Book Review: Grace Harlowe’s Second Year at Overton College by Jessie Graham Flowers, A.M.
Having survived summer vacation, Grace Harlowe returns to Overton College and reunites with her friends from the previous years. She’s eager to resume her studies at the women’s school. And so begins another year of ups and downs.
This is the sixth book in the Grace Harlowe series of books for girls, which began with Grace Harlowe’s Plebe Year at High School. As you might guess, the series tended towards titles that exactly described the contents. After the high school and college years, the series moved on to Grace’s service with the Red Cross in World War One, and then becoming a part of a Forestry Department horse patrol known as the Overland Riders.
Young Grace is a paragon of virtue, who influences those around her to become better people, who in turn do the same for others.
Little time is spent on Grace’s classes in this book, and much more on friends chatting and going to small restaurants near campus.
The biggest source of conflict early in the book is The Anarchist, a young woman with bushy eyebrows and a fierce attitude who doesn’t seem to grasp how rude she’s being and that she can’t just claim boarding house rooms at random. (Late in the book we learn that she literally has no concept of how normal relationships between girls work.)
Of more concern to Grace personally is that she’s framed for plagiarism; the actual incident doesn’t last long before she’s vindicated, but the aftereffects linger.
Grace’s big accomplishment in this volume is creating the Semper Fidelis group which puts on shows to raise funds for microloans to the more financially strapped students at Overton.
Money issues also factor into a quarrel between two of Grace’s friends, a wealthy girl and a scholarship student, as the former asks some insensitive questions.
There’s a chapter set during the Christmas holiday for Grace to catch up with her old high school friends.
This is all pretty low-stakes stuff, and this certainly isn’t a series for children who prefer action. But it’s fun to see what college might have been like for Great-Great Grandmother, and the cozy atmosphere soothing for youngsters who are tired of over excitement.
The entire series is up at Project Gutenberg; try one and see how you like it.
