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I’m hoping that you all can help me remember this story about a young girl who had decorative clips on her shoes (fairly sure that she called them buckles). She lived on a farm, where I think her family grew summer squash. She lost one of the buckles and was very upset, as I think that they originally belonged to an older family member, perhaps her Grandma. At the end of the growing season, her family cut into a squash and there was the buckle.
I think this tales was in a collection of stories, similar to the Bumper Book or Gateway to Storyland. I have tried googling this but only find a much newer book series, ironically called Buckle and Squash. Thanks for your help!
That sounds like The Huckabuck Family and How They Raised Popcorn in Nebraska and Quit and Came Back by Carl Sandburg. It was originally published in 1923 as one of Sandburg’s Rootabaga Stories, but has been reprinted both as a standalone book and included in various anthologies.
“Jonas Jonas Huckabuck, his wife Mama Mama Huckabuck, and their daughter Pony Pony Huckabuck raise popcorn. One day, the child finds a Chinese silver slipper buckle inside a squash. Her parents say it’s a sign that their luck will change. Sure enough, that night a fire starts in the barn and the popcorn starts to pop, until the entire farm is buried in it. The family leaves, traveling throughout the Midwest. In different towns, Pony Pony proudly watches as her father drives a coal car, digs ditches, or works as a watch-factory watchman. On Thanksgiving, three years later, she opens a squash, and there’s the mate to the silver buckle. It’s another sign, and so the family returns to the farm, ready to grow anything but popcorn.”
“The comedy begins on a Nebraska corn farm owned by the Huckabucks: Jonas Jonas, Mama Mama and their daughter, Pony Pony (“I call my pony-face girl Pony Pony because if she doesn’t hear me the first time, she always does the second,” quips her father). The family’s crop yields a bountiful harvest. But when Pony Pony finds a Chinese silver slipper buckle in the middle of a squash, her parents predict this means that their luck is going to change, “and we don’t know whether it will be good luck or bad luck.” A fire in the barn causes a veritable blizzard of popcorn, with Pony Pony and her dog staring out at each other, goggle-eyed. The Huckabucks then take to the road for several years while they wait for “a sign, a signal” to return home. As they cover the Midwestern states, Small shows the family as a tightly knit trio, with a mother and daughter proud of Jonas Jonas’s resourcefulness, whether he is driving a coal wagon or watching the watches in a watch factory. When the Huckabucks finally get their “sign” to return to their farm, Small makes the most of their homecoming: all the animals gather at the front door to welcome the Huckabucks home, newspapers spilling off the front stoop. He depicts the family’s peripatetic lifestyle with wry wit and droll details, leading readers of this engaging book to feel they’ve met with the good kind of luck.”
Yes, that is it! Thank you so much. I’ve been trying to remember the name of the story for so long. You made my night!
A couple of anthologies that include the story of the Huckabuck Family:
The Family Treasury of Children’s Stories (Book 1) by Pauline Rush Evans
The Golden Book of Nursery Tales by Elsa Jane Werner, illustrated by Tibor Gergely
A more recent anthology that includes The Huckabuck Family: A Children’s Treasury of American Stories & Poems by Celia Barker Lottridge.
Mystery childhood book form the 1970s (UK)
This is a long shot, but I’m trying to remember a book I had in the UK in 1970s. It was a picture book with I think quite monochromatic illustrations of children in it. I have no recollection of the cover of the book, it’s title or even what it was about. All I remember are a few images from it:
– One page showed children chewing bubble-gum – one blowing a bubble, another with a burst bubble stuck to their face – and there was another image of a shoe lifting off the ground with bubble-gum stuck to the sole.
– On another page one of the children has a small speck of dust or something in their eye. They are pulling their eyelid down to show the speck and are looking pretty miserable.
– The final page of the book was a double spread showing a house on the left with maybe the sea on the right. It’s night time and the theme seems to be about light – torches, maybe a lighthouse in the distance.
I have tried to work out what it could have been about – maybe something to do with the senses (eyes, mouth, ears – there may have been something to do with making a tin-can telephone but I may be confusing this with another book)?
Any ideas anyone?
It’s ‘What’s so important about…’ by Joy Troth Friedman. I found another book the author by trawling through 70’s children’s books on etsy – the style looked similar so I searched the author and there it was.
The past week I’ve been trying to look for this book my Sister and I used to have. I can see the cover of the book in my head and the name is “Little Brown House” or “The Little Brown House”. The cover of course had a little brown house on it and I swear it was like a short story book, like a kids book not a long one. For the life of me I can’t really remember what it was about but I’m starting to think we imagined this book cause I cant find information or a picture of it anywhere on the internet. Does anyone else remember this book? Im 22 now so we would have had this book in the early 2000s.
The house in Five Little Peppers is called the Little Brown House; but that’s a chapter book.
Try the one by Joy Cowley.
Dear book friends,
I’m on quest for a children’s picture book about a dragon, a child, and different colors of fire. In the story, the dragon is exiled from the child’s town because the villagers fear it. But the child continues to visit his/her friend up on the rocky mountainside, where they discover that by blowing on different kinds of minerals and rocks, the dragon can make different colored flames (or fireworks?). Because of this gift, the dragon is welcomed back into the community.
I read the book as a kid in the 1980s.
Any leads will be handsomely rewarded with powerfully good karma! Thank you.
Perhaps The Dragon Who Liked to Spit Fire by Judy Varga?
Darius, a little dragon who likes nothing more than to spit fire (in many colors), and young prince Frederic become close friends. Eventually Darius decides to move to Frederic’s castle with Frederic, because he has been lonely and he wants to be close to Frederic, although he is wary that he will not be able to spit fire at the castle. As Darius tells Frederic, “Life without spitting fire wouldn’t be much of a life for a dragon.” Frederic tells Darius that he will be able to spit fire when they are alone. Darius is made to feel very at home in the castle, but he finds that he can’t ever spit fire, because he and Frederic are never alone.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2Ci6PUFKsw/TgyJDhHzGcI/AAAAAAAABPA/sAYYO8N8QHc/s1600/Dragon.jpg
I remember reading a book in the 60-70s about a boy who takes a boat down a long river and meets all sorts of characters. I thought the the word “Oz” was in the title, but it was none of the Wizard of Oz books. Does this sound familiar to anyone?
Maybe this one?
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/5551766
No, that doesn’t seem familiar. But thanks for replying!
Hello. I am looking for a vintage reader from the 60s. It has many stories, but the one I remember has children building a snowman. The snowman melts, but the mother helped the children build “snowmen” using marshmallows. I found this book once by chance, but I let it slip through my fingers, and I have not been able to find it again.
