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Have you forgotten the title of your favorite children's book? This is a service to help solve your book mysteries.

Submit your memory here, and see if anyone else remembers your book memory, or better yet, knows the title and author! After all, it's easier to find the book when you know what it's called.

I'll post copies for sale when I have them, and am always glad to search for copies not currently in stock. Loganberry Books is a used bookshop after all, and this page is only a small sideline offered as a service to my customers.

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Book Stumpers should be submitted by clicking the "Book Stumper" link below. Stumpers cost $2 to submit, and will be posted alphabetically by Keycode until solved. New Stumpers will be on this page for at least four weeks, and are then moved to the archive pages. Once solved, the posting moves to the Solved Mysteries pages, alphabetical by title. New comments and stumpers are posted on Mondays and/or Tuesdays, and whenever else time permits. The tallies do not reflect solutions made by simply browsing the archives or asking what we deem an "easy question" rather than a "stumper."

The 2003 Tally
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527 Stumpers posted; 393 (75%) Solved
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902 Stumpers posted; 498 (55%) Solved
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858 Stumpers posted; 397 (46%) Solved
The 2007 Tally
974 Stumpers posted; 406 (42%) Solved

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last updated
11/20/08

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A384: anthology of children's stories including Bartholomew Cubbins
I recall owning a book in the late 50s or early 60s, a collection of children's stories by various authors, which included "Bartholomew Cubbins" or a story almost exactly like it, but NOT illustrated by Dr Seuss. May have also had a story about a boy & girl whose mom carved wooden birds. Any ideas?

Pauline Rush Evans (ed.), The Family Treasury of Children's Stories, 1956, copyright. This is a three volume set, The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins is in Volume 1. There's only one illustration for the story, and its by Dr. Seuss. I didn't see a story about carving wooden birds, but I didn't look that closely, either.
Thank you, but this can't be the one I'm thinking of if Seuss is the illustrator.
I think we had a similar book. It was an anthology of stories from around the world (I believe it had a section on Norse mythology as well). It had the same basic story as the 500 hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, but without those names. It may be The Norton Anthology of Children’s Literature. Ours was green with gold writing.
Elsa Jane Werner (ed), Tibor Gergely (illus), The Golden Book of Nursery Tales, 1948, copyright. A long shot, but perhaps the story you are thinking of is a Swedish tale called "The Cap That Mother Made." A little boy named Anders has a beautiful new cap that his mother has made for him. Everyone he meets admires the cap and wants it for themselves. When an old woman tells him that he looks grand enough to go to the king's ball, he decides to do so. The soldiers at the gate admit him after he claims that his cap is "as good as a uniform." Inside, the princess immediately walks up to Anders and takes him by the hand, causing all the richly dressed ladies and gentlemen to turn and bow to them. She offers to trade him a kiss for his cap, then fills his pockets with cakes and cookies and puts her jeweled necklace around his neck, but he still will not give it up. The king enters, and offers to trade his big golden crown for Anders' cap. Knowing that he can't argue with the king, Anders doesn't say a word - he just clutches his cap tight with both hands and runs all the way home, trailing cakes, cookies, and jewels. When he tells his family what happened, his brothers and sisters think him foolish for turning down the riches - but he defends his decision, saying that nothing in the world is finer than the cap his mother made for him. Other stories in the book include both traditional favorites (such as The Three Bears, Three Little Pigs, Three Billy Goats Gruff, Chicken Little, Little Red Riding Hood, The Gingerbread Boy, The Tortoise and the Hare, The Ugly Duckling, and The Bremen Town Musicians) and harder-to-find stories (like The Boasting Bamboo, Bobo and the Roast Pig, Silly Will, The Little Boy Who Tried to Obey, The Huckabuck Family, Pelle's New Suit, The Little Scarecrow Boy, and The Hollow Tree Store).
The Cap That Mother Made. Just a follow-up to my previous suggestion. If the story "The Cap That Mother Made" sounds right, but The Golden Book of Nursery Tales does not, versions of the same story can be found in other anthologies, too. One is "The Children's Treasury: A Book To Grow On" (compiled by Marjorie Barrows) c.1947, 1951. Other stories include The Little Gray Pony, A Child's Garden of Verses, Quacky, Nursery Fun, Posh and Tosh, Pelle's New Suit, Horace, The Little Red Hen, The House that Jack Built, The Cat and the Mouse, and The Billy Goats Gruff. Another book containing the story is "Road in Storyland" (edited by Watty Piper) c.1932. This book also contains The Rooster and the Fox, The Pine Tree and its Needles, Olaf and the Three Goats, Boots and his Brothers, King Midas, The Dog and his Shadow, The Shoemaker and the Elves, The Elephant and the Monkey, The Stone in the Road, The Star Dipper, The Old Woman Who Wanted All The Cakes, Little Half Chick, and The Country Mouse and the City Mouse. Finally, you might try the book "First Fairy Tales" published by Merrill, and illustrated by Mary Sherwood Jones and Ray Evans Jr. c.1948. Other stories include: Golden Cobwebs, Lambikin, The Gertrude Bird, The Star Dipper, The Little Red Hen, Aiken Drum, A Never Ending Tale, The Three Wishes, Two Frogs, Silly Jack, The Runaway Rabbit, The Gingerbread Boy, and The Tiny Pine Tree's Wish.

A385: Around the World Bedtime Story
Solved: Come Over to My House, Come Over to Play
1970's, childrens. In this bed time story, a little boy goes to bed in the US and then travels to other countries to see how other children sleep. You follow his little black footprints across the pages as he "walks" from continent to continent. In Africa, we see a child who sleeps in a hammock. In Japan, we see a child who uses a wooden stand as a pillow. In Alaska, the children sleep in an igloo. In the American West, a child sleeps in a teepee. I may have some of this information jumbled up, after all, I was only a child when this book was read to me, however, one thing I remember for certain are the footprints across the pages. There were also footprints along the inside covers, front and back.

Theo LeSieg (Dr. Seuss), Come Over to My House. This is your book! It is not illustrated in Dr. Seuss's typical style, but it has the footprints as you travel over the world to see the different kinds of houses people live in.
Come over to my house, come over and play. I'm pretty sure the requester is looking for Come Over to My House, Come Over and Play. The foot prints are on the endpages, and there is a section devoted to how each kid sleeps--one shows the Japanese boy with his head on the wooden pedestal--the entire book is not just about sleeping, though, as it shows kids eating, playing, etc.
Thank You! Thank You! For helping to locate a book from my childhood when I didn't even know the title or author! My "stump the bookseller" request was A385 and as it turns out, the book I was looking for was, indeed, Theo LeSieg (Dr. Seuss) Come Over to My House, Come Over to Play. I am thrilled!!! THANK YOU!

