8 h 7 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
In a small country house, a spirited girl and her sisters make ordinary days matter.
At the Little Brown House by Ruth Brown MacArthur follows a lively young girl within a family of sisters. Their home is small and plain, but its warmth comes from the people inside. Here, growing up unfolds through household pleasures, shared chores, and the close company of family.
The countryside shapes the rhythm of their days, while neighbors bring warmth beyond the household. MacArthur gives small events room to matter. The story invites you to notice what a task, a disappointment, or a moment together can mean to a child, without hurrying toward fast action or sharp surprises.
What you’ll discover
- A spirited young heroine Follow a lively girl whose growing up sits at the heart of this gentle family story.
- The company of sisters Explore the closeness and friction that make sisters such important companions as a girl grows.
- A home with warmth Enter a plain country household where people, rather than possessions, give daily life its warmth.
- The rhythm of country life Find the quiet pleasures and lessons that come with chores, seasons, and the warmth of neighbors.
- Small moments that matter See ordinary experiences given the care they deserve in a child's world.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy warm family stories, spirited girls, village life, gentle humor and the small adventures of childhood, in the spirit of tales about sisters growing up on a farm.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A tramp earns his breakfast
- A very talkative girl meets the minister
- Shoes, strawberries and flower sellers
- Sackcloth, ashes and a hungry Thanksgiving
- Faith wakes up and Peace makes a bargain
- Cows, sweet peas and poisoned hens
- A bull, red paint and a whipping
- Moon ladies, melons and a cake map
- The mortgage and what it is really about
Who’s who
- Peace GreenfieldA small, brown eyed girl with a quick tongue who tries to solve every family problem herself and often makes it worse.
- GailThe oldest sister, who works as the family's mother and tries to keep the home together on very little money.
- FaithA gifted baker and the second sister, who is often cross and sad until she finds her own work to do.
- HopeThe sunny, gentle sister who reads, mends quarrels and helps Gail without complaint.
- CherryCharity, the cautious reader of the family, who follows Peace into schemes she doubts.
- AlleeThe youngest sister, a loyal little girl who follows Peace everywhere and takes part in her plans.
- Mr. HartmanThe stern, teasing farmer next door, who holds the farm's mortgage and slowly comes to like Peace.
- Mr. StrongThe young new minister of Parker, who understands Peace, laughs with her and quietly helps the family.
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- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read today.
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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At the Little Brown House
Six orphaned sisters, a mortgage, and one small girl with a plan for everything keep a brown farmhouse going.
Medium level5–10 hours to readEnglish
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In short
Six orphaned sisters, a mortgage, a mysterious tramp and one small girl who is sure she can fix everything herself. That is the heart of At the Little Brown House, a children's novel by Ruth Brown MacArthur.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A tramp earns his breakfast
On a bright June morning, Peace, Cherry and Allee slip out of the little brown house to gather flowers. Their tumbling in the road wakes a gray-haired tramp asleep behind a hedge. He cannot help smiling at the muddy girls.
Later Peace questions him like a grown woman and tells him tramps must work for food. Gail trims her long list of jobs to a little wood chopping. He notices the girls' birch bark boats and says city people would pay well for such things.
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- 15-minute summary
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Details
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 5 h 15 min
- Level
- Medium level
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What is At the Little Brown House about?
It tells of six orphaned Greenfield sisters on a small farm near the village of Parker, and especially of Peace, who tries to solve the family's money troubles with schemes that often go wrong in funny ways.
Who is the tramp in At the Little Brown House?
He keeps returning to the edge of the story. The book tells you who he really is only at its close.
Why is Peace's name a joke in the book?
Peace is a lively, stubborn girl, so her name does not seem to fit her. Her sisters are named Faith, Hope and Charity, from the Bible names their grandfather liked, and Peace often says hers is the worst match.
The author
Ruth Brown MacArthur
American children's author
Ruth Brown MacArthur wrote children's stories about large families and life on small farms. This book is part of that work and draws on country village life of its time, with its church socials, farm chores and trips to the city by streetcar. The book itself shows a writer who loved humor, warm hearted families and young girls with strong minds.
More by Ruth Brown MacArthur
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