Hi I am looking for a child hood book called ‘The Happy Toys’ it is a story about a brother and a sister, called Geoff and Joyce, who help fairies to mend broken neglected toys. the children were playing nurse and doctor on a rainy day with their toys when the fairy approached the children. they went to fairy land to help the fairies. I would very much appreciate if I could find this book.
The Happy Toys by Yvonne Perrin, Published by Sandle Brothers, Ward Lock and Co.
If you are looking to purchase a copy, there is currently one available online. You can find it listed on book search sites like abebooks.com or bookfinder.com, or on ebay. (It looks like it’s multiple listings for the same copy, even though the price is different, because the description is word-for-word the same. The higher price includes free shipping, while the lower price does not.)
The author/illustrator is Yvonne Perrin.
Heyy, I’m looking for a book I owed as a child, it would have been published anytime before 2007. It was about a child (I girl I think) who would dress in a different colour everyday and each page was filled with tones of objects, animals and things of that colour. In the end she decided to wear rainbow. My mum recons the book was called something like “what type of day is it” I really hope someone recognises this book (I’m from Australia if that helps)
Hello! Looking for a book I read in the late 80’s about a girl who traveled through time. The story had her traveling thru time via a milk truck? She’d have to change clothes quickly. I believe it was a coming of age book that was almost romance as well? TIA!!
Hello. I have been trying to find a book I read in 5th grade, so published sometime before 1982. It was about a brother and sister who meet a man in a park or zoo, who gives them hats which help them transport to a fairytale world where there is an evil queen or witch or… The queen wants the little girl, and one night, while the girl slept in her bed in her own world, the flowers on her curtains started to blow in the breeze and open the portal from the fairytale land to the real world, and the queen’s pet dogs or cats come out of the curtains and kidnap the little girl. That’s all I remember about the book I’m afraid. No title, or author or any names of characters. Any help you can give is deeply appreciated!! Thank you.
You’re welcome! Enjoy your reconnecting.
I think it might’ve been the Wynn and Lonny books by Eric Speed. Thank you for the heads up!
You’re welcome. Glad to be of help.
OK This won’t work unless you read it in Hebrew! But Yuri Orlev wrote a great book called The Island on Bird Street about an 11 year old boy who lives in a partially demolished building in the Polish ghetto, high up, and can see into the other side. Unfortunately 1983.
Hey thanks! Not the one I’m looking for either, but nice to have it on my radar as well. Appreciate it.
I am looking for a toddler pre-reader book that I belive was called “I am a duck” . It was a flip book that went through different animals. Some of the pages read: “I am a duck, I have a beak and flappy feet. Do you know what sound I make? QUACK ” ” I a sheep. I have wool and…. Do you know what sound I make? BAAA” Any help would be appreciated.
I have a full set from 1937. What do I do with them? They were my mothers.
Probably the best place to sell them is on Ebay. The condition of volumes one and two has a lot to do with the price, but look at what is for sale and at previously sold ebay sets and see what they are going for.
I am looking for a very old book, probably around early to late 1960s. It had 3-4 boys looking for a lost cat. They eventually find the cat, it has had kittens and each of them gets to keep a kitten. The entire book is them complaining about having to help find the cat. I believe one of the characters was named Snitch.
The Case of the Cat’s Meow, by Crosby Bonsall.
Looking for a kid’s book i read in 90s about a child who neglected her clothes, toothbrush, dishes, house etc etc and ask the items got mad at her and left one by one including the house, she then promised to take care of these items and they all came back. Great picture children’s book. Can’t remember name or author.
Possibly The House That Had Enough by P.E. King?
“Tired of being mistreated, Anne’s furniture, clothes, and house decide to leave until she promises to take better care of them.”
You can see the whole thing here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHDeXMiXyZQ
Soooo … I have a couple – lol. I will be shocked if anyone can help me with this, but here goes. WAY back when I was in 4th grade (in the year 1977), my teacher had a wire rack of paperback YA books in the classroom, and every day we had an hour of SSR (silent sustained reading) – and we would all go over and pick out a book to read. The book I remember reading, but haven’t been able to find again since, was a book about a boy (10, 11, 12 years old maybe?) who was an orphan and living on the streets, homeless. My impression of him was that he was of dark hair and complexion. He had found a hole in the wall, or forgotten space in a building that had a decent view of the street below him where he could watch what was going on through a crack in the wall, or something like that. He wasn’t involved in anything illegal (no drugs or anything like that) that I can remember. This YA book seemed to be a product of the time and up-to-date, I would say it was published in the late 60’s up to the mid-70’s – in that time frame. And, not sure, but I seem to remember it having a painting of browns and oranges of the boy looking out into the street from his hideaway spot, typical of YA books of it’s time for the front cover. I don’t remember the title or the author. I know that isn’t much to go on, but there you have it.
My 2nd one: It was a YA series of books, I’m thinking also from the 60’s 70’s that featured either brothers or friends that raced cars. They had a Hardy Boys “feel” to them … and I don’t remember if there was an element of mystery to them or not. They were in our school library and I must have read most of them … there were at least 6 or 7 books, probably more, in the series. Short reads. No idea of the names or author. Appreciate any suggestions or tips! Thank you.
Slake’s Limbo, maybe? (1974)
Great suggestion! I looked it up, but that isn’t the one. In the book I remember reading, the boy had dark hair and complexion. He may have been hispanic. Even so, I will put “Slake’s Limbo” on my radar, it looks like a great read! TY for the reply. 🙂
Could the second book be The Three investigator series? Though there were many more than 7, and I have no idea if they raced cars.
https://www.goodreads.com/series/42203-alfred-hitchcock-and-the-three-investigators
Appreciate the suggestion … the entire series was about racing though.
Also found this series, which I’ve never heard of. Looks promising.
http://seriesbooks.info/wynnandlonny.htm
Another possibility: Children in Hiding, originally titled Tomas Takes Charge, by Charlene Joy Talbot.
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/a/charlene-joy-talbot-2/tomas-takes-charge/
Of all the suggestions, this one looks like the most likely. The orange cover with the title “Children In Hiding” sparked something … and the description of the boy fits. Thank you!
I think I have found both of them, thanks to your suggestions!
“Children In Hiding (Tomas Takes Charge)” – by Charlene Joy Talbot
and
“The Wynn and Lonny Racing Books (1-6)” – by Eric Speed.
Wonderful website! Thank you all so much for your help!
A children’s activity/puzzle book from the mid-1970s that features the Mona Lisa and Renaissance jesters throughout. The overall design was very artistic and surreal. It was a favorite of mine and I’ve spent many hours searching for it online to no avail.
Looking for a picture book published in the 70s or 80s about a bird who trades his body parts with other birds he thinks are more beautiful, but ends up ridiculous looking and not very functional and has to trade it all back. Illustrations are beautiful, with muted neutral colors. I think one of the birds eats watercress?
