By the Newbery Honor author, Polly Horvath, comes a sequel to her
popular Pine Island Home about orphaned sisters who find a way to make
a new family.
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. Fiona is struggling under the weight of
trying to keep everything together, not to mention worrying about
expenses, while Marlin tries to adjust to her new high school while
facing rejections for her cookbook, Thirty Meals a Twelve-Year-Old
Could Make and Did!. Natasha is still keeping to herself but is looking
forward to learning how to play the violin when school starts. And
Charlie is dreaming of what kind of dog she would like. It's been an
adjustment, but they are loving being with each other and having Al next
door.
Then they receive a letter from Mrs. Witherspoon who took care of them
after their parents died and 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.
