Sister of the Bride (ebook)

From Barnes and Noble:
Barbara can hardly believe her older sister is getting married. With all the excitement of wedding plans going on, Barbara can't help dreaming of the day she will be the bride. She can't wait to fall in love.

But as the big day gets closer, wedding planning often turns into family arguments. Even the bride and groom are bickering over details, and Barbara's fun-loving sister is turning into a very practical, grown-up person. Weddings are fun, but all this serious stuff is scary enough to make Barbara think she's not going to be rushing into a serious romance any time soon.

Oh, don't mind me, Barbara thought, I'm just the sister of the bride. p.284 ebook

I've never had the experience of reading any of Beverly Cleary's teen books so I thought I'd give this one a try.  Written in 1963, it had a very old-fashioned tone.  Normally I don't notice this things since I read and watch so many old books and movies, but for some reason I noticed with this book.  It was funny because the girls know how to sew and Barbara makes cookies for her "love interest" but mostly what stood out was the way her dad talk about "man's house is his castle" and her little brother referred to polishing silver as "women's work."  But I could tell that Cleary was trying to be modern because Barbara's sister, Rosemary, is still going to college and have a career even though she is getting married.  That was a really big deal to everyone in the book and I thought it was funny.  I also liked how Barbara's imagination would get the best of her and she acted like it was her wedding too.  I know that little sisters can be like that.  But as soon as she saw the reality of what married life would entail for Rosemary, being a wife, working and going to school, she wasn't so eager to get married or grow up so fast.