That sounds like What Kind Of Bird Is That? by Mirra Ginsburg (1973)
Goose, who is the hero of our story, feels he is too plain and comes up with the brilliant idea of trading different body parts with other birds who he admires more. He first trades his short stubby neck for the swan’s beautiful long one. Then he trades for the pelican’s beak. With the addition of the crane’s legs, the crow’s wings, the peacock’s tail and the rooster’s comb, wattle and crow (he didn’t have anything left to swap at this point so the kind-hearted rooster just gave him these things), he feels he is the most beautiful goose in the world.
When our hero runs across a flock of fellow geese, he is eager to spend time with them and impress them. However, his beak, made for catching fish, is the wrong shape to eat any of the delicious grass in the meadow. His legs, meant for wading, hold him too high out of the water and he can’t swim with the others. Poor Goose can only run along the shore and say “cock a doodle doo”. And when a fox jumps out of the rushes and all the other geese rise up out of the water, the crow’s wings are too short and stubby to let Goose fly away to safety. When he tries to run, the peacock’s heavy tail slows him down and he gets tangled in the weeds. Fox catches him and holds him down on the ground by the swan’s long neck and all would have been lost except that his brother geese fly back and peck and pester the fox into submission. After Goose is saved, he realizes the error of his ways and quickly swaps back for all of his original body parts. And he remained quite content after that.
sounds like this one
https://www.amazon.com/What-Kind-Bird-Mirra-Ginsburg/dp/0517502550
Hi! I’m looking for a kids book that I read in the early 2010’s. It was narrated by a you girl who was probably 12-14. It was about her and her 4 or 5 other siblings who lived in a rich neighborhood. The parents were barely due to their successful jobs so they hired a nanny. The young nanny had purple(?) spiky hair and piercing and was described to dress very alternatively. The parents are also newlyweds so the kids arent all related to eachother. There was a son who was the same age as the girl that was narrating named chance I believe? And he was described as being a popular kid in the school they go to. There is also a scene inthe book where they describe one of the younger siblings who was around 8 to 10 putting a baby or a cat in a basket or washing machine?? Anyways the chapter where the nanny is introduced, she makes breakfast for the family but the girl doesn’t know how she would have gotten in the house bc the doors are locked using technology. Also there are elements of the nanny possibly being a witch. lots a magical elements happen that cant be explained logically in the eyes of the narrator.
Here Comes Heavenly, by Todd Strasser.
Purple House Press did a 60th anniversary edition.
https://purplehousepress.com/product/the-surprise-doll/
Thanks again! I’ll follow it up. As I remember, later editions did not have the same art that I remembered. But PurpleHouse may have a route to the original. It’s a good start.
Purple House does an excellent job with reissuing old favorites.
Hello, I got a children’s book about a fox from a scholastic book fair between 1998-2001. The art was beautiful, & not overly animated. There were a lot of darker blues/purples, as it took place at night. On 1 page, the fox was looking out from a grassy cliff with the woods behind him to the left & the starry night sky to his right.
Have a look at Fox’s Dream by Keizaburō Tejima. The first English translation was in 1987 by Philomel books and it was republished by Scholastic in 1992. Beautiful woodcut illustrations with lots of shades of blue and purple.
Wandering through a winter forest, a lonely fox has an enchanting vision and then finds the companionship for which he has been longing.
maybe one of the teenie-weenie books by william donahey? these were stories about tiny people. there are several books with many stories in them, in one story they are swimming in a sink.
Hi, I am searching for a children’s book that was read to me in the 80’s about a furry creature that was scared of the dark. I truly wish I could remember the name of it along with any character in the book. It has completely left my mind but the story remains, especially now that I have young children. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated! Thank you in advance!
I’m looking for an illustrated children’s book from around the mid 1990s. It had a blue (I think!) hardback cover and two stories that stick out in my head are a story about lazy soldiers and one about the sun getting stuck in the sea. If anyone knows the book I’m talking about I’d really appreciate it!
Looking for a 1980s children’s book, kids live in apartment holding in NYC. New kid moves in. Kids are walking with mom and it starts to rain. Moms hands out soap she just bought for them to play in the rain.
I want one!
I’m looking for a picture book from the early 2000s if I had to guess. It was a story about a ceature who came into this couples house at night and would clean their house and the wife didn’t know about it because I think a husband would have friends over or something to where the house would be a mess at night because of him. I can’t remember the creatures name but it was called something and I distinctly remember in the back of the book they had other names the creature was called, one of them being a jack ass. I only remember that because as a kid you giggle at swearwords. Anyway, the creature would come in and clean until the guy gave him a coat or sweater or jacket? I can’t remember why, I guess it was cold. Anyway after he was given the gift he stopped coming and cleaning the house and then the husband was left to deal with his mess he would somehow create. From what I remember the creature was friendly but the artists depiction in the picture book was kind of scary, at least for a first grader which I was at the time and I’m just curious after all these years what it looks like again
Could be Hailstones and Halibut Bones.
So I realize this is a long shot, I am trying desperately to find the title to a book I had as a child. My mom bought it when I was just little so published prior to 94 I would say. It was approximately 2-3 feet tall and a hard board book. Inside there was the most colourful wonderful pictures. I feel like they were little people? I remember the baby being covered in jam because a jar of jam had spilled and I feel like they were swimming in a sink? There were a bunch of people all over the place and everywhere you looked the people were all doing different things. I also remember at one point you were looking inside the house from the outside, like the front wall was missing so you could see into all the many floors? Maybe? I remember all the people being colourful with red rosy cheeks… help!
Hi! I’m trying to find a picture book that was read to me in the 60’s. It was about colours and was very poetic. Each page talked about one color and listed all many things in that colour. Thank you!
I’m trying to find a children’s book that was available in the 1950s. It is about a horse that lived in a beautiful barn and would ask “Who’s coming into my barn” whenever an animal walked in. One of the animals might have been a duck. Thank you!
Looking for a beginning reader picture book from sometime before the mid-1980’s. I can’t remember the title of it but it featured two cats sitting on a fence arguing about who was eating their vegetables. It ended up that a rabbit was at fault.
The book itself was a small, square paperback that my grandparents had. I think the illustrations were primarily black line, but I also remember there being orange.
Thanks for your help!
Hello, I am looking for a picture book that I read in the ealry 2000’s. This Picture book doesn’t have a story ( as far as i remember) and the world was were strange, there were animals and humans and everything was twisted(?) For example, an old was on the swing set and his granddaughter was watching him and normally it should be the other way around ( i am not sure if that happend in the book) The art style wasn’t cute at all it was kind of scary? There were also hourglass and clocks pictured.
