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Inside little blue envelope 1 are $1,000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket. In envelope 2 are directions to a specific London flat. The note in envelope 3 tells Ginny: Find a starving artist. Because of envelope 4, Ginny and a playwright/thief/ bloke–about–town called Keith go to... read more

Summary edit see section history

Seventeen-year-old Ginny had always admired her aunt Peg, a free-spirited artist who often disappeared for months, most recently to Europe Aunt Peg has died of brain cancer, and in a characteristically cryptic gesture made before her death she lefts behind 13 blue envelopes all containing... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

Seventeen-year-old Ginny had always admired her aunt Peg, a free-spirited artist who often disappeared for months, most recently to Europe Aunt Peg has died of brain cancer, and in a characteristically cryptic gesture made before her death she lefts behind 13 blue envelopes all containing tasks for her to do, the first letter , she arranged for her niece to receive a plane ticket to London, where Ginny will begin a series of adventures. Guided by Peg's friends and the instructions in each of 13 letters her aunt wrote, Ginny sets off across Europe. Staying with Peg's contacts or in hotels being uncomfortable as her aunt challenges her to do stuff she never herself would have done by herself . As Ginny begins to peel away some of the mythic layers surrounding her aunt while doing this she falls into thrilling escapades and a blossoming romance. the plot stretches plausibility and find out what her aunts been doing all of these years . Would Ginny's practical mother really have agreed to such a solo, undefined journey? But readers will probably overlook any improbabilities and willingly accompany Ginny through her sensitive, authentically portrayed experiences--uncomfortable, lonely, giddy, and life changing experiences--as she pieces together family mysteries and discovers herself.

Characters/People edit see section history

  • Virginia 'Ginny' Blackstone: The protagonist. 17 years old. Ginny's Aunt Peg leaves a bundle of 13 envelopes for her to follow. Each envelope has a new assignment and adventure, and the envelopes take Ginny on a journey throughout Europe.
  • Keith Dobson: The playwright/thief/bloke-about-town college man that Gin meets after reading Envelope #3. This has romantic and disastrous results. Keith loves to eat and is a great friend. He is also very funny.
  • Richard: Aunt Peg's friend that lives in London. He works at a department store called Harrods. Harrods sells just about everything that you can dream of.
  • Aunt Peg: Ginny's fun-loving, erratic aunt. She ran away from America and first went to London. Then, she explored throughout Europe. She had Richard send Ginny a package containing 13 blue envelopes with instructions that will lead Ginny on an adventure throughout Europe.
  • Olivia Knapp: Daughter of over-enthusiastic Mr. & Mrs. Knapp.
  • David: Keith's roommate, Fiona's boyfriend. They have a strained relationship.
  • Carrie: Student from Australia.
  • Knud: Danish biker who Ginny has to meet.
  • Ginny: Goes looking for her aunt
  • Bennett: Student from Australia. Emmett's brother
  • Charlie: A man Ginny is supposed to meet.
  • Fiona: David's overly-skinny, overly-bleached girlfriend.
  • Cecil Gage-Rathbone: A man Ginny has to contact.
  • Alice: Owner of 4th Noodle and Aunt Peg's old friend.
  • Miriam: Ginny's best friend from back home.
  • Emmett: Student from Australia. Bennet's brother
  • Paul: Owner of The Little Dogs restaurant in Paris that Aunt Peg decorated.
  • Phil Knapp: Son of over-enthusiastic Mr. & Mrs. Knapp, who gives up his room for Ginny.
  • Nigel: Student from Australia.
Show all 19 characters
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “She was standing in the airport of Copenhagen, staring at a doorway, trying to figure out if it was (a) a bathroom and (b) what kind of bathroom it was. The door merely said H.Was she an H?Was H "hers"? It could just as easily be "his". Or "Helicopter Room:Not a Bathroom at All".”
    Narrator
  • “Pack snacks. This is a good rule to follow in all aspects of life.”
    Aunt Peg
  • “The locker at the end of her bed had no lock, and one of the hinges was busted. She opened it up.There was a thing in it.The thing might have been a sandwich at some point, or an animal, or a human hand...but what it was now was fuzzy and putrid.A minute later, Ginny was down the stairs, out the door, and gone.”
    Narrator
  • “Rule #1: You may bring only what fits in your backpack. Don't try to fake it out with a purse or a carry-on. Rule #2: You may not bring guidebooks, phrase books, or any kind of foreign language aid. And no journals. Rule #3: You cannot bring extra money or credit/debit cards, traveler's checks, etc. I'll take care of all that. Rule #4. No electronic crutches. This means no laptop, no cell phone, no music, and no camera. You can't call home or communicate with people in the U.S. by internet or telephone. Postcards and letters are acceptable and encouraged.”
    Aunt Peg
  • “It's good to be in a cage, it keeps you focused. I recommend it.”
    Mari Adams
  • Popular Highlights from Kindle Customers
  • life leaves you without directions, without guideposts or signs. When this happens, you just have to pick a direction and run like hell.
    Highlighted by 94 Kindle customers
  • We want to remember, and we want to be remembered. That’s why we paint.”
    Highlighted by 55 Kindle customers
  • Travestere couldn’t be a real place. It looked like Disney had attacked a corner of Rome with leftover pastel paint and created the coziest, most picturesque neighborhood ever.
    Highlighted by 48 Kindle customers
  • “A footprint is made by a shoe, but it is not the shoe itself.”
    Highlighted by 31 Kindle customers
  • We want to remember, and we want to be remembered. That’s why we paint.
    Highlighted by 28 Kindle customers
  • “It’s Manet,” she said. “It’s called The Bar at the Folies-Bergère.”
    Highlighted by 27 Kindle customers
  • (“When in doubt,” Aunt Peg had always said, “look for the triangles in the paintings.”
    Highlighted by 26 Kindle customers
  • This, I thought, is what Paris is all about. Remember, this city is where the peasants seized control and took over and beheaded all of the royals and the rich. It takes pride in the poor artists who have lived here in the past—all the painters, writers, poets, singers who made the bars and cafés famous.
    Highlighted by 23 Kindle customers
  • “I will,” Ginny said, her smile falling a bit. There was no point in correcting him about Aunt Peg. In his mind, she was still very much alive, and she saw no reason why it shouldn’t stay that way for somebody.
    Highlighted by 22 Kindle customers
  • But this time, unlike with Beppe, it wasn’t unwelcome or weird. It was just warm.
    Highlighted by 14 Kindle customers
Show all 15 quotes from this book

