I ask this with all due respect. I have worked with learning disabled (actually I don't like the term) students for over twenty years. They truly are special people and certainly intelligent. Some of Catherine's childhood traits suggest the possibility of LD/ADD (attention deficit disorder). She does not appear to have any patience for things tht require sitting still and concetratio such as piano lessons or schooling unless it happens to be something that catches her fancy such as the fable, "The Hare and Many Friends". I can't help wondering if Jane's observances picked up on learning disabilities in real folks without realizing it as there was not such diagnosis for it then. At any rate, the first page and a half find me liking young Catherine very much. I find her full of pluck, a bit mischievious and not at all unintelligent! :-)