A386: Australian Brother, Sister and Cousin lost, do some time traveling, come home
Solved: The Way Home
I have only vague memories of this book. A brother and sister and another boy--I believe their nature-hating cousin--end up lost in the Australian Outback. A helicopter or small plane crash, perhaps? Some kind of magic is involved, and while they try to find their way home, they travel forward and back in time. They run into some kind of goddess who reprimands the cousin for not liking to get his hands dirty with earth. At the end of the book, when the boy and girl are home (I don't think the cousin made it back), the girl has a pet pygmy kangaroo that came from the past and is extinct in modern times, much to the puzzlement of a visiting friend of the parents.

Phipson, Joan, The Way Home, 1973, copyright. This sounds like Phipson's The Way Home. After surviving a car accident and a bush fire, three young Australians find that everything seems changed and they are traveling through different places and times.
That's the book, thanks! I found a review online that goes into even more detail and matches the story details I recall:
"A wilderness journey becomes a sort of metaphysical adventure as well for Australian Prue, her seven year-old brother Peter and her teenage cousin Richard after the three youngsters are tossed over a cliff in an auto accident and then swept downstream into unknown country. The scene becomes even stranger after a brush fire from which they narrowly escape; encounters first with naked aborigines and then with enormous monsters indicate that they are traveling backward in time, and toward the end there is also an unsettling vision of the future. Prue and Peter do at last find the way home, aided by a comforting presence who materializes in emergencies and, they come to see, holds them and all mankind (seen as overpopulating specks) in his/her giant hand. Richard, however, who will not accept what he cannot explain, refuses to recognize the amorphous guardian and consequently is killed during a volcanic eruption. Admirers of didactic metaphysical adventure/fantasy will be impressed by Phipson's meticulously realized landscape and her skillful integration of different times and realities, but we can't help sympathizing with Richard's failure to intuit the relevance of all the prehistoric tumult or to trust the benign omnipotence behind it. (Kirkus Reviews)"

A387: Apartment on Central Park
I read this book sometime in the early 70s. It had a blue cover and was about a girl, an apartment on central park, she could see the window of her apartment from the park.

Eighteen, 1970's. I have been looking for a book called "Eighteen" for at least a decade off and on online. The description from stumper A387 of the Apt in Central Park sounded familiar. It was about a young teen girl who goes off to get her own apartment at age 18. I remember there was a love interest and perhaps they got the apt togheter. its been 30 years since i read it but i love that book!

A388: African girl living in African Village
It was in the mid 1960's that I read this book. I remember a fight with wild boars, her rising early and eating cold yams from the iron pot that huing outside her tent, I remember brothers being able to hunt and her being forbidden to. I believe her name started with an 'N". Her father may have been the chief of her village.

Reba Paeff Mirsky, Thirty-One Brothers and Sisters. Her name is Nomusa.
Thirty-One Brothers and Sisters? See Solved Mysteries.
Reba Paeff Mirsky, Thirty-One Brothers And Sisters, 1952, approximate. This is the story of Nomusa, daughter of a South African Zulu chief, her desire to go on an Elephant hunt with the men, and her adventure with a fierce wild boar. Nomusa is a heroine that girls and boys will admire. Illustrated with numerous sepia ink and pen drawings. Winner of the 1952 Charles Follett Award. Reprinted in 1956, 1958 and 1969. Sequels are "Seven Grandmothers" (Warmhearted, capable Nomusa determines to become a healer of the sick - witch doctor or nurse, she is not sure which) and "Nomusa and the New Magic" (Nomusa finds that not everyone is willing to welcome the new knowledge that is coming to Zululand. One of the objectors is Damasi, who is afraid that if Nomusa learns to read and write and becomes a nurse, her bride-dowry will be more cows than he can possibly get together.)
Reba Paeff Mirsky, Seven Grandmothers. I think this must be one of the 3 books about Nomusa, a Zulu girl, which I also read in the '60s. The titles are: Seven Grandmothers [Nomusa's father is indeed a chief, and has six wives -- hence the second title], Thirty-One Brothers and Sisters, and Nomusa and the New Magic (in which she is nearly grown up and decides she wants to be a nurse like the one who visits her village). I think the name of the boy she likes is Damasi, and they fall in love in the last book.

A389: After Dark
After Dark? 1985? This children's book was in the Public Library of our town. It was a hard cover book about 11" high and 8" wide. It had large colorful pages of illustrations and the book was about how sights, sounds and activities in the neighborhood are different in the morning than nighttime. There was one page that my daughter remembers very well, it had a prominent red bird in the picture. I hope you can find this book as it would mean a lot to my daughter. Thank you.

Budney, Blossom, After Dark, 1975, copyright. After dark / by Blossom Budney, illustrated by Tony Chen. Discusses the sights and sounds that night brings to a child’s home.

A390: Arabian girl and American girl, horses
i would like to find the title or author of a book about arabian horses and a girl from arabia. she comes to spend a year with an american girl named gabrielle, and they go the horse show route. they meet a couple of boys, and one turns out to be her fiance from arabia, they meet a girl called peaches, gabbys father bought about 4 horses from the girls father. one town they stop at is murdo south dakota, where the time line runs down main street.

B651: Bear and Rabbit Quest in Winter
Solved: Abiner Smoothie's Journey To The Heart of a Bear
Short description: Children's book bound in fake red leather stamped with designs. Bear and rabbit go on a quest (with the whole bear family) traveling around the world getting rhyming clues to find something (heart of a bear?).
Extended description: The Book: A large red book bound in fake leather with designs stamped on it in squares and a colour illustration in the middle. I was quite fascinated with the cover because it was actually puffy. I got this book in the early 80's but I don't know how long it had been in print. The Story: It's about a very affluent bear family. A young bear wakes up in the winter and can't get back to sleep. A rabbit lives with them and is drinking brandy in the library. A conversation ensues and somehow they end up going on a quest for something. It may be "the heart of a Bear" but I can't remember. The whole extended family wakes up and insists on going with them. The family and rabbit go around the world and even under the sea finding rhyming clues. The young bear and rabbit do all the actual searching while the family enjoys the sights, the opera, banquets etc. In the end they find that what they were looking for was in the library all along - I think it was the friendship between them or love or something like that. The Illustrations: Amazing full page pictures of the bear family and accompanying rabbit - not cartoonish in style, more like fine illustration. Lots of colour and detail. I think their clothes were late 19th century/early 20th century. One one page they go to the opera and the family is decked out in early 20 century (?) Russian finery - I remember one of the aunts has really long strings of pearls. Another page shows a journey to the ocean floor and their coach is pulled by leafy seadragons. I have not seen these illustrations equaled in children's literature. Thank you so much for your help - I have been searching for this book for many years.

