Kizzy Lovell, a young Romani girl, an outsider and an orphan, whose extended family doesn't want her after her grandmother dies, is taken in by other outsiders: Admiral Twiss, a man in a country house and the two men who work for him---considered an unacceptable guardian because he is a man---and Miss Brooke, an older unmarried newcomer.

It's nice that Mrs. Cuthbert, the bossy, obnoxious mother of a girl who is a bully is not as admired by the community as she thinks she should be. But perhaps it's a little too easy to see who the good guys are, although the children show that change and new understanding and acceptance is possible. Eventually everything works out nicely.

An interesting observation is made about different cultures: while Mrs. Cuthbert says the Romani are dirty and have no "table manners....'[s]ome gypsy children eat with their fingers and wipe them on their hair afterwards," Miss Brooke explains "A gypsy might refuse to have a cup of tea with you because he can't be sure of how well you wash your china. ... You might put your tea towels in the spin dryer with your bed-linen or underclothes." [pp, 67-68] ( )

An unsuual story about an outcast young girl and the wise woman who takes her in. I really enjoyed it. I'm so glad I finally got around to reading this. It had been on my shelf for years. Believable characters. A fun read for any age. ( )

A melodramatic fantasy, really. Everything's neat & pat, and rather implausible. And the themes are not subtle. A joyful read for a good young reader; I would have loved it when I was seven or eight. But it's just not all that good a book. Sorry. ( )

Rumer Godden is a writer that I hope will come back into style. Her adult novels, as well as her children's novels are little gems. This book is about a gypsy girl, a diddakoi, who is taken in by an older gentleman in an English town after her grandmother dies, her wagon is burnt, and her "family" abandons her. The reaction of the town to Kizzy, her reaction to them, and the interactions that change everyone is wonderfully brought to flower without a lot of exposition, analysis, or judgement. Lovely. ( )

This used to be my Mum's book. I found it at the bottom of my bookshelf and thought why not? I was bored and I didn't think it would be that interesting but I soon found it I couldn't stop reading! I thought it was set in the really olden days but it wasn't. It had all modern things in it and I thought the ending was lovely. At first when Kizzy puts petrol onto the bonfire to make it bigger, I thought for a minute that she was going to try to murder them! I loved the way Prue, the bully, turned out to be the hero of the story. ( )