Rose Rivers (World of Hetty Feather)

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Oh, I do miss Rupert. He is by far my favourite brother. We are not at all alike even though we are twins (Rupert is very good-looking and I am not), but when we were little Papa called us Tweedledee and Tweedledum. We went everywhere together and frequently spoke in unison. We weren’t interested in our sister Beth when she was born. We couldn’t be bothered with any other playmate. We were an entity unto ourselves. I would not recommend the book because although the story was good, it was ruined by the ending. It did not come to a complete conclusion and it came to an abrupt finish.

I wouldn’t recommend it because I was a huge fan of Jacqueline Wilson and have read ALL of them and this one was definitely the worst and now I don’t read her as much anymore. Other people might like it but it doesn’t appeal to me. The time the story is set in changed the way everyone talked and the manners and social etiquette of parties and other occasions. One other big change is what is expected for women and men and their different rolls: Rose was expected to stay at home and have no education, where as her brother went to school and was expected to inherit his granddad’s business. Rose is a young girl in a wealthy family whom loves studying and wishes to go to school more than anything but instead her twin brother Rupert gets to go.I am really enjoying Rose Rivers at the moment. I really like the way the descriptive language Jacqueline Wilson uses is so much fun. I find the information fascinating about life in Victorian times such as the privileges Rupert as a boy has that Rose as a girl doesn’t, like going to school. I hated it and the whole relationship with her family especially her Father crumbled and were completely useless! I hated that so much. Then they go away and decide to make her go to school which is the worst punishment because that’s what she wanted all along! I dare say those waistcoats are bulging with purses of gold coins,’ Mama responded tartly. ‘It would be a great help if you cared to contribute to the household finances.’

Rose has a difficult relationship with her mother. Rose’s father tries to encourage her to follow in his artistic footsteps, but Rose doesn’t have her father’s talent. But when a young artist friend of her father, Paris Walker, visits the house, Rose starts to find herself more interested in art. One thing that stood out to me was the relationship between Rupert and Rose – they are twins but despite this they were completely different. Rose was way more tolerable against Rupert then she is with everyone else even though he was a liar and can be very self-centred. Rose Rivers lives in a beautiful house with her artist father, her difficult, fragile mother and her many siblings. She has everything money can buy - but she feels as though life isn't fair for girls and poor people. Mama always tuts when she sees my drawings. She doesn’t approve of them at all. Papa laughs and thinks them funny, but he says that I should start drawing seriously now. He is hoping that I have true artistic ability. It’s not just because he is an indulgent father (though he is!). He’d like at least one of his children to have inherited his talent. Rupert is the eldest but has never had the patience or indeed any natural ability at art. I am his twin and only fifteen minutes younger, so now Papa is pinning his hopes on me. He laughed again. ‘Perhaps, when you are eighteen or so, I might send you to Paris to be properly trained, though I know Mama will object!’One of my least favourite characters has to be Nurse Budd because of the way she slyly treated the children (especially Beth) with such cruelty. She was very two-faced, acting polite, pleasant and good-natured towards the parents but harsh towards the children and even barbaric for putting Beth through such danger.