Dennis Kyte, Abiner Smoothie's Journey To The Heart of a Bear, 1985, copyright. Also listed online as: To The Heart of a Bear: Abiner Smoothie's Journey. "Restless one night, Abiner speculates on his ancestress, Lady Audrey Furwhistle, whose statue has been shrouded since she disgraced the family, centuries earlier. Abiner removes the cover and finds the image of a beautiful woman with a real ruby heart on a chain around the neck. The discovery pushes Abiner into a quest to solve the mystery of Lady Audrey's sin, hinted at in a riddle chiseled into the statue. Puppy (Abiner's rabbit friend) and the bear's many relatives join him on board the Argyle, sailing to exotic lands and strange adventures. Along the way, the young Smoothie picks up more clues to the case of the red heart and he restores it, at last, to its rightful owner. Kyte's inspired puns and delicately colored paintings provide extra attractions to his funny, fanciful tale." And yes, this book did come with a red fake leather cover, with a picture of Abiner and Puppy in the center. This book is a sequel to The Last Elegant Bear: The Life and Times of Abiner Smoothie, which had a fake brown leather cover.
I just looked to see if there were comments and it is solved! Dennis Kyte, Abiner Smoothie's Journey To The Heart of a Bear. Thanks so much!!!

B652: British woman doctor out west
Early 70s?, womens. This book was about a female doctor who antagonized her colleagues in England. So, she went to a fort town in the post-civil war west. She befriended an elderly, African-American, male ex-slave who helped her establish her clinic, the ladies of the saloon, and local miners. When a snake oil salesman came into town and tried to take over her business, two miners (whom she managed to save after a mining accident, but were left crippled) ran him out town. The love interest was the calvary major, a southerner disowned by his family for fighting for the north. When the major was shot in the butt by an arrow, he repaid her digging out the arrow by having his men dig her a well. The calvary rode into save her from the Indians upon her capture, but found her instructing the Native Americans on hygiene and food safety and teaching the chief a Scottish prayer, thus bringing peace between the Natives and the settlement. The town was run by crooked mayor who had control of the press. The newspaper always ended reviews of society parties at the mayor's house with "a good time was had by all."

Frances Murray, The Burning Lamp. This is undoubtedly the book you want, but the heroine is a nurse, not a doctor (she was trained by Florence Nightingale). Other than that, it's a complete match to your description.

B653: Briar Rose or Sleeping Beauty (not Disney)
Either Briar Rose or The Sleeping Beauty, 1940-1974? Childrens. Beautifully illustrated, not an anthology. One of the first pictures is of the queen at a pond talking with a frog as she prepares to take a bath. I will only know it when I see the pictures, I'm afraid. I've seen Margery Gill's version and that's not it. I asked at the Library of Congress with no luck but they told me to try Stump the Bookseller! Good luck.

Trina Schart Hyman, The Sleeping Beauty. The first page of this story has a picture of the queen standing in a forest pool talking to a frog. Beautiful illustrations.
I love Trina Schart Hyman and I own a couple copies of that book so that isn't what I'm looking for. But thank you for the contribution.
One of the fairy books by Andrew Lang. I can't remember which of them (pink, red, etc) had that one, but the illustrations are right.
Arthur Rackham (illus), told by C.S. Evans, The Sleeping Beauty, 1920, copyright. Have you tried this one? The artwork is truly fantastic - from simple silhouettes to opulent full-color plates. One of the illustrations (an intricate black and white silhouette) shows the queen talking to the frog. She is standing, nude, at the edge of the water, a dripping sponge in her hand, framed by a border of delicate vines, bushes, and trees. In the background, a child-shaped fountain stands on a pedestal, pouring water from a large ewer. There have been multiple reprints over the years, with slightly different covers. Try to find a reprint of the 1920 original, as some reprints are abridgements that omit some of the fabulous artwork.

B654: Betsy's First Christmas
Solved: Merry Christmas from Betsy
1980, childrens. I've tried the Betsy Tacy & Maud Hart Lovelace, but still can't seem to find this book. I read it in 1979/1980. I thought the title was "Betsy's First Christmas". I only remember she's a very young girl, snow, Christmas time, she goes shopping for a new slicker with her mom, and puts out orange peelings filled with peanut butter for birds I believe. And possibly a white, hardback. Think I recall a Christmas wreath on its cover. Oh please you've got to know this one. Thank you ever so much!

Haywood, Carolyn, Snowbound with Betsy. This is Carolyn Haywood's Betsy not Lovelace's, and the episode described is in Snowbound with Betsy.
Carolyn Haywood, Snowbound with Betsy. Try this one--it does have the scene with feeding the birds.
Haywood, Carolyn, Merry Christmas From Betsy, 1970, copyright. "Merry Christmas From Betsy" is a collection of short stories from numerous winter-themed Haywood books. Feeding the birds with peanut butter is from Haywood's most popular novel, "Snowbound With Betsy."
I'm only guessing- but could this be one of Carolyn Haywood's Betsy books?? Snowbound with Betsy? or Betsy's Winterhouse?? These might be possibilities!
Haywood, Carolyn, Snowbound with Betsy, 1962, copyright. Synopsis: It is usually a harrowing experience to be snowbound, but to Betsy and Star the snowstorm that came a week before Christmas was a perfect delight. For company, they had Neddie and Susan who, along with their mother, had been rescued from a stalled car on a snowy turnpike by Father. Even though the electricity was out and they could not watch television, Betsy was never at a loss for other ways to pass the time. Soon she infected Neddie and Susan with her contagious knack for complicating the simplest situation. Before the week was over, Betsy washed a can of unpopped corn that got scattered on the floor and then, using her own peculiar logic, dried it off in the oven wwith devastating results. --She devised a birds' Christmas tree that her father called a Garbage tree-- and, with cheer and aplomb, thoroughly misdirected the making of a snowman. These are only a few of the merry adventures and mix-ups that make this snowbound week a joyous holiday for Betsy and her family.
Carolyn Haywood, Merry Christmas From Betsy. You might try Carolyn Haywood's books about Betsy and her little sister, Star. Betsy and her sister Star remember all the special Christmases they have spent together in "Merry Christmas From Betsy", a collection of holiday chapters gathered from the Betsy books, as well as two never-before-published episodes. Another one that might be worth a look is "Snowbound With Betsy" in which a terrific snowstorm hits the week before Christmas, and Betsy, Star, and their parents are snowbound, much to the girls' delight. There are snowmen to be built, Christmas presents to be made, and a tree to be decorated.
Carolyn Haywood, Merry Christmas from Betsy, 1970, approximate. It might not be this book, but have you checked out the "other" Betsy books, by Carolyn Haywood? I can't remember the slicker story, but I'm absolutely certain that there is a story about putting peanut butter out for the birds in orange peels. Again, I think that it might be this book, but I can't be sure because I don't own it and am unable to check for certain.
Carolyn Haywood, Merry Christmas from Betsy, 1970, copyright. This is NOT Betsy's first Christmas but there are different stories about Betsy and her little sister, Star, who was born on Christmas Eve and does have her first Christmas in the book. In one story they put peanut butter in orange peels to hang on a tree outside for the birds.
Carolyn Haywood, Merry Christmas from Betsy. Could this be from the long-running Betsy series by Carolyn Haywood? There is a Christmas book.
Carolyn Haywood, Betsy series. I don't know the exact title, but this stumper is referring to one of the Betsy series by Carolyn Haywood, a great series. There is at least one full Christmas title, but a couple of the others may have Christmas bits in them too. Anyway, this is the author she's looking for.
Check the Carolyn Haywood books about Betsy. (Look in the Solved-B section, "B is for Betsy Series") This is a different Betsy from the Lovelace one. At least one of them is about Christmas. See if any of that looks familiar.
I want to thank ALL who responded to my book stumper. I surely hope you're right. Now all I have to do is find a copy. I'm so excited.