Hello, I am looking for a picture book that I read in the ealry 2000’s. This Picture book doesn’t have a story ( as far as i remember) and the world was were strange, there were animals and humans and everything was twisted(?) For example, an old was on the swing set and his granddaughter was watching him and normally it should be the other way around ( i am not sure if that happend in the book) The art style wasn’t cute at all it was kind of scary? There were also hourglass and clocks pictured.
Looking for children’s book, It’s the complete book of children’s folk/fairy tales, published mid 1980s-1990s.
The hardback cover was forest green with scroll work border within which was the picture. There was a castle with a high tower, forested hill rising up on eacch side of it and in front of it all and riding out of the scrolled area was a man on a dark brown horse riding from left to right, the hooves were outside the scroll work. There was a woman in a pale (white or cream) bejewelled dress behind him on the horse. She had a high head dress, cream/white jewelled dress and long hair with waves.
It was a good inch deep, hard back with glossy covering on the cover. Inside the stories had the most realistic pictures. The stories included Dapple grim-grey dapple horse, rather chunky and the rider was tiny and perched on tip. The emperor and the nightingale-gold with jewels, the fisherman and his wife (western drawings of Japanese or Chinese architecture, the palace was green massive and with lots of points. The Stork Caliph-the owl didn’t tell the stork that she was a princess and had on a gold outfit with a flat top to the head dress and coins attached. Her face was veiled.
The 1963 version of Grimms’ Fairy Tales illustrated by Adele Werber has the two figures on a horse; but I don’t know if it’s going to have all those stories–I’m thinking not.
I thought that perhaps you are thinking of Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales book, illustrated by Jiri Trnka. However, that book does not contain The Fisherman and his Wife (Grimm) nor The Stork Caliph (Hauff).
Actually, I think the book might be The Green Fairy Book by Andrew Lang. There are different editions of the book but the original contains The Stork Caliph and most of the other stories you mentioned.
I am looking for a 1980’s children’s book. It’s been out of print for a while. Over ten to eleven years, I was able to find it online. And many women or lady’s authors seem to utilize this similar title. The story is in color, well-written and illustrated. A little girl, who is ten or eleven, narrates the story. She has a round face and wears glasses that are either light blue or a light greenish-blue color. Her eyes may be gray and her hair is brownish, short and wavy. She has an olive complexion. They live in a junky house, and the young lady has a little brother. The children do not like school lunch. The children do not like the way their lunch looks, tastes and the way it smells. However, their mother decides to go back to work to become a teacher, and the children have to get up earlier in the day, which they hate. They couldn’t find their shoes and socks, etc., Eventually, the mother decides to come back home. And the children and father seem to be happier later on. If one could assist with finding out more about this children’s book. I would be grateful. As I mentioned, this title is out-of-print, and has been for years. It should have stayed in print, and the illustrator will never be available to re-do this children’s book. But maybe anything is possible. I will try to believe within my heart. Thank you. Good luck and good-bye.
See my reply in the other thread.
I am looking for a 1980’s children’s book. It’s been out of print for a while. Over ten to eleven years, I was able to find it online. And many women or lady’s authors seem to utilize this similar title. The story is in color, well-written and illustrated. A little girl, who is ten or eleven, narrates the story. She has a round face and wears glasses that are either light blue or a light greenish-blue color. Her eyes may be gray and her hair is brownish, short and wavy. She has an olive complexion. They live in a junky house, and the young lady has a little brother. The children do not like school lunch. The children do not like the way their lunch looks, tastes and the way it smells. However, their mother decides to go back to work to become a teacher, and the children have to get up earlier in the day, which they hate. They couldn’t find their shoes and socks, etc., Eventually, the mother decides to come back home. And the children and father seem to be happier later on. If one could assist with finding out more about this children’s book. I would be grateful. As I mentioned, this title is out-of-print, and has been for years. It should have stayed in print, and the illustrator will never be available to re-do this children’s book. But maybe anything is possible. I will try to believe within my heart. Thank you. Good luck and good-bye.
The title of this picture book was something like “….’s Bad Day”
It was NOT Alexander and the….. Day”
This is about a little girl, narrated by her.
(The writer called me… she has been trying to find this book for a long time!”
The title of this picture book was something like “….’s Bad Day”
It was NOT Alexander and the….. Day”
This is about a little girl, narrated by her.
(The writer called me… she has been trying to find this book for a long time!”
The Terrible Thing That Happened at our House, by Marge Blaine.
Second try: The Terrible Thing That Happened at our House, by Marge Blaine.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2216869.The_Terrible_Thing_that_Happened_at_Our_House?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=DZMhw8FEy6&rank=1
Here’s a bonus: you can watch it being read on Youtube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yhed8piSb1c
Thank you so much! It happens to be Sunday today while seeing this. I have been searching for this book since 2010 or 2011. This is one of my favorite children’s book, since the 1980’s. I am so happy, thank you so much.
You’re welcome! Thanks for posting back.
The Wicked Pigeon Ladies in the Garden by Mary Chase, published by Scholastic as The Wicked, Wicked Ladies in the Haunted House.
Looking for a kid’s book where one of the characters had an axe for a face? I know it’s not much to go on, but it’s been bothering me for a while?
Could be The King with Six Friends, by Jay Williams.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/31636582?book_show_action=true
http://www.kathleendeady.com/TheKingWithSixFriendsPage.htm
[TOMT] looking for a children’s maze book where each maze was connected
Let me start with this: I know several similar books that I can scratch off the board. First, there’s Terrormazia by Anna Nilsen: this book is structured with similar rules, but the one I’m thinking of didn’t have holes in the pages, just pictures of different-coloured doors if I remember correctly.
There’s also the Explorers Club by Judith Rossell: consisting of The Lost Treasure Of The Green Iguana, The Haunted Castle Of Count Viper, and The Mystery Of The Golden Crocodile. All excellent books, with a *similar* structure to the one I’m thinking of, but definitely different.
Now to what I remember: the book started with simple scenarios, like a room that was flooded by an overflowing tap, and a dark attic full of ragged boards. But I think later pages had weirder situations, like a maze set on an alien planet. The main thing about it is that when you found a coloured door, you had to flip to the page with a matching door, and pick up from that spot on that page.
Is this ringing any bells? Any help would be appreciated!
Try ‘The Game’ by Diana Wynne Jones. I definitely remember a flooding happening early on in the book and the children ‘travel’ through mythospheres which are kind of mazes. Hope this helps
[TOMT] [BOOK] Looking for a mirror-based puzzle book I read years ago
This book is at least the better part of a decade old, judging by when I first read it. It’s a children’s search-and-find puzzle book, where you used a small reflective token to “complete” symmetrical faces that are displayed fully on one side of the spread, but only 50% there in the search-and-find image.
