Samantha Helps a Friend is a Random House Books American Girl publication focused on Samantha Parkington. The book is a Step Into Reading - Step Three early reader retelling of Samantha Learns a Lesson (with backstory sections from Meet Samantha).
Series Characters
- Samantha Parkington
- Mary Edwards
- Gardner Edwards
- Eddie Ryland
- Nellie O'Malley
- Jenny O'Malley
- Bridget O'Malley
- Edith Eddleton
- Hawkins (referred to as Mr. Hawkins)
Summary
In 1904, Samantha is a truthful, helpful girl who lives in a big house with her grandmother. She likes to climb trees and make new friends. While Samantha enjoys going on adventures--often scraping her knees and tearing her stockings--her grandmother, whom she calls Grandmary, wants Samantha to be a proper young lady and practice her embroidery. Her Uncle Gard, one of her favorite people, lives in New York City and has an automobile that Samantha likes to ride in; he also is the only one that calls her Sam.
Her next door neighbor, Eddie Ryland, is always teasing her. One day Eddie tells Samantha that there is a new girl next door--Nellie O'Malley, who works for Eddie's family. Samantha meets her and they become friends after sharing a cookie.
Nellie has two younger sisters, Jenny and Bridget. Because they had needed to work, they had never been to school before and are going for the first time. Samantha excitedly walks them to their first day of school; Nellie is nervous, but Samantha assures her it will be okay. Samantha picks them up after school and finds that everything is not okay: Nellie is crying and upset because other children teased her for being in second grade at her age. Samantha, sorry to see Nellie upset, has an idea of how to help and sets up a schoolroom in her house for Nellie, intending to help with her education so Nellie can be moved up to the third grade.
Samantha, who goes to Miss Crampton's Academy, finds out that there will be a speech competition about progress in America, with two winning girls going to a larger competition. Samantha, unsure of what topic to choose, asks her family about inventions and the best sign of progress. Grandmary says the telephone; Uncle Gard says automobiles; and Hawkins says factories, which Samantha chooses as the best sign of progress.
Edith, another girl at her school, teases Samantha for playing with Nellie who is poor; Samantha doesn't care what she thinks. The girls in her class give their speeches; Samantha is chosen to go to the big competition with her speech about how factories make things quickly and cheaply; Edith is also chosen.
Samantha, excitedly, practices her speech for Nellie. Nellie doesn't like the speech, which hurts Samantha's feelings and she asks why. Nellie explains that Samantha's speech isn't true and talks about how she used to work in a factory and the dangers for children that work in them, which surprises Samantha. Samantha wants to be honest.
At the competition, Samantha gives a changed speech about what factories are really like and that to have real progress in America, all children should be safe. The audience is shocked, but Nellie is happy. Grandmary and others clap and Samantha wins the contest; she is proud to have told the truth.
After the competition, Nellie tells Samantha that her help has moved Nellie up to the third grade; but now she has to sit next to Eddie Ryland! Samantha promises they'll keep working hard to move Nellie up to the front of the class.
Stickers
Thirty-one stickers with images from the illustrations and the abbreviated American Girl Logo are included.
Differences between Samantha Helps a Friend and the mentioned Central Series books
- Nellie's hair is more blonde and similar to the 1986 illustrations.
- Edith's hair is short and a reddish bob.
- As the story focuses primarily on Samantha and Nellie's friendship, many characters are left out. Cornelia Edwards is not mentioned or discussed and nor are Nellie's parents, Jessie, Mrs. Hawkins, or any of the other girls or teachers in Samantha's book.
- Because of the brevity of the book, Nellie is not sent away and is implied to still be working for the Rylands rather than the family working for the van Sicklens.
- Nellie is seen with her doll Lydia but as there is no mention of her leaving the Rylands, there is no explanation of how she was received.
Collection Items Illustrated in Samantha Helps a Friend
- Samantha's Classic Meet Outfit
- Play Dress and Pinafore
- Samantha's Velvet Dress (shown with a white bow)
- Embroidery Sampler (text with different border)
- Nellie's Doll