The Penderwicks on Gardam Street

In The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, the widowed Martin and his four daughters navigate the complex process of learning to love again after loss. Initially, all of the sisters staunchly oppose their father dating because they have negative associations with stepparents due to their experiences with Jeffrey’s stepfather and Anna’s various stepmothers. Rosalind in particular struggles with the idea of someone replacing her beloved mother and altering the family structure, which is why she proposes the Save-Daddy Plan even though it conflicts with her conscience: “She knew in her deepest heart that a more honest title would be the Save-Rosalind-and-Her-Sisters Plan, but she was not ready to admit that even to herself” (68). Over the course of the novel, each of the four sisters bonds with Iantha, who is pivotal to their process of learning to love again. 

The Penderwick sisters’ embrace of Iantha as a surrogate mother marks the completion of their emotional arcs. The love between Iantha and the Penderwick siblings evolves so gradually and naturally that Rosalind doesn’t realize that the family has already embraced a new mother figure until Chapter 20. Watching Iantha and Martin together, she reflects: “What if Mommy was right about Daddy getting lonely and needing a grown-up woman to talk to besides Aunt Claire? [….