The story was something to do with an evil trickster, called the mirror-master or something, who was kidnapping people and turning them into glue… or something. I’m fuzzy on the details. I remember that you explored his factory-castle, where half-formed faced swam in soupy goop, and you had to use the mirror to complete them.
Looking back on it, this book was pretty freaking weird. I remember that when you finally met the mirror-master, his face was an optical illusion: it looked like a cute lad with buck teeth and a wizard hat from one angle, but turning him upside down revealed a toothy monster with a spotted tongue and sharp teeth.
Does anybody have proof that this wasn’t just a childhood fever dream? I’d appreciate any leads!
Hi! Looking for a book i had as a kid in the 90s, the book was definitely older than that. It was a big picture book, either square or oversized. Pastel, soft and dreamy illustrations. I remember the pages had art around the borders, like a frame, one page it was constellations or zodiac signs. There was a page about the moon being caught in a silver net, or a poem about trying to catch it in a net. Maybe mermaids? I just remember the pictures were very rich, there was always more to find and maybe even some wordplay depicted. I think it was written like poetry, but I can’t remember anything else. Thanks!!
A middle grade book about two African American sisters. One is beautiful and the other plain. Discusses colorism and jealousy.
Possible Golden Book about how cocoa beans are processed into chocolate. Thought it was illustrated by Barbara Shook Hazen, but in any case, it sure looks like her style.
Possible Golden Book about two kittens trapped in a cage (I think for the circus) and a dog makes a bargain with them that if they do him a favor he will show them “twelve ways to escape”. Then he shows them that they can just walk through all the spaces in the bars.
I’m looking for a book about a girl who doesn’t like her moms sandwiches, so she decides to make her own sandwiches, one being a spaghetti sandwich and the other a Snickers or Mars sandwich. I haven’t been able to look for it anywhere.
I’m trying to find a book, about a girl who doesn’t like her mom’s sandwiches, so she makes a spaghetti sandwich, she makes multiple weird sandwiches including one with snickers or Mars bars I believe, I have not been able to find this book anywhere. 🙁
The Surprise Doll, by Morrell Gipson.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/663480.The_Surprise_Doll
Thanks, Mama Squirrel. It looks like the book. I’ll check it out further tomorrow. But it would definitely have been published before 2005. More like 1950. Because it was in my collection as I learned to read, i.e. 1950. Also the art is different than I remember. But this may have been a re-release of the original. I’m happy to keep looking, but will have a read of this version first. THANKS!
Hello and thank you to all of the book super sleuths! I am looking for a book that I ordered from scholastic flyer. I was in HS so in the 1976 time frame. the story included a house and sisters who wore victorian clothing. the sisters were odd and evil somehow. At the end, a net was thrown over them and they transformed into pigeons. it was haunting and I wish I could remember more than that and the description of using button hooks and isinglass windows in the carriage!
I am looking for a children’s book about a little girl who has no friends, finds a wounded bird and loves the little bird. It cannot fly. One day, to impress her peers, she throws the beloved bird out of a window, and because it is flightless, it falls down and dies. The potential “friends” leave because the bird is no longer interesting now that it is dead. She had sacrificed something she loved very much in a desperate attempt to win friends.
Book: possibly a Golden Book, published 1945 to 1955. A little girl has a collection of dolls from every land (Holland, Russia, Africa, China etc maybe). She wants a new one and takes her collection to the doll maker. When she gets the new one it has hair like one, eyes like another etc. And it looks just like her! // I don’t remember the girl’s name.
It was a Wonder Book. #519. Somewhere I found a copy. I am thinking of making a doll for myself. A childhood favorite. The girl’s name was Mary, the French doll was named Marie.
Yes, I remember Marie! I think we’re on the right track. Was there a Russian doll named Ivan? And a Dutch doll … maybe, Katrina? There was also a Native American, maybe Eskimo. And .. well. Several. Now to search for a copy of the original.
I’m trying to find a book I loved as a child. I was born in 1945. I believe I read it when I was 6. Plot was “tomorrow will be a better day.”
could it be one of the “little bear” books by Else Holmelund Minarik? i think he is shown wearing a blue coat, although not a rain coat.
In the first Little Bear book, he does go back home several times, but only for more clothes to keep him warm. Possible though?
This is a very, very long shot, but the cake part reminds me of A Baby Sister for Frances. But she’s a badger, and there’s no raincoat.
no it’s not that 😭 thank you though. i remember very well he was a bear
I’m looking for a children’s book I owned when I was a kid, from the early 2000’s or possibly 1990’s, that was about cryptids. It had a page about headless men, known as Blemmyae, it was written as a guide for children, like a research book. The cover either has an alien on the front in a forest with a ufo and beam in the background or a yeti/Sasquatch, or a sea monster. It’s very vague in my memories but it was a very loved book of mine. It also has mermaids in it as well. It was wonderfully illustrated and I hope to figure out what it was and buy a copy, it set me on my path in life as an anthropologist and I really wish to own it again.
Maybe this: Cryptozoology A to Z: The Encyclopedia of Loch Monsters, Sasquatch, Chupacabras, and other Authentic Mysteries of Nature, by Loren Coleman.
Thanks for searching, unfortunately that isn’t it, I should have specified better that it is a picture book, and the cover shows either Bigfoot or an alien on it
i’m looking for a book about a bear who leaves home but he goes back every time for different thing e.g : sleeping bag , teddy bear , chocolate cake. it’s a kids book and i’m pretty sure on the cover it’s a bear wearing a blue raincoat . it’s not paddington bear btw
Omg thank you so much! I’ve been searching so long for the name
I am looking for a children’s book we read as a kid (80’s-early 90’s). It had multiple stories in it. One was about a lamb who’s wool was straight. I think the lamb’s name was Sam. And there was another story about making pajamas for a llama. I can’t remember much else. I think the cover of the book was yellow. I’ve searched everywhere and can’t come up with the name of the book. Any help would be appreciated!
Sadly not! The illustrations are similar but I think the ones I’m looking for are slightly newer potentially
I am trying to find a book about a girl seeing a mermaid possibly through glass. Not sure if the mermaid could see she was watching her or not. It was a children’s chapter book or possibly a picture book, but I seem to remember a chapter book. I probably read it between the years 1970-1974.
I am looking for a book i had as a child. It was a record book. Pretty sure from scholastic in the 70s. It was about two horses and a hat. The horses got separated and spent years looking for each other. Then one day he saw a hat and they found each other. Please please. Does anyone remember the name?
Anatole by Eve Titus?
