Betsy Tacy Series

by Maud Hart Lovelace

Maud Hart Lovelace’s Betsy Tacy books are like perpetual Summer. They are innocent, tender and delightful. Difficulties arise, but never overpower the residents of Deep Valley, Minnesota. Particularly not the Ray family-one of childhood literature’s few intact and fully functional families.

Based loosely on Maud Hart Lovelace’s own childhood in Mankato, Minnesota, the series follows Betsy Ray (Maud), Tacy Kelly, and later Tib Mueller from kindergarten through marriage and grows delightfully with both the characters and the reader. Our favorites are therefore the final two, Betsy in the Great World and Betsy’s Wedding, but there isn’t a clinker in the bunch. Each book is full of fun, good humor and real characters-who have believable scrapes and escapes. The Ray family traditions become as anticipated to the reader as they to the Rays, and great new ideas for fun appear as "snoggestions".

In addition to the ten Betsy-Tacy books, (all currently in reprint) there are three more Lovelace novels that use both Deep Valley as setting and Betsy’s crowd as characters , but do not have Betsy as the central character. They are Winona’s Pony Cart, Carney’s House Party, and Emily of Deep Valley. They are as delightful as the Betsy-Tacy books and are also currently in print.

If you have only time to read one Deep Valley book, we recommend Emily of Deep Valley as it is the least connected to the other novels. It is a dull individual indeed, however, who can stop at one Betsy-Tacy book.

The books inevitably, therefore, have a most loyal following. Considering that the novels have never been adapted for film or television like Anne of Green Gables or Little House on the Prairie, this continued devotion and interest is testimonial indeed.

Stepping Into the Story

Activities

Mr. and Mrs. Ray had the somewhat unusual and very delightful tradition of including their children in their anniversary celebration-an excursion to Murmuring Lake where they met and were married. If a wedding anniversary is not a practical time for full family participation, there are still sure to be other commemorations that would be ideal opportunities to celebrate your own family’s history. Children seem never to tire of hearing the events that led up their lives, and such connections can become sweet memories and touchstones well into their adulthood.

The Rays had some wonderful Christmas traditions as well-stuffing each other’s stockings after lights out on Christmas Eve, and Betsy, Tacy, and Tib’s annual window shopping excursion that resulted in the purchase of a new decoration for the tree. Such simple traditions can be even more memorable year-to-year than the costly presents. Even simply re-reading aloud some of the Christmas descriptions from the novels, while other family members decorate the house or sip cocoa before bedtime, can become a lovely tradition.

Sunday Night Lunch was a terrific institution at the Ray household that provided not only for family, but true community fun. As the weekly tradition included any family member’s friends there was no sense that fun was the property of only one generation. (A very nice sentiment as one grows older.)

Music

It’s hard to imagine the Ray household without music-whether it’s Julia’s operatic soprano, the Crowd around the piano, Mrs. Ray playing waltzes, or an important rehearsal of a Betsy and Tacy cat duet-this is a household of song. So well chronicled are the pieces sung by Julia or the Crowd, that no guesswork is necessary.

Here is a beginning list:

Shy Ann
Crocodile Isle
Cause I’m Lonesome
My Wild Irish Rose
Dreaming
Come Away with Me, Lucille
I Wonder Who’s Kissing Her Now
What’s the Use of Dreaming?

Some of these are available for piano, voice, and guitar in The Big Book of Nostalgia published by the Hal Leonard Corporation (inventory #310004) and available from your local music dealer or by calling 1-800-637-2852. This book also lists hits from each year of Betsy’s schooling.

Opera—courtesy of Julia, of course—was also a mainstay of the Ray household. Particularly mentioned are I Pagliacci-Vesti la giubba by Ruggeiro Leoncavallo, La Boheme-Si, Mi chiamano Mi by Giacomo Puccini, and Kind, Du Kannst Tanzen by Franz Lehar.

Finding the Book

Book texts on the Internet contains links to some Internet sites from which the text of the book may be available.

Internet Resources

Betsy-Tacy Society Home Page—Web site for The Betsy-Tacy Society.

Related Products:

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The Pond	Tacy	Vol. 1 No. 6 - Heaven to Betsy	Vol. 4 No. 4 - Emily of Deep Valley
Vol. 5 No. 1 - A Betsy-Tacy Christmas	Full-year Subscription to The Storybook Home Journal™	Full-year Gift Subscription to The Storybook Home Journal™	Custom Order for Single Issues of The Storybook Home Journal
Butternut Center	Murmuring Lake