimmerdal . . .except she is the only child living there! At least her godfather keeps her company and brings adventure to her life. The adults love Astrid and she has a delightful childhood. Mr. Hagen, who owns the retreat center, however, does not even permit children to stay there!
Astrid thinks she knows her godfather well until she discovers he has a grown daughter. They, however, have not communicated in over 30 years!
A humorous yet sweet story of forgiveness and reconciliation.
This book refers to the classic Heidi story and has inspired us to listen to the classic on Audio CD!
I am not highly recommending it (although it is one of my favorite read alouds) because-
Warnings/Points to discuss: Gunnvald uses snus (moist powder tobacco product) and becomes quite grumpy without it. I have known people who have used chewing tobacco/dip and have witnessed how difficult it is to overcome this addiction. A couple of other characters use it too (including Heidi, Gunnvald's estranged daughter). The author does refer to it as disgusting. Another character, Nils, is the village drunk, and the reader witnesses his drunken behavior. Gunnvald's daughter, Heidi, is born out of wedlock. Parental abandonment. Astrid's mother works in Greenland studying the rising sea levels so there are some environmental plugs woven into the story.
My sons and I had a few talks about substance abuse/addictions and relationships while we read this book together.
-Borrowed from the library.
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