Pollyanna Grows Up

Pollyanna walks again. Her legs have healed, and she brings her habit of finding something to be glad about to Boston, where she sets out to cheer a circle of new friends. Aunt Polly and Dr. Chilton are with her, and a trip to Europe is planned.

In Boston, Pollyanna visits Mrs. Carew, who knew the doctor who healed her and needs comforting. There she meets Jamie, a poor orphan boy who may be Mrs. Carew's long-lost nephew, Sir James. Pollyanna works to bring the two together.

The second half jumps ahead eight years. Pollyanna is now twenty. After Dr. Chilton's death, she and her aunt hit hard times and take in summer boarders, who turn out to be the same Boston friends she made as a girl.

The household fills with friendships that turn into romance for several couples. The question underneath is whether her glad game can survive grown-up disappointments. The tone stays warm and gentle, and the story moves from a child's errands of kindness to a young woman's tested optimism.

Porter wrote this one herself, and it opens the long run of sequels that follow Pollyanna (1913). Later books in the series came from other hands.