I bought The Bobbsey Twins On Blueberry Island. Normally I don't buy children's books but the circumstances were unusual. I had just splurged and bought myself a Kindle so that I could read at the gym with my hands free. The machines at the gym are worthless as far as holding a book open so I can read, exercise, and not fall off the machine. My kindle paper white works very well. All I have to do is touch the right side of the screen to turn the page. Now I can read and work out and not fall off all at the same time. Naturally I downloaded free books onto this Kindle. When I searched for the important things when selecting a book to download (free, classic) I came up with this story by Laura Lee Hope. I loved the Bobbsey Twins when I was young. I was happy to be reintroduced to Freddie, Flossie, Nan and Bert again. I was, however, shocked at the blatant sexism, racism, and the rigid roles portrayed in the story. Shocked, I say. Bert is allowed to search for the missing dog but Nan and Freddie and Flossie must stay at home where they are safe. Flossie is labeled as unusual because, unlike all the other girls, she isn't afraid to pick up bugs and worms. Freddie's father calls him the fat fireman and he calls Flossie the fat fairy. In this story the racism is mostly directed at the "gypsies" who are staying in the area and are suspected of stealing a doll, some toys, and the family dog. I shake my head when I read the dialogue of Dinah and Sam, the Bobbsey family maid and handyman. There is no way anything so racist and sexist would be written these days. The writing brings me back to an age of innocence but there is no way I am buying these for my grand daughter. My consciousness has been raised. The Bobbsey Twins have become offensive. To be fair, it was published in 1917.
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