The only legitimate sequel to Pollyanna is Eleanor Porter's Pollyanna Grows Up, in which Pollyanna moves to Boston and tries to spread the Glad Game throughout that metropolis. Boston, she finds, is a much more difficult place to spread her brand of joy than was the small town of Beldingsville, Vermont.

Many other Pollyanna tales have been published by other authors, such as Harriet Lummis Smith and Elizabeth Borton de Trevino, but these lack the freshness and force of Porter's original creation. Some of Porter's other works for young adults have certain similarities with the Pollyanna tales, but none of them place the same emphasis on optimism and gladness.

In 1960 Walt Disney released a motion picture version of Pollyanna, directed by David Swift and starring Hayley Mills and Jane Wyman. It received mixed reactions from young viewers; some enjoyed the eccentric characters, while others...