B655: Bug Bites
1970's, juvenile. Mystery book where a boy and girl, I think they are friends and not brother and sister, solve a mystery together. It is during the summer and they end up getting chased by some bad men. They get lost in a swamp or the woods. When they are found they are covered in cuts, bruises and bug bites.

With not a lot to go on, could this be one of Jean Craighead George's environmental mysteries? There are a couple where kids end up in the woods. The one that comes to mind is "The Missing Gator of Gumbo Limbo", but there are others.

B656: Boy/man paints town different colours until he finds the right combination
Solved: The Great Blueness
I am 35 and read this children's book in the late 70s early 80s. It tells the story of a boy or a man who lives in a town with no colour ie the town is black and white. I think he is a painter and decides to paint the town but can't decide which colour to use so he starts with red but this colour makes the people in the town too angry so then he decides to paint the town blue but this makes the town's people very sad and on he goes, trying green, yellow and so forth and he can't seem to get it right because people experience different moods depending on the colour he chooses. One day as he is carrying his paints or pallet, he takes a tumble and all his paint mixes together and then he realizes he has found the perfect colour combination comprising of blue, green, red etc, so he paints the grass green, the sky blue and so forth. I am on the hunt for two other childhood books. I am an avid children's book collector and finding the three elusive books would mean so much to me!

Arnold Lobel, The Great Blueness. This is a favorite of mine too! A Wizard invents blue, which makes people sad, then red, making people angry, then yellow, which gives everyone a headache. He tries to invent other colors, but just keeps coming up with those three until his pots overflow and mix together, creating all the colors. People then paint the world with all different colors and everyone is happy!
Arnold Lobel, The Great Blueness and other Predicaments, 1968, copyright. One of my favorite read-a-louds, children love seeing the town come alive with color, even though the wizard has trouble getting the colors just right.
Lobel, Arnold, The Great Blueness and other Predicaments, 1968. When a wizard discovered that each color he invented for the colorless world had a different emotional effect on people, he luckily had an accident which resulted in red apples, green leaves, and yellow bananas.
Arnold Lobel, The Great Blueness and Other Predicaments. Is it Arnold Lobel's book The Great Blueness? A wizard lives in a gray world. He makes blue paint and the villagers use it to paint EVERYTHING blue, but that makes people sad. It goes through the spectrum of colors and no color by itself works until the wizard accidentally mixes the paints and then the villagers paint the world in all different colors.
Arnold Lobel, The Great Blueness. Incredible! I never dreamed that I would find this book. It's equivalent to winning the lottery. I am going to hunt down a first edition. Thank you so much, I can't even begin to explain how happy and grateful I am.

B657: bird, sparrow, snow, seed, boxcar
Solved: The Richest Sparrow in the World
Picture book from the 60's illustrated in the bold style of Charley Harper. In a snowy city, a little sparrow sees a boxcar full of seed and isn't content to eat the spilled seed on the ground with the other birds, but goes into the boxcar and gets locked in. Please help me find this one! Thank you!

“The Richest Sparrow in the World” is the name of the book I was looking for. I only remembered that the sparrow wasn’t satisfied with eating the spilled seed on the ground along with the other birds, and when he saw the huge pile of seed inside the boxcar at the train station, he went in to eat and was locked inside. My brother is the one who remembered more about it and found it for me on the web. He has an incredible memory and is three years older than I am. I should have asked him first! The book is by Czech author Eduard Petiska and illustrated by Zdenek Miler and was published in English in 1963 by Golden Pleasure Publishing, London. There were several stories (I think five) in the book but I only remember the one about the sparrow. It was a veiled communist tract but many western children enjoyed it regardless for the cute characters and illustrations (including author Kate Mosse). Speaking of illustrations, that is why I was interested in this book to begin with. I would love to know more about Zdenek Miler.

B658: Brother and sister, time travel, dad, witch
This book probably came from Scholastic, in the mid 70s or so. It was about a brother and sister who traveled through time or into another dimension. I think the brother's name was Charles. Somehow, the dad was involved. A witch or something helps them back by reminding them to LOVE.

Sounds like A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. Meg and her little brother Charles Wallace have to rescue their father by travelling to other dimensions.
L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time. Definitely sounds like A Wrinkle in Time. The boy is named Charles, his sister is Meg, and they're joined by Calvin, a friend, as they travel across time and space to rescue Charles and Meg's father. They're helped by three magic women, Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit, and Mrs. Which, who do remind them to love one another. This should be it.
Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time, 1962, copyright.
Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time. Three supernatural beings who appear as quirky old women help Meg and her brother Charles Wallace rescue their dad from a planet where he is held captive. Meg, her friend Calvin, and Meg's father all escape to another planet but Charles Wallace is left behind. Meg goes back to rescue him and is able to reach his mind through the power of their love. There are other books: A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, An Acceptable Time.

