 The novel was inspired by the kind of stories the author read when growing up,
The National Book Award citation compares the novel to Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" and E. Nesbit's "The Story of the Treasure Seekers".The fictional setting is more modern than Alcott's or Nesbit's, although not clearly contemporary with Birdsall's writing.The style is similar to Alcott's books, like Little Women, Little Men, Jo's Boys, Under the Lilacs and Rose in Bloom.