Organizations edit see section history

  • Hostels: Cheap places to stay when traveling abroad. Generally they are multiple-bed rooms filled with other travelers from all over the world.

First Sentence edit see section history

Dear Ginger, I have never been a great follower of rules.

Table of Contents edit see section history

Envelope 1 (1)
A Package Like a Dumpling (7)
The Adventures of Aunt Peg (11)

Envelope 2 (17)
54a Pennington Street, London (23)
Harrods (31)
Good Morning, England (37)
Richard and the Queen (43)

Envelope 3 (49)
The Benefactor (53)
Jittery Grande (59)
Bright Ideas (65)
The Hooligan and the Pineapple (71)
The Not-so-Mysterious Benefactor (81)

Envelope 4 (89)
The Runner (93)
The Master and the Hairdresser (105)
The Monsters Attack (115)

Envelope 5&6 (121)
The Road to Rome (127)
Virginia and the Virgins (133)
#6 (139)
Boys and Cake (143)
Beppe's Sister (149)

Envelope 7&8 (155)
The Surfboard Sleepers (159)
#8 (167)
Les Petits Chiens (171)
A Night on the Town (181)
The Best Hotel in Paris (189)

Envelope 9 (195)
Charlie and the Apple (199)
Homeless, Homesick, and Diseased (205)
Life with the Knapps (211)
Contact of Various Kinds (217)
The Secret Life of Olivia Knapp (223)

Envelope 10 (229)
The Viking Ship (233)
Hippo's (241)
The Magical Kingdom (245)

Envelope 11 (253)
The Blue Envelope Gang (259)

Envelope 12 (265)
The Red Scooter (271)
The Only ATM on Corfu (277)
The Runaway Niece (285)
The Green Slippers and the Lady on the Trapeze (291)
The Magical Key to Harrods (297)
The Padded House (305)
Seventy Thousand Burlap Sacks (311)

#13 (319)

Glossary edit see section history

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

  • Adventure: Ginny travels throughout Europe.

Errata edit see section history

Page 23 First Paragraph, Last sentence: It Say's: "It look a lot of effort not to give in to her wobbling knees and slump into Richard." It should say "It TOOK a lot of effort not to give in to her wobbling knees and slump into Richard.:

Series & Lists edit see section history

This is book 1 of 2 in Little Blue Envelope. (standard series)

Followed by The Last Little Blue Envelope.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Maureen Johnson (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: HarperTeen
Country: United States
Publication Date: 2006
ISBN: 0060541431
Page Count: 352

Classification edit see section history

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Reading Level: Young Adults

Ages 12 and up

More Books Like This edit see section history

   
  • The Last Little Blue Envelope

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