C585: Compliation of fairy tales
Probably published in the 80's. It includes The Happy Prince, The Selfish Giant, The Swan Princess, and Silver Saucer, Russet Apple, which seems to be a pretty rare story. I believe the cover was of snow white and was dark in color. Thick, glossy pages with great illustrations. Prob. 9x13.

Oscar Wilde, Arthur Ransome. Ok, so this isn't exactly a solution, but perhaps it will help point you in the right direction? First, are you absolutely certain that all those stories were in the same book? Or might you be combining the memories of several books? I've been hunting, and so far the only books I can find that contain both "The Happy Prince" and "The Selfish Giant" are the books that contain only the stories of Oscar Wilde (eg. The Happy Prince and Other Tales, or The Complete Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde). I have not been able to find any reference to a story about a russet apple and a silver saucer, but was wondering if perhaps you meant "The Tale of the Silver Saucer and the Transparent Apple" by Arthur Ransome, which can be found in Old Peter's Russian Tales, The Kingfisher Book of Stories for Seven-Year-Olds, and More Stories for Seven-Year-Olds And Other Young Readers. The Wild Swans (Hans Christian Andersen) can also be found in More Stories For Seven-Year-Olds, but the Oscar Wilde stories are not. In a 2004 book, The Snow Maiden and Other Russian Tales (Bonnie Marshall) the story is called "The Silver Saucer and the Red Apple" and I've also seen it listed as "The Silver Saucer and the Red-Ripe Apple" or "The Silver Saucer and the Ripe Juicy Apple" in volumes of Russian folk or fairy tales. These, however, do not contain any of the other stories you are looking for. Anyway, I hope this helps a little. Good luck!
Oscar Wilde, The Happy Prince and other stories, 1980, reprint. This is definitely Oscar Wilde's book called The Happy Prince and Other Stories first published in 1880, reprinted in 1980.

C586: Children on desert island
Group of children stranded on desert island, older girl in group takes charge of them, sets a boy's broken leg, they are rescued at the end and she apologizes for not setting it straight. I read the book in the fifties, but it was definitely published pre-1945.

Mira Lobe, Insupu, 1951, approximate.

C587: Cottage or garden in woods
A little girl who goes into the woods and finds a pretty little cottage that is empty. Maybe a garden. Maybe through a hedge or opening in a wall to get there. It could have been abandoned. It was maybe in the early 70's. 2-5th grade level probably. Not Goldilocks.

Could you be thinking of Mandy by Julie Andrews Edwards? That's the title that popped into my head, though I don't remember many details.

C588: Cinderella
Specific version of Cinderella probably printed circa 1970 - 1985. don't remember the author or illustrator but it had the most beautiful and intricate illustrations. I believe Cinderella is shown in the transformation to ball ready Princess; she is shown in more than one gown in the book. I think the dress style was Elizabethan and I remember one of the dresses having a neck piece that looked like it was made of spider silk. Thanks.

Arthur Rackham (illus), story retold by C.S. Evans, Cinderella. Have you tried looking at Arthur Rackham's work? I don't know that I'd call the style Elizabethan (more French, in keeping with the nationality of the story), but his are definitely some of the most beautiful and intricate illustrations I've seen for this story. The story is the longer (non-Disney) version in which there are several balls on successive nights, each with its own beautiful gown. This book has been reprinted many times - including several printings during the 70's and 80's.
Other details: The illustrations are similar to K.V.Craft but back when I was a child in late 1970's early 1980's. The book was hard cover and slightly larger, maybe like legal size (8x14?). On one page the words were centered with Cinderella illustrated on the side, and the entire edge of the pages were illustrated with many other details. I know I'm being a freak but this book and another one (I can't remember which classic princess tale) was illustrated by the same artist, and these books are what inspired me to become a costumer. Thanks again for all your patience and help.
Marianna & Mercer Mayer. Just a thought... Your suggestion of similarity to Kinuko Craft's work, and mention of another princess book by the same illustrator, reminded me of Marianna Mayer's "Beauty and the Beast" (1978), which features exquisite artwork by Mercer Mayer. I don't know if they did a Cinderella together or not, but it might be worth looking into. Mercer Mayer also illustrated a volume called "Favorite Tales from Grimm," which includes Cinderella, along with Snow White, Rumplestiltskin, Snow White and Rose Red, The Goose Girl, Little Red Cap, The Bremen Town Musicians, Briar Rose, Hansel & Gretel, Rapunzel, and other stories. He also did a stand-alone version of Sleeping Beauty. As an interesting side note, Kinuko Craft did the artwork for Marianna Mayer's "12 Dancing Princesses" (1996).
Hi, thanks to all for helping, although these illustrators produce beautiful pictures, I haven't found the right one yet. I'll keep checking up on this site. Another note, in one dress she has a neck ruff that's heart shaped like classic Queen Elizabeth.
What about the version of Cinderella by Marcia Brown? That won the Caldecott Medal, and has beautiful and intricate illustrations as well.
Amy Ehrlich/Susan Jeffers or Michael Hague?, Cinderella. A few other suggestions (I don't own copies of these versions, so can't check for the specific illustrations, but pictures of the covers can be found readily online - maybe one will look familiar?) 1) Cinderella retold by Amy Ehrlich, illustrated by Susan Jeffers - copyright 1985, reprinted 2004. Beautiful, intricate artwork on the cover - might be worth looking into. 2) Cinderella and Other Tales from Perrault, illustrated by Michael Hague - copyright 1989. In the cover illustration, the fairy godmother wears a gown with an Elizabethan-style ruff (Cinderella is in rags) - perhaps that style is carried through into the ballgowns as well? 3) Cinderella - A PSS Pop-Up Book (1980) illustrated by Linda Griffith. A long shot, as I think you'd remember if it had been a pop-up book, but thought it worth mentioning just because Cinderella wears a heart-shaped headress (not a neck ruff) on the cover. You might also enjoy looking at the 1935 version illustrated by Juanita Bennett (my personal favorite). It's not in the style of the one you are looking for - many of the gowns are more reminiscent of the 1930's movie star glamour pictures, and the cover reminds me of Glinda the Good Witch from the Wizard of Oz movie - but the artwork and costuming is beautiful.
One of my favorite versions that features three balls and three gorgeous gowns is Charlotte Huck's Princess Furball! It may be worth a look!
I've checked all of the suggestions on line so far as of 11/14/08, no luck. I appreciate all suggestions and have researched until my eyes feel like they will explode. I'll keep checking the site and doing my own research, I will let you know if I find it. Thanks again.

C589: City family moves to country - death?
Hi, I read this young adult book in the late seventies or early eighties, about a city family (dusty, imported cars) who moves to the country and befriends the neighbor (clean, American cars). It was the first book for me that subtly pointed out class differences. I think the neighbor boy died.

