Flicka, Ricka, Dicka Go To Market is a hardcover reprint of a classic book from 1958. If you're not familiar with these stories, as I was not, Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka are three sisters who live in Sweden. In this particular story, they're looking for ways to earn money for new bicycles when their father suggests they plant a garden and sell their produce.

Maj Lindman is the author and illustrator of the Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka series. Though they are intended to be set in Sweden, I couldn't tell that from the book itself. Instead, it reminded me of books and television shows set in America in the 1950s. The brightly-colored illustrations in the book are all original. Each two-page spread contains one page of text, and one full-page illustration with a caption.

This book was not a hit with my children. They got bored with the story and haven't asked to read it again. I have noticed them looking at the pictures, but when I offer to read it to them, they decline. However, children who are accustomed to older books may enjoy Flicka, Ricka, Dicka Go To Marketmore than my children do. Although my children didn't care for the book, I thought it explained the steps of growing a garden very well. It also illustrated the sense of pride and accomplishment that we feel when we work hard at something and succeed. The girls' willingness to work diligently and patiently to earn money for new bikes, instead of just begging for them, also sets a good example for readers. But despite all those great lessons, it just didn't captivate my children.

Flicka, Ricka, Dicka Go To Market would probably be enjoyed in more conservative homes, or homes that focus on older children's literature. It has good lessons to teach, and it delivers them pleasantly, although not in the most exciting manner. The illustrations are charmingly vintage, which gives it a nostalgia-value for those who remember reading Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka books when they were young.

Product Review by April Elstrom, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, April, 2012