38 pages • 1 hour read
Annie BarrowsIvy and Bean
Fiction | Novel | Early Reader Picture Book | Published in 2010A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 7-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 7 Summary: “Easy-Peasy”
Ivy takes out the spell book that she got from her aunt. As spells are secrets that only witches can know, Bean gives Ivy privacy, and Ivy quietly recites the dancing spell to herself. The spell requires worms, and plenty of worms reside in Bean’s backyard. Since Bean is still hiding from her family, Bean and Ivy must enter Bean’s backyard by traversing the other backyards on Pancake Court.
Ivy puts the spell book in her backpack, and Bean carries the wand in her pocket. Bean teaches Ivy to climb a fence, and they go through Ruby and Trevor’s backyard, where there’s a noteworthy sandbox. The next backyard is the “gross dog-poopy yard” (74), and though the girls are careful, Ivy steps in some of the excrement. The next backyard belongs to Jake the Teenager, and it contains a garage and loud music with vulgar words.
When the girls enter Mrs. Trantz's immaculate backyard, the older woman yells at Ivy and Bean for breaching her garden. Ivy apologizes, but Mrs. Trantz rejects it: If Bean was truly sorry, she’d stop entering Mrs. Trantz’s garden. After Mrs. Trantz threatens to call Bean’s mother, Ivy burps and pretends like she has to vomit, causing Mrs. Trantz to quickly dismiss them. The girls pass Kalia’s backyard, and she waves at them from her highchair.
Chapter 8 Summary: “Bean’s Backyard”
Ivy doesn’t see anyone in Bean’s rectangular backyard, so Bean assumes her family is searching for her. Bean leads Ivy to the “messy part,” where there’s lumpy grass, a trampoline, and a playhouse. The worms live in the wet ground near the playhouse. Using shovels and a bucket, the girls collect plenty of worms.
As they prepare to sneak into Bean’s house and locate Nancy, they see Nancy crying by herself at the kitchen table. Ivy wonders if Nancy is upset about Bean’s disappearance, and Bean remembers warm moments with her sister. She remembers when Nancy would “snuggle” with her after she had nightmares. She recalls Nancy letting her play with the glass animals even after she broke some of them. She also remembers when Nancy used her own money to buy her a fairy-themed coloring book. The amicable memories cause Bean to rethink putting a dancing spell on Nancy.
Nancy suddenly screams, “Everybody has them. Everybody but me!” (91). Nancy isn’t crying over Bean: She’s upset her mom won’t let her get her ears pierced. Outraged, Bean bangs on the window and insults Nancy out loud. Nancy runs after Bean and seizes her.
Chapter 9 Summary: “The Spell”
Ivy orders Nancy to let go of Bean. Ivy refers to her wand as Nancy’s “doom,” but Nancy calls it a “stick,” and she calls Ivy and Bean “dweebs.” Bean throws worms at Nancy, and one gets in her mouth. Nancy spits it out and chases the girls around the backyard. She grabs Ivy’s robe, but Bean frees Ivy, and the pair take shelter in the playhouse.
Nancy runs toward the playhouse, but she doesn’t see the worm pit, so she kicks her feet and waves her arms to avoid falling into it. Beans thinks she’s dancing, and Ivy believes the dancing spell worked. Unable to balance herself, Nancy falls into the pit.
Chapter 10 Summary: “No Dessert”
As night approaches, Bean and Ivy sit on Bean’s front porch. Bean’s punishment is no dessert and no videos for a week. Ivy doesn’t think Bean’s mother is genuinely angry. When Bean’s mother helped Nancy out of the pit, Ivy noticed a subtle smile on Bean’s mother’s face. Nancy claims she’ll never speak to the girls again, and Nancy takes away the fairy coloring book she gave Bean.
Bean wonders if the spell made Ivy dance, and Ivy claims she didn’t have time to say it out loud, but she thought of it on the fly, which is why she didn’t dance for long. The girls consider putting a spell on Mrs. Trantz. Tomorrow, they’ll create a potion lab in Ivy’s room. Ivy also promises to teach Bean how to burp.