C590: Cranky girl, kids travel with merman
A cranky girl w/glasses meets a handsome young merman who transforms her and a group of children under her care (her cousins?) into mermaids and takes them on a journey across the sea. Cranky girl likes the merman but can't express herself. Antagonist is another girl or a wicked mermaid, I think.

Edith Nesbit, Wet Magic. This description reminds me of E. Nesbit's "Wet Magic". It's been many years, but I think the children summon a mermaid by reciting a few lines of "Sabrina fair", and they visit the mer-people under the sea.

C591: City children visit ranch/farm
children (possibly cousins) from city visit ranch or farm - they try on cowboy hats and boots. book from 1950's early 60's.

Baldwin Hawes, Come Visit My Ranch, 1950, copyright. Two city kids (Susan and ____) go to visit their country cousin, Billy, on his ranch. There, they learn about cowboy clothes (levis, "jack boots" and 10-gallon hats), get to ride horses, and go out to see cattle being branded. Published by Wonder Books, and illustrated by the author. Front cover shows a side view of the three children riding a brown-and-white horse. Billy is in front, wearing a blue shirt & black cowboy hat, then Susan in a red shirt (no hat), and her brother is on the back, wearing a green shirt - he appears to be falling off and his hat is in mid-air. The book was later reissued as "Calling All Cowboys."

D299: "A dromedary standing still resembles stilts beneath a hill"
I remember a section of a funny poem that goes "A dromedary standing still resembles stilts beneath a hill". I have put it into google but couldn't do any good. If you get a chance can you see if you can find it. Better still the name of the book it came from. I had it around 1974.

Jack Prelutsky, Zoo doings : animal poems. Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky.
Jack Prelutsky, Zoo doings, 2000. Googling "dromedary standing still" reveals a library listing for this book. One of the poem titles is "Dromedary Standing Still".

D300: Dinny Gordon's European trip
Anne Emery wrote a series of Dinny Gordon books, one for every year in high school. The series ends with Dinny Gordon, Senior, and Dinny looking forward to a trip to Europe. I remember reading a book about this European trip and I think she tours Italy with one of her high school friends. I am wondering if anyone remembers the name of this book. These were written in the 1970s.

Anne Emery, Dinny Gordon Series, 1959. I read all 4 of the Dinny Gordon books. They were actually written in the 1960's. I have never heard of the book about her trip to Europe. As far as I know, the series ended with her senior year.
There appear to be only the four Dinny Gordon books; perhaps you are thinking of a book in one of Anne Emery's other series characters? You might check the listings in the GIRLS SERIES BOOKS 1840-1991 volume online at: http://special.lib.umn.edu/clrc/girlsseriesbook.html#5.
Rosamond du Jardin and Judy du Jardin, Junior Year Abroad, 1960, copyright. Could the title you're looking for be this non-fiction account of maltshop author Rosamond du Jardin's daughter Judy's high-school junior year spent studying and playing in France with another American girl? I think they also visit Italy.
Same genre, different author! Maybe Junior Year Abroad by Rosamond and Judy du Jardin -1960???
betty cavanna, toujours diane. part of a series, a date for diane, and diane's new love. she goes on a trip to europe with her parents, last of the series. she is about 15 with a dog and 2 boyfriends fun series.

D301: Dragon and prince don't want to do their jobs
I'm looking for a children's book from the late 60's. Something about a dragon and a prince and the dragon didn't really want to burn people and/or the prince didn't really feel compelled to rescue damsels? I remember there were few colors used in the illustrations: pink, chartuese, and black?

Kenneth Grahame, E.H. Shepard (illus), The Reluctant Dragon, 1938, copyright. A shepherd discovers a dragon living in a cave. His son knows from his reading of natural history and fairy tales that some dragons are reasonable and nonthreatening. He approaches the creature, who proves to be a gentle, noncombative sort. The villagers, however, see him as a menace, and St. George is sent for. The boy goes to visit St. George (who turns out to be not quite the fearless dragon slayer he is reputed to be) and is able to convince him that this is a good dragon. The three of them devise a plan that will give everyone a fine show, by faking a fight in which George "defeats" and "tames" the dragon, allowing the dragon to stay on in the village, writing poetry and singing. The story was first published in 1898, as part of Grahame's short story collection "Dream Days." Shepard, the beloved illustrator of the Winnie The Pooh stories, provided the ink drawings for the 1938 edition, which has since been reprinted many times. The cover of at least one edition is a hot pink, except for a white block featuring one of Shepard's ink drawings of the boy talking to the dragon. While the rest of this illustration is b&w, the dragon has been colored blue-green.
dePaola, Tomie, The Knight and the Dragon. Could it be "The Knight and the Dragon"? Most of the book (if not all) is wordless, but it shows a knight preparing to battle a dragon, while a dragon practices defeating a knight. Neither is too happy when the inevitable confrontation comes...until the castle librarian pulls a cart of books in--teaching the knight how to build a barbeque and the dragon how to roast food. It's a great book!
Grahame, Kenneth, The Reluctant Dragon. Could this classic be what you are looking for? I seem to remember a Scholastic paperback edition with the colors mentioned.

D302: Deaf/mute orphan learns ballet
Series of paperbacks w/ light blue covers published by Scholastic (?). Translated from French (?). A young boy who cannot speak learns/teaches himself ballet. I remember no one in the village cares for him. Later installments have him moving to the city and attending a proper ballet school.

Melvin Burgess/Lee Hall, Billy Elliot, 2001. This is a total longshot, as it does not meet several of your points: Billy is not deaf/mute, the story is not French, and I don't believe there are any additional books. But, as books about boy dancers are rare, I thought I'd toss this one out anyway: Billy is a boy living in the UK during the miner's strike in the mid-1980s. His older brother and father are both out-of-work miners. When his father sends Billy to a local gym to take boxing lessons, he dislikes them but discovers a ballet class and begins training in secret. His father and brother are outraged when they find out, fearing that he will be seen as a "poof" and refusing to accept the notion that he could become a professional dancer. Eventually they come to understand his passion for dance and allow him to audition for a London ballet school where he is accepted. Adapted from a charming movie of the same name. Scholastic did publish an edition of this book.
Cunningham, Julia, Burnish Me Bright, 1970. It's a long shot, but possibly you're thinking of Burnish Me Bright and its sequel Far in the Day? I remember seeing these on a school bookshelf, but never read them. However, "France" stuck in my mind in connection with the book. The blurb online reads "A mute boy, taught to pantomime by a retired actor, is persecuted by villagers because he seems to have a secret." That's not exactly what you're looking for, and the sequel involves a circus, not a ballet school. The picture of the cover I found online did indeed have a light blue border around it, though.