I trying to remember the name of a childhood favorite chapter book. I’d borrowed it many times from my elementary school library. It was a small in size with a white cover. I think it had woodcut simple illustrations about a boy in the woods. It was mostly about animals, I remember him coming upon a lynx in the forest. Can you help me remember the name of this book?
Looking for the title of a children’s book about a bear that has trouble going to sleep until his mother gives him the blue ribbon from her hair
I’m looking for a book I read as I child – guessing 80s or early 90s, but could have been earlier. I believe it was a board book, but perhaps a larger size board book. It had flaps to lift & bears in a house. One of the flaps was a rolltop desk, I think, & an umbrella stand. Any ideas? I’m stumped!
I’m looking for a book I read as I child – guessing 80s or early 90s, but could have been earlier. I believe it was a board book, but perhaps a larger size board book. It had flaps to lift & bears in a house. One of the flaps was a rolltop desk, I think, & an umbrella stand. Any ideas? I’m stumped!
Looking for a book from the 1960’s/1970’s. I purchased from a Scholastic school flyer in the 1970’s. Details: A girl moves into a house and begins having dreams about living a past life and having a twin. A cousin (I believe) comes to stay with them who is pretty horrid and accidentally causes a fire that kills one of the twins. The girl also finds a doll that was hidden by the cousin which may have been the cause of the argument that caused the accident.After finding the doll the girl somehow makes amends with the ghost, forgiving her for the accident. I think the word “Twin” was in the title. I remember so much but not the title!!
Twin Spell / Double Spell, by Janet Lunn. (Two titles, same book.)
This sounds like Twin Spell by Janet Lunn (also published under the title Double Spell).
From an online review: “It is a haunting book about twins Jane and Elizabeth who live in Ontario Canada and find a doll in an antique store which inexplicably seems to belong to them. After they move into their Aunt Alice’s mysterious old house, they begin finding themselves sharing the past experiences of two other twins, Anne and Melissa, who were their ancestors and lived in the house (which was smaller and did not have new additions built on it then) many years before. They also have visions of a frightening girl named Hester who seemed to hate the earlier twins. In the end they solve the mystery and discover that Anne had died in a fire (in a room they now use as an attic) that had been accidentally started by her cousin Hester, and that it is the ghost of Hester who is haunting the house. They discover this just in time for Elizabeth to save Jane, who is trapped in the attic with the ghost.”
“Ever since we’ve had this doll,” Elizabeth said hesitantly, “we’ve had funny things happen “-” the same dreams and knowing things and stuff like that.” Twins Jane and Elizabeth are twelve years old and have outgrown dolls. Nevertheless, on a cold wet spring Saturday they find themselves in an antique store, inexplicably drawn to a small, tattered old fashioned doll. Even the owner of the store seems to understand that the doll somehow belongs to the girls. Once the twins buy the doll, stranger and stranger things begin to happen, and a young girl from the past seems to be calling out to them. The search to discover the history of the little doll brings the twins terrifyingly close to the world of the supernatural as they finally solve a tantalizing mystery. Janet Lunn’s first novel, long unavailable, is republished in a fresh, beautiful edition.”
I’m looking for a old children’s book that I used to read to my kids. It was an old russian book. A man who complained all the time one day woke up with his head missing. His wife makes him a head out of some old socks and a pillow case. He is supposed to go to work but instead wanders around town looking for his head. He runs into the police who mistake him for a criminal so he is chased, a family mistakes him for their uncle. A few different things happen to him, but he ends up finding his head in a hat store. I remember the last line of the book had something to do with him not know to complain, hardly ever again. Anybody know what this book is?
It happened in Pinsk by Arthur Yorinks.
“Irv has a lovely wife – Irma, a comfortable apartment, good food, and even a telephone. But Irv still isn’t happy. Always complaining about how well off his widowed neighbour or celebrities like Kaminski the wrestler are, Irv overlooks his own good fortune and simply kvetches.
One morning, March 19, at breakfast, Irv was just about to eat a roll when he realized his head was missing.
“Oh, Irv!” his wife cried. “Everyday you lose something. Your keys. Your glasses. Now this.”
Irv, confused, waved his arms.
Irma quickly fashions Irv a new head with an old pillowcase and sends him off to work. Of course, Irv is upset and instead of heading for work he dashes off through the city to find his missing head. But Irv’s pillowcase of a head quickly attracts a lot of attention – although not the kind of attention one would suspect.
First, a policeman mistakes Irv for Igor Kalinski, a notorious criminal and tries to arrest him. Irv breaks free but is soon swept up into the arms of a woman who insists on addressing Irv as Uncle Eugene.
After a series of mistaken identities Irv finally encounters what he’s been looking for.
There, in the window of HATS BY PETROV, under a homburg, was Irv’s head.
“I’ll take that,” Irv said, pointing to his head.
“I don’t think that’s your size, sir” Petrov pronounced.
“Not the hat. That! That’s my head!”
After Irv finally makes it home with his head intact he almost never complains ever again.
Looking for a book from the 40’s or early 50’s – about an elephant who fell through all the floors of a tall house – perhaps at a birthday party. Any old-timers recognize the image?
Hi, I’m looking for a series of books I loved as a kid… I can’t remember how old I was when reading them but I was born in 94 so I’d guess they were from the 90’s ish! I’m sure they were all animals, and I think one story was of a hippo on a cruise who was nervous about going on it but ended up loving it (it could have been a train but I’m leaning more towards a boat she was on!) and another book was about (I can’t remember the animals!) someone driving somewhere for a birthday I think but it started to snow, they went into a house to wait for the snow to stop but it never did, they ended up getting snowed in and I think they then baked a cake while they waited. I remember in this one they then looked outside the house and the illustrations was of a little green car covered in snow. I can’t remember how many of these books there were or what they looked like except that they were a4 size so quite large!
I thought I’d kept them when I moved out but haven’t and am devastated so any ideas very appreciated!! 🙂
The hippo story: one possibility is George and Martha Round and Round, by James Marshall (the story “The Trip”).
Just had a gander but sadly not this one.. But thank you for the suggestion! 🙂
I have wracked my brain on this. Maybe the Sweet Pickles series.
I’m looking for a children’s (thin and paperback) book that I believe had a blue cover and the puns and jokes in it were fairly offensive by today’s standards. It had this image in it too: https://imgur.com/a/Arzbwur (the joke going: fatty and thinny/skinny went to bed, fatty rolled over and thinny/skinny was dead). I recently purchased More Jokes for Children Paperback byMarguerite Kohl but it wasn’t it.
Thanks for letting us know.
I’m looking for a children’s book. I remember the illustrations where of older disheveled women and I remember only a few lines like “May your mascara never run” “May your slip never show” and so on about pantyhose and such. It was a small maybe 4″ or 5″ square book and I loved it. I hope someone remembers this book.
