Ivy and Bean

Ivy and Bean are a great series of books for kids (maybe more for girls, but they aren't really "girly", no fairies, no unicorns, no endless pink). They are neighbors, who at first seem to have nothing in common. Bean is kind of a tomboy, always getting in trouble without meaning to. She really wants to be good, but often is not. She has an annoying, bossy older sister. Ivy seems to be a "sweeter" kind of kid. She is much more low key than Bean, but she has lots of ideas, and the confidence to try them. And her plans are fairly complex, not always as simply "nice" as one might expect. Like casting the ghost out of the bathroom at school, or reforming bad kids or animals to entice the birds to visit. She brings Bean along for the ride, and the combination is always very funny, and very sweet. I love reading these with A. They are fun for parents to read out loud (unlike some of the more girly, fairy, unicorn, pink books as there is an entertaining plot, and things to talk about.) There are 6 books in all, and we have read 4 of them I think. I'm glad we have a few left. I think I will miss Ivy and Bean when we are through, and hope that each of my girls will find her Ivy or Bean somewhere.