Penny from heaven book review:

I just finished reading a fantastic book called Penny from Heaven by Jennifer L Holm. This book represents a girl and her relationship with her family. The overall themes for the book are growing up and letting go of the past. It made me think about me and my relationship with my family by reflecting on those we have lost and how lucky I am to have such a big family. I give Penny from Heaven 4 out of 5 stars, that means people might start loving it. I primarily recommend this book to families of all ages.

The characters in the book are of course Penny as the main character, 11 when the book start and 12 by the time that it ended. Her uncle Dominic, her dad’s brother, is her favorite uncle because dad died when she was just a baby. Her dad’s brothers treat her extra special and uncle Dominic is her all-time favorite. Since her dad died when she was just a baby, Penny had a good relationship with her mom and that’s another character. Her and mom also lived with her grandparents, Mom’s parents, Mimi the bad cook and Pop-Pop Mr. Deaf in one ear so he doesn’t hear good and he also talks loud. Penny has a lot of cousins but her best friend would be Frankie, they all go on adventures together. Her mom also had a boyfriend, Pop Mulligan who Penny hated at first but by the end she thought he was an okay guy, and if you want to know more read the story.

The book takes place in a small town in New Jersey in 1953. The main settings are Mimi and Pop-Pop’s house, where Penny and her mom live as well. Another important place is her Italian grandmother’s, Dad’s mom’s house. Her Nonny’s cooking is a lot better than Mimi’s cooking that’s for sure. Her uncle Ralphie, one of dad’s many brother’s butcher shop where Penny and Frankie work for the summer is a very important place. A place Penny spent a lot of time in was the hospital because something bad happened to her and she had to stay there for a long time so it became pretty important.

The writer’s style was very easy to read because Jennifer L Holm is Penny’s Daughter. She wrote about things that actually happened to her mom. Something that I liked was Penny and her mom’s relationship, their all each other has, expect for Mimi and Pop-Pop. Even when a new family member came in Penny was the most important thing to her mom.


In conclusion, once again I recommend this book to families with young kids. There are a few things that I would change if I could, Mr. Mulligan having a few kids might be good too but I don’t mind if there’s just the three of them. But I liked that Jennifer L Holm wrote about her mom’s life. I give this book four out of five stars. This is also a great book for a family that lost someone and readjusting to a new life without the parent there all the time. Also I’d recommend this book for blended families because Penny’s family was blended by the end.