Orphaned Heidi lives with her gruff but caring
grandfather on the side of a Swiss mountain, where she befriends young Peter
the goatherd. She leads an idyllic life, until she is forced to leave the
mountain she has always known to go and live with a sickly girl in the city.
Will Heidi ever see her grandfather again? A classic tale of a young girl's
coming-of-age, of friendship, and familial love.
It's been many years since I last read Heidi. Having just
returned from a visit to Zurich, the home of the author, I felt it was time to
revisit the Swiss Alps. The book has three parts: the first, when Heidi goes to
live with her grandfather on the mountain; the second, when Heidi is taken to
Frankfurt to be Clara's companion; and the third, when Heidi returns to the mountain
and her grandfather. Each one is
portrayed vividly with its challenges and triumphs.
The story opens as Heidi's Aunt Dete, who has cared for
her since she was a year old, takes Heidi to live with her grandfather. Dete
has been offered a job where it is inconvenient to take Heidi with her. As she
drags the five-year-old Heidi through the village, the people are horrified by
the idea of Heidi living with the reclusive and grouchy old man, but Dete won't
be deterred. One sees the villagers' point when Dete arrives at the
grandfather's hut, and he is less than welcoming. But once Dete is gone, we see
a softer side of him as he makes room for Heidi in his life. Heidi is a sweet
child who looks at everything as an adventure, from sleeping in the loft on a
bed made of hay to exploring the meadows with the goats and Peter, the
goatherd. She is a compassionate and empathetic child who thinks of others
before herself. I loved her interactions with Peter's blind grandmother. She's
no pushover, though, and has the occasional run-in with Peter. And so, three
years pass as Heidi grows healthy and happy. The only negative is her
grandfather's refusal to send her to school in the village, though Heidi
doesn't miss it.
Then Aunt Dete reappears. She has a chance to ingratiate
herself with a wealthy family in Frankfurt. They are looking for a companion
for their invalid daughter, Clara, and want someone "innocent and
unspoiled." She and grandfather engage in a shouting match, and when he
storms off, she kidnaps Heidi, making promises she does not intend to keep.
Poor Heidi thinks she can go home anytime, so she doesn't fuss. Upon arriving
in Frankfurt at the Sesseman home, young Clara is enchanted by Heidi, though
the housekeeper, Fraulein Rottenmeier, takes her in immediate dislike. Poor
Heidi has no clue how to behave in a home like this and makes all kinds of
blunders, many of which are highly amusing. But Clara is kind and finds Heidi
vastly entertaining. Heidi has a fair share of stubbornness too, which comes
out when it is time for lessons. Having listened to Peter's tales of woe about
reading, Heidi refuses to try to learn. It isn't until Clara's grandmother
comes to visit that anything changes. I loved how she found just the right motivator
to break through Heidi's stubbornness, and once she did, there was no holding
Heidi back. But all is not well with Heidi. She is dreadfully homesick, and
though she tries to hide it, her health is soon affected. The ghost scene is funny
and heartbreaking as the depth of her unhappiness becomes clear. I loved the
doctor and his insistence that Heidi must return to her mountain home. Though
sad, Clara sends Heidi off with a bounty of gifts.
Finally, Heidi returns home to her beloved mountain and
grandfather. In the time she's been gone, he's become even more of a hermit and
grouch. However, their reunion is sweet and emotional. Peter, too, is overjoyed
to have his friend back. As shown in her reunion with Peter's grandmother,
Heidi continues to be a sweet ray of sunshine. The old lady's appreciation of
the soft rolls Heidi brings her is nothing compared to the joy she gets when
Heidi reads to her. That isn't all Heidi has learned, and she soon has her
grandfather ending his isolation and rejoining the world of the villagers.
Meanwhile, Heidi invites Clara to visit. Though illness
delays her trip, the good doctor from Frankfurt pays Heidi and her grandfather
a visit. The doctor, suffering from a personal tragedy, finds healing in the
simple life he experiences there. I loved seeing Heidi's joy in showing him
around her mountain. The downside is Peter's jealousy at having to share his
friend, a foreshadowing of future trouble. The doctor and Heidi's grandfather
become good friends. The doctor returns to Frankfurt convinced that Clara will
benefit greatly from a trip to Heidi's mountain, and plans commence for the following
summer.
I loved Heidi's excitement over her friend's imminent
visit. I loved the portrayal of the procession up the mountain - the horse bearing
Clara's grandmother, Clara being carried up in a sedan chair, and her
wheelchair carried up by still others. Grandfather surprises everyone with his
tender care of Clara, and grandmamma is impressed. The time passes quickly, and
soon they must go back down the mountain. Grandfather suggests that Clara be allowed
to stay on the mountain with Heidi in hopes of benefitting from the stay. I
loved seeing the joy of the two girls as they spent hours together. Once again,
Peter's jealousy over sharing his friend is apparent, and this time it takes a
destructive turn. He pushes Clara's empty wheelchair down the mountain, where
it is destroyed, hoping to force the girl's departure. Instead, Clara and Heidi
are more determined than ever to enjoy their time together. The healthy
lifestyle works wonders for Clara, and soon grandfather encourages her to try
standing. A trip to the high meadow with Peter and the goats gives Heidi the
idea for Clara to try walking and forces Peter to help. After getting a taste
for it, Clara becomes determined to leave the chair behind forever. I loved the
surprise the girls had for grandmamma on her next visit up the mountain. It was
topped only by the surprise appearance of Clara's father.
As Clara's visit ends, with promises to visit again the following
summer, life on the mountain returns to normal. Heidi's grandfather has now
been fully reintegrated into village life, and when winter comes, he and Heidi
move to a house in the village. Heidi continues her schooling and drags Peter
along with her, using the lesson learned from grandmamma to motivate him. Heidi
encourages grandfather to continue helping Peter's family. The doctor retires
from Frankfurt and moves to the village, giving Heidi another person who will
watch over her.
The author's vivid descriptions made the settings come
alive. I could practically smell the flowers in the meadow and hear the wind in
the fir trees. The goats and their unique personalities were great. I admit to
laughing out loud at the description of the monkey in the classroom and
Fraulein Rottenmeier's reaction. The description of Heidi's homesickness made
me ache for her, while I cheered at her joy the closer she got to home.
Peter was the one character that I was ambivalent about.
When it was just him and Heidi, things were good. He showed her how to get on
in the mountains and provided her with friendship. He's also lazy, doing the
minimum of what he needs to do to get by. This was especially true when it came
to reading to his grandmother. He's also selfish, which shows in his jealousy
at sharing Heidi with the doctor and Clara. His destruction of the wheelchair
was thoughtless and cruel, and he deserved the pangs of conscience he felt. I
felt that he got off a little too easy regarding the consequences of his
actions.
I especially noted during this reading the sometimes over-the-top
preachiness of some sections. This is common in children's literature of the
time. Stories for kids were written to teach as well as entertain, and morality
was rarely subtle.
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