D303: drummer boy
I remember a kids book about two boys who leave camp or school to go play drums in some sort of rock band. The story focuses on the escapades that ensue.

Gordon Korman, Who is Bugs Potter?, 1980. Could it be this one? It starts with a bunch of kids attending band camp...one of the kids is Bugs Potter. Bugs leads his roommates on a series of adventures where he disguises himself as various characters. I know he wears a handlebar mustache during one, and I think they try to break into a rock star's hotel room. In the end, he plays drums for a rock band, with the roomies helping him. I think he may be related to someone famous at the end.
Gordon Korman, Who Is Bugs Potter. Not sure, but this could be Who Is Bugs Potter. David Potter, a teenager at a band competition, keeps sneaking out in disguise to play at clubs, where he's known as "Bugs" Potter. Another boy from the competition accompanies him.
Gordon Korman, Who Is Bugs Potter, 1980, approximate. I'll bet this is it! Bugs Potter and Adam Webb are unlikely roommates at a music festival. By day, they play in the orchestra with the other kids. At night, Bugs drags Adam to hear rock bands play, and sneaks backstage ('disguised' with a mustache) so he can drum with the band.

D304: Dirty doll, red hair and purple dress, found by girl
The second story is about a girl who finds a doll that is filthy and lovingly restores it. The doll has red hair and a purple velvet coat or dress. I think this story was from the 70s too.

Not sure, but it puts me in mind of a story where a girl recalls all her various dolls, old, new, exotic, etc, and finally shows the "Queen of the Dolls": her most-worn-out-and played-with doll. The doll herself is pretty soiled and missing a shoe, she does have the red dress and dark hair, she is also smiling. Don't know if this is your book, but hope it helps.
The first poster is most likely remembering "The Best Loved Doll", by Rebecca Caudill. I don't think that's the one wanted though, because the other details don't fit.
Catherine Woolley, Ginnie and the Mystery Doll. If it weren't for the cover with the doll wearing a purple velvet dress, I wouldn't think of this one, but it sounds like it!

D305: Divers find undersea cave, "gill" man in coffin
This was late 60's or early 70's. It was a group of young divers with a teacher (I think) and they found an undersea cave with a red coffin in a room. There was a green "gill" man in the coffin. They somehow woke him up and learned to talk with him. And then helped him to get back to his people.

Turner, Gerry, Stranger from the Depths. You will find the description in solved mysteries.
Gerry Turner, Stranger from the Depths, 1970, approximate. The gill man was several million years old, and his people lived in a city near the center of the earth, which modern scientists reached on a craft that tunneled through the magma. I think it was called a MOLE.

E136: Etoile
Etoile is the main character of a book read by a family member in the mid to late 1800s. The book is important as this family member named her daugher after the Etoile in the book and so became the first Etoile in the family. Her granddaughter was later named after her, as was her great great great granddaugher (my baby). I know that the original real Etoile was born in the late 1800s in Louisiana. This is all that the family knows of the book. I would like to find the book and give a copy to my baby's grandmother and keep one for our family, too. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Walter Crane, Princess Belle-Etoile, 1874. You can find the story for free on Project Gutenberg.
Walter Crane, Princess Belle-Etoile, 1874. There is a lovely illustrated free! copy of this short story on Project Gutenberg.
Terry, Rose, The Assassin of Society, 1857, approximate. Google-searched and found this short story, with a character called Louise Etoile. If I find more I'll post them.

E137: England invaded by socialist forces, adults killed, orion, charlemagne
Trilogy i think? Maybe late 60s/70s?? young adult book, England has been devasted by a virus, most adults killed, invaded by socialist army (known as Freaks?) Group of kids /young adults flees to London, meets gangs at St. Pauls, crippled child who hears voices, betrayed/captured, one flees to Germany.

Rosemary Harris, Quest for Orion.

E138: EL train goes by girl's neighborhood
Girl lives with family in busy neighborhood in Chicago (?) Maybe during the depression or right after. I remember some comments about the EL train rumbling by.

Frieda Friedman, Dot for Short, 1947, copyright. This could be the book being sought but it is set in N.Y.C. in the 40's. Ten year-old Dot Fleming lives on Third Avenue facing the El tracks with her cabbie father. mother, two older sisters and younger brother. They're used to when "the El train roared past and the sound filled the room for several seconds." Dot is self-conscious about both being short and not as pretty as her sisters. She ends up having a wonderful year full of accomplishments. One of Friedman's best books about girls growing up in N.Y..
Frieda Friedman, Dot For Short, 1947, copyright. Dot and her family live in a New York apartment near a train. They would always have to pause their conversations when the loud El train went by.
Maybe Dot for Short (1947) by Frieda Friedman? It's in NYC and Dot is the 10-year-old daughter and third child (out of four) of a cab driver. (Friedman often focused on happy, working-class families.) Dot finds a way to raise money when her dad has a heart problem. Also, her 12-year-old sister asks permission to "care for a baby" and her dad is shocked because he's never heard of babysitting.

E139: eskimo girl survives banishment
Before 1960, juvenile. A young eskimo girl breaks a taboo and, in order to distance her tribe from the expected consquences of bad luck, she is banished for a year. She must survive on her own and is not really expected to return. Her family is reluctant but must comply with tribal norms. She survives brilliantly and returns, but experiences many difficulties and adventures. In a particularly harrowing scene a walrus attacks her kayak and gores her leg. My best friend and I read this thrilling "chapter" book over and over again, 50 years ago when we were eight or nine, leapfrogging each other in checking it out from the school library. I can't imagine that we gave the other children much of chance at it, as it was always in our hands! My friend and I are still in touch but she can add no more details to these few, except to confirm that it was a teal-colored hardback. I don't remember a dust cover. There were illustrations and there may have been a smallish "stamped" illustration the cover. This is definitely not "Julie of the Wolves" nor is it "Island of the Blue Dolphins" as the publishing timeframes and the narratives themselves are very different. Many warm thanks, in advance, to all of you out there!