Update: Found! Book is called Girl Talk by Lynn Wheeling
I’m looking for a picture book from the mid 1990s. It’s about a little boy who has grown out of his shoes and clothes and doesn’t want them replaced so he doesn’t want to go shopping. In the end his mum takes him shopping and they buy the exact same clothes again but in his new size. Any ideas?!
I remember reading this book as a child, and can’t remember much about it. It has a young boy who’s miserable at home (he might work at a factory or cannery, but I’m not sure), and he somehow ends up with a woman and her young daughter in a cabin in the woods. They and their friends are magic in some way.
I remember the cover as being yellow, and I think the book has a description of the yellow autumn leaves.
I most clearly remember them playing a weird version of hide and seek at some point.
It was a larger book with a paperback, didn’t look very old and can’t be published later than 2010, although was likely a 20th century book. Probably around 150 pages (?), with no illustrations.
Desperately trying to find a book from my childhood for my own children – it is sort of a Beauty and the Beast-esque, but the Prince is not a beast, just very selfish. After dismissing every eligible bride based on superficial reasons he meets the beautiful girl (I want to say her name was “Rose” but I could be wrong), but she refuses to marry him until he lives for a year as a peasant or something like that. Basically she rules in his stead and he has to go out and chop his own wood/hunt for food/etc. I vaguely remember there being something about a bear or maybe a wolf that maims him at some point and she has to come care for him, but I am very fuzzy on the details. It is beautifully illustrated and my memory is that the fashion is loosely 1700s France.
I think you might be looking for ‘The King’s equal’ by Katherine Paterson. This has been published as both a picture book and a chapter book.
A selfish, conceited prince is tormented by the dying words of his wise father, the benevolent king: “You will not wear my crown until the day you marry a woman who is your equal in beauty, intelligence and wealth.” Raphael’s vanity prevents him from finding such a bride until an unknown maiden appears at the palace.
The picture book does have lavish illustrations and Rosamund’s companion is a wolf. Raphael goes and lives Rosamund’s life as a goatherd for one year while she lives in the palace.
Yes, that’s it! Thank you so much!!
I need to find a kids book, I very vaguely remember but I think a man loses a button and it ends up in this weird world with flying fish and bees with big lips and it blows up and I think there was a swan in a lake and animals disguised in a forest and at the end the button is connected to a shoe like in a race car kinda way and the man finds it on a table. I think these were in the book but I don’t remember much and it’s killing me. I used to read this book in elementary school and I need to know if this was real or a weird fever dream.
This could be Button by Sara Fanelli (1994). Hard to find pictures of the interior but you can find plenty of examples of her quirky collage style art from her other titles online.
Eager to see the world, a button pulls free of the coat on which he’s sewn and goes through many identities before reuniting with his original owner.
Hello, I am trying to find a book that I had as a child and I can barely remember much about it but it had a green woven hardcover. I think it had a dustcover that was lost. There were a collection of different stories and very realistic Norman Rockwell-sytle artwork. I can only remember an illustration of a man named Zeke who had to climb up into a large town Christmas tree, his face was sticking out of the tree, he wore a newsboy cap and there were shiny colored balls around him. I can’t remember anything else. I had it as a child in the 70s early 80s.
Hi, I’m looking for a 25-30 year old children’s book. It was about fairies/witches and one of them was flying on a cutting board. They were holding a talent contest where one of the fairies made a car out of flowers and other was baking a huge cake. I think one of the fairies was named Orchid and there was another book that belonged to the same series and that one was about giants.
I’M TRYING TO recall a children’s book – pictures mostly – with a main character Anatoli (or Anatole). In the book, there was mention of and a picture of the Boar’s Head Provisions truck. I cannot recall the book. Please help!
I’m a librarian, and looking for a picture book for a patron who can’t remember the title or author. It’s probably from the 90s. It’s something about animals going to sleep on a farm/in a barn, and she distinctly remembers that each page/spread ends with “all asleep in the quiet night”. From her description, “beautifully muted / watercolor-like pictures of different countryside/farm animals settling down for the night” and the colors were mostly muted greens, browns, blues.
This isn’t quite a match, but it might be worth checking out Going to Sleep On the Farm by Wendy Cheyette Lewison, illus. by Juan Wijngaard (1992).
It does not have the line “all asleep in the quiet night” but it does have repetitive text and the illustrations sound similar. Here’s a youtube link to the book being read: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ud_PEx-r6c
I’m looking for a book I read in about 2015 in the 4th or 5th grade. It is a kids book. I imagine the book is from the 2000’s. I can’t remember much about it and what I do remember may be wrong but it was about a girl who was maybe a pre teen or a teenager who had about shoulder length red hair and maybe freckles with rosy cheeks. It was a drawn cover. I think she was standing on a hill or something with a blue sky background. Although all that (minus her physical characteristics) may be a bit off. From what I can recall I think she had to move somewhere or had just moved. Her relationship with her dad was a bit tense ( this part might also be a bit off). If you have something that remotely fits the description please help. I also think her name may have started with an s but that may be wrong too
Hi I’m looking for a children’s book that had mostly pictures but pictures from multiple stories such as the woman who lived in a shoe, billy goat gruff and troll under the bridge. It’s difficult to remember more but my dad used to read me this book all the time and I’d love to find it.
I thought maybe you were thinking of Stories That Never Grow Old. It has Billy Goat Gruff and other stories, such as The Ugly Duckling and Hansel and Gretel. No Old Woman Who Lived In A Shoe story though…
I am looking for a book from my childhood…mid/late 1970’s – early1908’s…Conrad was an alien baby ordered from a single Mom that then raised him & depicted their adventures. I am quiet saddened that I cannot locate this book. Any and all help is appreciated. Thank you kindly.
This one?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/131587.Conrad
I’m looking for a book about a girl who floats when she sleeps, I think the cover was her in a white nightgown and was floating by a lamppost. But I’m not entirely sure, my sister remembers her floating over her city. Please help!
I’m trying to find this book I grew up reading in the early 2000s, but the book was probably from the 90s originally (it had batteries and a speaker inside)
The best I can remember, there was a boy, and a lot of sheep. The sheep were jumping over a fence or gate, but one (might have been a black sheep) wouldn’t jump. There were buttons on the side, and the book talked and had music.
I also remember clearly the button had a picture of a castle and played music, and the very last page all the sheep (and the boy?) Were in the same room.
Not sure, but I believe the plot was, the boy helped the sheep get to where they were all going. The other button said “I know what to do!” This is when the boy figures out how to get the sheep to jump. The other button was a springboard sound.. please let me know if you know what book it is!!!!
