The Penderwicks at Last (The Penderwicks #5)

In this final installment of Birdsall's Penderwicks series, the lovable, uniquely talented Penderwick family returns to the setting of the first novel, Arundel, a grand estate in the Berkshires, where oldest daughter Rosalind is to be wed to her boyfriend Tommy. Youngest daughter Lydia, now age 11, was not yet born when the rest of the clan visited there 15 years ago, but she's heard about its wonders and is thrilled to arrive early with sister Batty and their two dogs to help with preparations. In true Penderwick fashion, Lydia makes every day an adventure with her newfound friend Alice, the daughter of Arundel's caretaker. There are plenty of surprises in store for the two, including an array of welcome and unwelcome visitors. The excitement and boisterous activity that permeate all the previous books are in abundance here as well, as Lydia's siblings join her at Arundel, showcasing their individual skills and working together to creatively solve all conflicts during MOPS (meetings of Penderwick siblings). Full of reunions with old friends, fond remembrances of good times, and developments of new friendships (and at least one possible romance), the novel provides closure, and at the same time opens the door to new possibilities as Lydia and her brother and sisters go "prancing, leaping, gamboling into the future." Ages 8-12. Agent: Barbara S. Kouts. (May)

Gr 4-6—Lydia, the youngest Penderwick sibling, is now 11 and takes center stage in this fifth and final entry in the National Book Award—winning series. And what a stage she has: the story is set at Arundel, the legendary estate which, for Lydia, has previously existed only in her sisters' stories. The last time the entire family was at the estate was 15 years ago; now they are gathered for Rosalind and Skye's double wedding. Lydia is eager to explore the place "where the possibilities for adventure are endless." She finds a kindred spirit in Alice Pelletier, who lives in the cottage where the Penderwicks stayed and whose father is Cagney, the object of Rosalind's preteen crush, now a history teacher and the estate's caretaker. Lydia and her siblings are less pleased to see another Arundel native: Mrs. Tifton, who remains a rigid and humorless foil for the Penderwicks' exuberance. The wedding serves as a seamless device to bring back more characters from previous books who arrive at the ceremony with pleasant surprises. Birdsall's writing, effervescent as ever, turns routine moments into delightful vignettes: Lydia finds an abandoned chair leg under a couch, "stoically waiting for the rest of its chair to come back." While Birdsall provides enough backstory for this entry to stand on its own, she rewards fans of the series with a meeting that brings the saga full circle and a closing image reassuring readers that the Penderwicks, like imagination and adventure, will live forever. VERDICT A richly satisfying curtain call for a beloved series.—Marybeth Kozikowski, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY