One of the most engaging qualities about the children in Noel Streatfeild's stories is that they have their normal quota of human frailty. It is a debatable point if Jane, the central figure of ["Movie Shoes"], hasn't rather more than her share but who wouldn't sympathize with a plain middle child, whose older sister and younger brother are extremely talented? Yet when the English Winters family went to California to visit, it was Jane's very contrariness, plus her love for animals, which won her a chance to play Mary in a film version of "The Secret Garden." No sudden miracles are worked; Jane doesn't become all sweetness overnight, nor does she achieve an easy success. Therein lies the veracity of this story. Miss Streatfeild is as understanding of the nature of an "ordinary" child as she is of gifted youngsters….

One of Miss Streatfeild's best stories, this will...