The Willoughbys

The Willoughbys is a whimsical middle grade novel written by Lois Lowry. Originally published in 2008 and adapted into a Netflix animated film in 2020, The Willoughbys is a story about four children whose parents dislike them and attempt to get rid of them; in revenge, the children plot to kill their parents. The story utilizes a dark but humorous perspective to illustrate what happens when parents fail to love their children. As the story unfolds, the Willoughbys are taught the importance of logical rules and must learn valuable life lessons from their various mistakes.

As a renowned author of children’s literature that often has a dark or incisive edge, Lois Lowry is best known for her dystopian science fiction series, The Giver Quartet. The first installment of the series, The Giver (1993), was adapted into a 2014 film starring Jeff Bridges, Meryl Streep, and Taylor Swift. Lowry’s work has been awarded the Newbery Medal twice and is celebrated worldwide. Other notable novels include Gathering Blue (2000), Messenger (2004), Son (2012), and Number the Stars (1989).

This guide refers to the 2008 Yearling paperback edition of the novel.

Content Warning: Both the source text and this guide feature descriptions of child neglect.

Plot Summary

The Willoughbys are an old-fashioned family in an old-fashioned story. The four children, Tim, Barnaby A and Barnaby B (twins), and Jane, despise their parents, Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby, just as the parents despise their children. The Willoughby parents do only the bare minimum to keep themselves out of jail; otherwise, the children are left to fend for themselves. Tim takes control, attempting to parent the others with a strict and unreasonable point system and regularly shaming his siblings. One day, the children find a baby in a basket on their doorstep. Their mother tells them to get rid of it, so they take the baby to the nearby Melanoff mansion, which is run-down and filthy, and leave it there with the name "Ruth" attached. Some nights later, the children ask their parents to read a story, and their father begrudgingly reads Hansel and Gretel, which ends with the parents sending their children away due to starvation. The story gives Mr. Willoughby an idea, and he and his wife conspire to sell the house and get rid of their children. At the same time, the Willoughby children realize that old-fashioned children in stories usually become orphans, so they make a plan to send their parents to their deaths via a dangerous vacation. Their parents fall for the ruse and leave shortly afterward without saying goodbye. They hire a nanny to take care of the children, and although the children distrust her at first, they soon come to view her with affection.

The nanny makes the children porridge in the morning. Tim tries to claim that none of them likes it, but Jane suggests raisins, and Barnaby A suggests brown sugar, which the nanny notes. She is matter-of-fact and stern but reasonable in her expectations. The nanny learns about Tim’s points system and decides to commandeer it as her own. Meanwhile, Mr. Melanoff is overwhelmed with grief and hopelessness after losing his wife and son. When he discovers baby Ruth on his doorstep, his house is in a state of disaster and neglect, so he orders food, diapers, and clothes, and has someone clean the house for him. All along, letters from Switzerland continue to arrive, each of them indicating that Mr. Melanoff's wife and son are still alive, but he never opens them.

One day, the Willoughby children get a postcard from their parents indicating that Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby have survived their first adventure. The letter also tells the children that the house is being sold. They are told to hide whenever buyers arrive. Tim decides to camouflage himself and each of his siblings as household objects, and the nanny dresses up as a statue of Aphrodite, wearing only a sheet. Together, they terrify prospective buyers into leaving the house.

The nanny agrees with the children that it would be best if their parents were to die, because then the children would be rich, and she would become their caretaker. While out walking one day, they pass by Mr. Melanoff's mansion and hear a baby laughing. The nanny suggests that they go into the yard and investigate, and Mr. Melanoff greets them warmly. He and the nanny get along well. Back at home, the Willoughbys discover that their house has been sold and try to figure out what to do next. In Switzerland, a postmaster in a small town falls in love with Mr. Melanoff's ex-wife, who has denounced Mr. Melanoff after not hearing from him for years. She and her son were found alive in a rail car after being trapped under an avalanche for four years, and the boy has a hard time adjusting to life in Switzerland. Ms. Melanoff, on the other hand, is happy anywhere she can be meticulous and clean, and the postmaster falls in love with her because of this attribute. They get married, but the boy suffers deep dissatisfaction with life and misses his Papa back home. The Willoughbys hear from their parents again; Mr. and Mrs. Willoughby are still alive and are now planning to climb the Alps with crampons on their heads. When they arrive in Switzerland, they stand out due to their summer attire and inappropriate use of climbing gear, but nobody stops them.

After some unrealistic suggestions from Tim about how to improve their situation, the nanny decides to ask Mr. Melanoff if they can all live with him. He agrees, and they all form a new family together. Mr. Melanoff becomes happier and more inspired, so he goes back to creating candy, which initially made him rich. When he creates a new chocolate bar, he decides to name it after Ruth. Meanwhile, Mr. Melanoff's son is banished from his home by his mother and stepfather, and he decides to take the opportunity to find his father. He walks through the Alps, past the mountain where the Willoughby parents now sit frozen forever, and into a small town where he finds the candy that his father made. On the wrapper is the address of the factory, so the boy makes his way across the world and returns home. A month later, Mr. Melanoff makes a speech celebrating his love for his new family and his hopes for their bright futures. He insists on burning the stack of unread letters, but Jane reveals that she read most of them, and she tells everyone that the person in the letters was asking to be rescued and brought home. The letters, Jane adds, get increasingly hateful as time goes on and end with a stop to communication. Mr. Melanoff realizes that his son is still alive, and just then, his son arrives on his doorstep. Mr. Melanoff's son, it turns out, is named Barnaby as well, so the twins change their names to Bill and Joe. Tim grows up to marry Ruth and becomes an attorney, while Mr. Melanoff passes his business to his son, and the twins start a clothing store. Mr. Melanoff marries the nanny, and the story ends as the Willoughbys stand at the base of the Alps and thank their parents for making the mistake of climbing the mountains.