Baby brother Charlie has joined the ALL-OF-A-KIND FAMILY, and Ella, Charlotte, Hennie, Sarah and Gertie are having fun watching him become a real person with whom they can play.

They are also continuing their weekly jaunts to the library, making new friends, and learning a lot in school. But there is a problem with Hennie. For her, school is as much a playtime as it is a learning one, and she loves to make odd noises. Not surprisingly, these don't please her teacher too much, and her punishment—staying after school to write on the blackboard one hundred times "I'll never make noises in school again," almost leads to a family disaster.

It's a musical family, too, and the piano is a center for a lot of happy times together. This is especially true after their friend Guido joins them signing get togethers and harmonizes along with them.

There's sadness, too, as they all realize that Guido's mother is dying. What will become of the young boy, with no family, and no one to look after him? Good people are there to help, however, and Guido finds a new home, while the girls and their family make yet another friend.

Finally, there is the wonderful Thanksgiving play at the neighborhood settlement house, and the party that follows, the cooking accident that turns into a delicious meal, and the climax of it all, as Charlie utters his first word, "MAMA!"

Everyone will want to join the girls and their loved ones in yet another series of stories about life in earlier America, where affection and understanding more than made up for riches and luxury.

From the dust jacket