Module 4: 13 Little Blue Envelopes

Module 4: 13 Little Blue Envelopes

Book Summary: 

Virginia "Ginny" Blackstone would consider herself a typical high school student, maybe a little more klutzy and shy side of things. However, that fact seems to fly out the window when she receives a letter from her recently deceased aunt instructing her alone to head for Europe with only the items she can fit in a backpack, no money, no electronics and only a set of 13 little blue envelopes to guide her on her journey. At first, the directions seem bizarre and random, instructing Ginny to complete certain tasks and visit certain locations. However, as she travels, Ginny not only unravels the mystery of her aunt's sudden disappearance, cancer diagnosis, and death; Ginny also discovers the joy and passion of her aunt's life and accomplishments. Along the way, Ginny is surprised to discover that she is not only learning about Aunt Peg, she is learning a lot about herself in the process.

APA Reference of Book:

Johnson, M. (2005). 13 little blue envelopes. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.

Impressions:

I have to come right out and say that I realize this book had flaws and they were noticeable. There was minimal character development and a lot of the things that happened are a pretty far stretch even for realistic fiction. However, regardless of that, I think this book still had a lot to offer and I enjoyed it. As a result of the little blue envelopes, Ginny accomplished a lot of things and learned a lot: about her aunt, herself and what she wants out of life. The things that the envelopes prompted her to do were often out of her comfort zone and without any guides or crutches, she was forced to rely on herself to do them. This is a valuable lesson to any reader, even though the situation itself is rather farfetched. As the aunt who designed the challenge knew Ginny well, there is nothing required of her that is out of her realm of accomplishment. .

I enjoyed the character of Aunt Peg. Although it was sad that I ended the book knowing more about her than her niece Ginny who was the main character of the story. However Aunt Peg is the driving force behind the plot: she designed the 13 little blue envelopes and her story is unfolding each time Ginny opens an envelope. We see her touch in every locale that Ginny visits and we watch as Ginny understands the erratic behavior of her aunt's life that she could never make sense of before. Aunt Peg seems like the quintessential free spirit but she has many of her own secrets that come to light after her death. I found it touching that even as she was dying, she was driven to prepare everything for those she would leave behind, not only to comfort them in their grief, but to continue helping them grow, just as Peg would have if she were still alive.

Professional Review:

Ginny's eccentric aunt Peg has died and left her seventeen-year-old niece with a strange legacy: a modest budget and thirteen blue envelopes containing various instructions that send Ginny on a life-changing, highly unorthodox peregrination around Europe. Ginny's journey brings the serendipitous encounters her aunt had hoped (a budding romance with a young playwright, some staunch comrades of the road), some rougher but realistic experiences (an aggressive male pursuer in Rome, a thief of her belongings in Corfu), and finally a greater understanding not just of herself but also her complicated aunt. The story is perforce rather traveloguish, but in a pleasing way: knowledgeable readers will relish the confirmation of their expertise as they encounter familiar aspects of London and Paris, Copenhagen and Rome, while others will simply luxuriate in vicarious voyaging. Ginny is a [End Page 99] sympathetic everygirl, convinced "everyone else's life was more interesting than hers" and aware of the broadening of her horizons while remaining capable of being tired, irritable, and overwhelmed by weeks of strange places and dirty clothes; the supporting cast, both rotating and recurring, provides patches of believable yet enticing color. Johnson's style is comradely and ruefully humorous, inviting both strictly armchair travelers and wannabe world voyagers to accompany Ginny on her life-changing journey.

Stevenson, D. (2005). [Review of the book 13 little blue envelopes, by M. Johnson]. Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, 59 (2), 99-100. doi: 10.1353/bcc.2005.0172

Library Uses:

Add to a reading list of teen fiction with the subject of traveling, during or after high school.

Host a contest for teen patrons of the library to create their own 13 little blue envelopes challenge for their hometown or possibly a dream vacation.