The girls convey their plans to Bean’s mother, who forbids them from using matches and creating poisons, explosions, or “deadly fumes.” The girls roll their eyes, and Bean reminds her mother that playing with Ivy was her idea. Bean’s mother smiles, and Ivy’s mother calls her home from her front porch. The girls will see each other tomorrow. Bean thinks they’ll also see each other the day after tomorrow, and Ivy says they’ll hang out the day after tomorrow out loud.
Chapters 7-10 Analysis
Barrows’s thematic exploration of The Drama of Preparation continues as the girls can’t walk into Bean’s house through the front door. If they did that, Nancy might see them, and their plan would fall apart. Instead, Bean and Ivy must “sneak into Bean's yard” by “going through the other backyards on Pancake Court” (71). The route to Bean’s backyard becomes complex. It’s a mission that requires skill, planning, and multiple steps. They have to watch out for the dog excrement and Mrs. Trantz. The process builds suspense, as sneaking across backyards is likely to cause trouble. While Ivy steps into dog excrement, the girls avoid trouble until they reach Mrs. Trantz’s yard. The unfriendly character who has existing tension with Bean catches the girls, and she threatens to derail their plan. Although they have prepared for the possibility of encountering Mrs. Trantz, this interaction represents a difficult step they must overcome to execute their plan, adding to its drama.
Barrow links The Drama of Preparation with the theme of The Benefits of Cooperation. Ivy helps the girls escape their dilemma with Mrs. Trantz. Ivy states, “I'm going to throw up,” and then she emits a “horrible” burp (80). The prospect of Ivy throwing up near her garden frightens Mrs. Trantz, who lets the girls go. The girls then gather the worms together to prepare the dancing spell. Once Nancy spots Bean and Ivy, the girls work together to evade her, with Ivy commanding Nancy to let go of Bean, and Bean pelting her with worms. After the suspenseful confrontations, the collaboration produces the desired result, with Nancy falling into “the big, muddy worm pit” (101). Alone, Bean may not have been able to quickly escape the interaction with Mrs. Trantz. However, Ivy’s quick thinking and ingenuity devise a way for the girls to leave the situation. Here, Barrows shows how the girls’ desires work best when they collaborate, demonstrating The Benefits of Cooperation.
In Chapters 7-10, part of the humor is the difference between reality and the girls’ imaginations. Bean asks, “Do you think the spell is what made her dance?" and Ivy replies, “Of course. I didn't have time to say the spell, really. I just sort of thought it at the last second” (107). The dialogue demonstrates that the girls’ version of events isn’t always accurate. Nancy wasn’t dancing in the worm pit; she was “trying to keep her balance” and not fall into it (103). Despite this truth, the girls are united in their faith in witchcraft. They’re like two committed performers who refuse to break character. Their belief in witchcraft is endearing, and their misrepresentation of what truly occurred is comedic.
The idea of someone falling into a pit of worms is comedic. Ivy notices a “little, teeny smile” appear on the face of Bean’s mother (106). Ivy concludes that Bean’s mother “thought it was funny” (106). Barrows makes laughing at Nancy acceptable at this moment and demonstrates that the girls’ prank is one manifestation of a sibling rivalry between Bean and Nancy.
The comedic irony again appears when Bean and Ivy spot Nancy crying at the kitchen table. For a moment, Bean thinks Nancy is upset over her. The prospect makes Bean think of the kinder moments the sisters had together, and the memories give Nancy’s character more complexity. However, Barrows curtails Nancy’s compassion when Nancy yells, “Everybody has them! Everybody but me! I'm the only one who has to wait!" (91). The twist, as Bean soon realizes, is that Nancy isn’t distraught over Bean. The source of her tears is her mother forbidding her from getting her ears pierced.
Although Ivy and Bean initially judged each other harshly, they have an undeniable bond by the end of the book. Their deep connection toward each other and joy in shared adventure manifest when the girls promise to see each other tomorrow. Bean thinks to herself, “And the day after that,” and Ivy says out loud, “And the day after that” (113). In less than a day, Ivy and Bean have reached a level of closeness that enables Ivy to read Bean’s mind and articulate her thoughts. By establishing their clear bond at the book’s end, Barrows not only provides the groundwork for the subsequent novels in the series but also underscores the theme of Judging a Person Versus Knowing Them, as Ivy and Bean’s relationship has changed significantly since the start.
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By Annie Barrows