Radko Doone, Nuvat the Brave, 1934, approximate. Subtitled "An Eskimo Crusoe". If your memory is playing tricks, and the protagonist is really a boy, this might be the right book. Nuvat has a slightly crippled leg, so he is not allowed to hunt like a man, he would bring bad luck to the hunt, so he is forced to do "women's work" in the village. Breaking the taboo, he trains in secret and goes on a hunt alone. An ice floe breaks beneath him and he is swept away and must survive for almost two years alone. When he returns, his family thinks he is a ghost, but when his story is told he is fully accepted back into his village.
Maybe it is "Nuvat the Brave." If my friend and I have thought for these 50 years that the character was a girl, it may have been because Nuvat "was made to do women's work." Other elements fit and there's a photo of the cover of this book online that made my heart miss a beat. Teal blue, indeed! I'm pitching it to my friend; see what she thinks. Nuvat appears in at least two solved stumpers, too. Meanwhile, my grateful thanks.

E140: Elephant's knees and Chocolate Cake
This book was teaching children about how somethings can be made fair (chocolate cake) and some things are just that way (Elephant's knees which bend differently than other animals). I thought the name was That's Not Fair, but I can't find it anywhere. I read it to my children in the mid 1980's. I would love to find at least two copies.

Jane Sarnoff, That's not fair, 1980, copyright. I don't know if this is it. The only description I can find is: "Becky thinks her older brother Bert has the best of things in their family and "that's not fair."

F320: Floating down river, inner tube
when I was growing up in the 1980's my mother bought me a picture book about a boy who starts at one end of a river and he floats down the river in a inner tube. He stops every once in awhile to look at shells and rocks along the bank. It had really vivid colorful illustrations.

F321: Folon English or Literature Textbook
Looking for an English or Literature Textbook Illustrated by Folon containing poetry and possibly short stories. Published before 1971.

F322: family goes sailing in their house
A boy and his family go sailing in either their house or houseboat and meet natives from an island. I remember them as cannibals... It was a hardback childrens book with lots of pictures in my elementary school in 1978-1981.

Pat Hutchins, The House that Sailed Away. Definitely this book! The house comes unmoored from its foundation, and floats away...with the family in it. They encounter pirates, and land on an island with cannibals who decide the annoying aunt is their long lost queen. (or something like that--the details are a little hazy.)
Pat Hutchins, The House That Sailed Away, 1975, copyright. I read this book about 1981, and it became an instant favorite! The book is set in England and it rained so much that the house was washed out to sea, where they eventually ended up on an island with cannibals. Very funny and cute story!

F323: Fluffball Angel
80's - 90's, childrens. This book contains several children's stories, most related to animals i believe. There is one story in this book about a mother cat and her kittens. It talks about the kittens being born, and the mother cat carrying them around in her mouth by the scruff of their necks. The story then goes on to tell about a cat named "fluffball angel" who was mischievious and always getting into trouble. After he would do some horrible thing, he would proclaim "what a wonderful cat i am!". I remember reading this book in the late 80's - my copy was new, so it likely was published in the 80's. One of the pages in the story has a picture of a table with a braided rug, and the cat carrying the kitten. We think the book was shaped so that the pages weren't very tall, but were very wide.

F324: Folklore book, poetic preface
This book was in the folklore section of the university library (in approx. the BF 1200-1400 range). I would have read it in the early to mid 1980s but it was older than that -- had to be published later than 1938 and was probably 60s-70s. I think it was about what people have believed about fairies, fairy tales and childhood down through history. It was not "The Coming of the Fairies" by Conan Doyle, or "The Secret Commonwealth" by Robert Kirk (but that was mentioned). It had a poetic preface, one paragraph of which I copied word for word into my diary, and neglected to affix the author's name. "The wonders, mysteries, and codes embedded in all tales of the impossible and supernatural: the testimony of Alexander Carmichael: the Well of Childhood: comunications with stars, frogs, and trees: a luminous alphabet: the Infanta's bundle: the angelic child: the fate of Robert Kirk: the infinite planes of being like Magritte's Summer Steps, ascending, descending, interchangeable."

Iona and Peter Opie, The Classic Fairy Tales. I don't have a copy to check the quote, but this could be one of the Opies' books.
I'm sorry to say The Classic Fairy Tales is not my book, but I want to thank you for bringing it to my attention, because it's wonderful. I love the way the Opies de-psychologize things and point out that originally the purpose of these tales was not to teach a moral, but simply wonder and entertainment. I'll look for more of their books. The way they write in their foreword and prefaces to the stories is certainly reminiscent of my mystery author... "A child who does not feel wonder is but an inlet for apple pie."
Richard M. Dorson, Folklore and Folklife, 1982, copyright. Based on the description, I think the book you are trying to find may be "Folklore and Folklife" by Richard M. Dorson. A table of contents can be viewed at... http://books.google.ca/books?id=8LbvcrDdL10C&printsec=frontcover&dq=%22Folklore+and+Folklife%22. HTH!

F325: Father trying to get home to daughter
Pretty certain it was a little golden book. She says that it must be from around the '60's or '70's. It is a story about a father who is trying to get home to give a gift to his daughter. Cover has a picture of a car driving through the woods in the snow with the headlights illuminating the sky.

Marcia Martin, A Little Cowboy's Christmas. If it could possibly be a boy instead of a girl it might be this one. There's more information listed on the solved page but basically the father drives through a snowstorm to try to get a toy horse for his son in time for Christmas.

F326: Fairy princess or ballerina
Fairy princess or ballerina. Large, flat book, beautiful, glossy cover. Lovely picture type book. Title might be "Ilona."

Your book may be Little Ballerina by Dorothy Grider (1958). She is a dancer who plays a fairy in the spring recital. See if this looks right. http://www.loganberrybooks.com/solved-little-ballerina.jpg. more here: http://tadacreations.blogspot.com/2008/06/little-ballerina-and-other-fun-books.html.
Rachel Isadora, Lili at Ballet, 1993, approximate. Was this moderately recent? Rachel Isadora has a series of books about Lili (as well as one titled Isadora Dances where the cover has a barefoot girl in a gauzy white dress dancing amid green fields, fairy-like).

F327: funny lists, stories and jokes
I bought this book in 1980 at a school book fair. It had lots of funny lists, jokes and stories in it. The funniest story was of a boys family vacation and all that goes wrong. There was a picture of the dad biting the steering wheel. Green cover?

F328: Flower fairy book
I am looking for a flower fairy book with a picture of a fairy with a plant called a Chinese Lantern. It is a small thin book published during the 40s or 50s. The artwork is similiar to Tarrant or Barker, Outhwait or Enwright. I don't think it is Barker or Tarrant because I have all of them.

Tarrant or Cloke?, Fairy Lamps at Twilight or Lantern Dance? I don't know if this will help or not, but Margaret Tarrant did a picture called "Fairy Lamps at Twilight" which shows an old wooden sign post against a backdrop of gr