I’m trying to find this book I grew up reading in the early 2000s, but the book was probably from the 90s originally (it had batteries and a speaker inside)
The best I can remember, there was a boy, and a lot of sheep. The sheep were jumping over a fence or gate, but one (might have been a black sheep) wouldn’t jump. There were buttons on the side, and the book talked and had music.
I also remember clearly the button had a picture of a castle and played music, and the very last page all the sheep (and the boy?) Were in the same room.
Not sure, but I believe the plot was, the boy helped the sheep get to where they were all going. The other button said “I know what to do!” This is when the boy figures out how to get the sheep to jump. The other button was a springboard sound.. please let me know if you know what book it is!!!!
Hi, I’m looking for a children’s picture book published before 1970. This is going by my memory but I think it had a picture of a tree with a (stone) wall fence around it. There was a school right near but no one could go in. Someone, a giant maybe wanted to keep everyone out,until on
e boy made a difference
The story sounds like The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde. There are a lot of different printings of it, either as a standalone book or together with other of Wilde’s short stories such as The Happy Prince and The Nightingale and the Rose.
“The story’s plot revolves around a giant who builds a wall to keep children out of his garden, but learns compassion from the innocence of the children. The Selfish Giant owns a beautiful garden which has 12 peach trees and lovely fragrant flowers, in which children love to play after returning from the school. The Giant put a notice board “TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED”. The garden falls into perpetual winter. One day, the giant is awakened by a linnet, and discovers that spring has returned to the garden, as the children have found a way in through a gap in the wall…”
“After seven years, the Giant has nothing left to say to his friend the Cornish ogre, and so he returns home to his castle—only to find that in his absence, the children have been playing in his beautiful garden. At once the selfish Giant builds a high wall to keep the children out of the garden. Winter turns into Spring all over the country—but not in the selfish Giant’s garden. Across the country Spring turns into Summer and then to Autumn—but in the selfish Giant’s garden, the trees refuse to bloom and the birds refuse to sing; they miss the children. The selfish Giant lies shivering in his large bed while Hail, Snow, North Wind, and Frost dance across the garden. But one morning the Giant hears a beautiful noise—what could it be?”
I’m desperately searching for a children’s picture book, I’ve had it since I was about 6, so I’d say the book could be anywhere between 1980-2000. It’s about a dog and a cat who are best friends; I think they had names along the lines of Doby & Katie, it was a series of adventures they had in the book. I recall one being about how the dog made soup and the cat was very keen on having some, in the end they finished the whole pot with their bellies full. Another in the same book was they had a beach day together and the cat was wearing a fancy swimsuit. I can’t recall much of it but if it’s possible to be found I would be very appreciative!
Digby and Kate, by Barbara Baker. There are some sequels as well.
I am looking for a children’s story that was probably in print between late 1950′ through the 60’s. It was about a boy who somehow got to buy a whole candy store by cleverly making some deals with the owner. I think it started off with him getting a gift for his birthday, and going to the store to buy candy. I can’t remember how he eventually convinced the owner. I think it was illustrated, but I don’t know that it was a stand-alone book. It may have been included in a group of stories. Anyway, even describing it gives me a small twinge of that wonderful satisfied feeling I had when i read it as a kid. Would love it if someone could shed a light on what it might be. Thanks!
Ever since I discovered that the MBH, Picturesque Tale, and Travelship books purchased new for me and my two sisters in the early 1950’s (and from which we all three learned to read before starting kindergarten), had gone missing, I was determined to replace them with sets in presentable condition and as close as possible to the vintage of the ones I had known. I was pleased to find on ebay and acquire at a reasonable price a 12 volume rainbow edition set that is in excellent condition and possibly an original set, except for vol. 1, which is a 1960 copyright. The others all show “THIRTY-SIXTH PRINTING, 1954” on the copyright page, and, on the title page, “PUBLISHERS THE BOOK HOUSE for CHILDREN CHICAGO”. I noticed in the Bibliographic Checklisting appendix to Dorothy Loring Taylor’s book that “The 35th [printing] was done in 1953 and was the last published under the ownership of Mrs. Miller.” The copyright and title pages of my newly acquired set are (except for vol. 1) presented in the same format as some slightly earlier printings I’ve seen with the 1950 copyright. Would there not have been some sort of indication of ownership change on the title or copyright pages of my 36th? Did United Educators continue for a time to publish MBH as from Chicago before changing the title pages to Lake Bluff? How does my set fit into the MBH history? Can you give me a perspective on this?
Please let me add that I’m sure most of us aging “MBH kids” have one or more singular features of the books that have particularly persisted in our memories over the years. In my case it would certainly include the captivating, absorbing, and utterly fascinating Mariel Wilhoite endpapers in volumes 3 through 7.
I’ve always assumed that your explanation in correct, but my knowledge of printings is limited to Taylor’s book and the few earlier editions from the 30’s that she does not mention which I’ve run across. I don’t know much about later editions. I love those endpapers too!
Suzanne
Oh interesting! No, it’s definitely different. He wants to help but is frightened by the darkening woods; he finds his courage by becoming a fox who can nimbly jump over grasping branches in his path.
Or maybe not that one: the first description I read sounded like the boy was transformed into a tiger, but the others sound quite different. Sorry if that one’s no help.
Hi, I’m looking for kid’s book about a girl throwing a birthday party and one friend is different than the others (he showed up early, wore a I think dinosaur costume, wanted to do different/weird things) but then at the end was the only one who stayed to help her clean up. Showing that even if someone is different they can be good and kind.
I’m also trying to find the title of another kids’ books, also from the 90’s. It was about a family of 5 people and 5 monsters preparing for a party respectively. Each page had pictures of how monsters prepare gifts, and how the people prepared gifts, how monsters decorated the room, and how the people decorated. I hope my memory is accurate. It was very colorfully illustrated. Anyone know what book that was?
Hi, I’m trying to find a children’s book from the 1990’s. It had a pink hard cover, the title was possibly “You Are Here.” I cannot find any record of such a book online though. It was an illustrated book about a girl who flew around the world, landing at different parts of the globe and exploring the culture there. There was one picture of the character swinging at a pinata, another of her dressed up as an Eskimo in the North Pole. Each page had such dotted lines where her plane flew next. I’d love to know the accurate title and if it is still available to purchase!
Thanks!!
Im looking for a lilac story book from the 1970s it was bedtime stories, in particular a little girl used her mums cosmetic ‘vanishing ‘cream and started to disappear. Thank you in advance
I’m looking for a children’s book from the mid 90’s about taking a walk in the woods and being very observant. Lots of illustrations. The main character looked a little like a gnome and had a big walking stick.
One of the Crinkleroot books?
http://www.crinkleroot.com/BOOKS.html