Pine Island Home

 I've recently begun to read “Pine Island Home,” a book I bought at a book sale long ago but have never picked up. It follows the lives of four young sisters, whose missionary parents washed away in a tsunami. 

They begin the book living with a woman from their current local church who lovingly took them in. However, they know she will not be their permanent home, and they wait anxiously as she searches for a relative to take them in. However, no one wants to take four girls into their home. As they all panic, thinking they will be sent to social services, they receive a letter from their great aunt Martha. She welcomes them to come to Pine Island, British Columbia, where they will live with her in her large estate. 

However, when they arrive, they find the house empty. After some investigation, they find out that their aunt has died suddenly of a heart attack and left them alone once more. Again in a panic of being separated by the government, Fiona, the eldest, must create a plan to keep them together. But her plan will only work if no one knows that they are living alone. 

I have not gotten very far in this book, but so far it has been a pleasing light read. It has a vaguely Anne of Green Gables feel to it, and it is full of aesthetically pleasing descriptions of their quaint home on the island. I have enjoyed seeing the sisters grow into their own small and peculiar family, each taking up a role they found vacant with their lack of adults. (Although I will admit, despite my appreciation for the soft and peaceful writing I often find myself falling asleep mid-sentence…)

I would definitely recommend it if you are looking for a stress-free and light read!

-Olive Jan