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I4: Ice Maidens
I'm usually good at answering stumpers, but
I've got one that's so vague I'm hopeful that someone else will
know more -- or maybe the answer. This book was available
in the early '50s (no idea whether it was new), & was an
anthology of Folk tales, either all Russian, or Russian &
North European. It certainly included a version of the ice
maiden/snow maiden tale. It was fairly large trim (may seem
bigger to me than it was, since I was very small), off-white
cover (no dust jacket) matte finish. May even have been leather,
because I remember it as "squishy." The cover had a small inset,
I think it black & midnight blue, may have been a stylized
version or silhouette of an ice mountain, vaguely
pyramid-shaped. This is one of those cases in which it's
the color, shape, feel of a book that lingers, & no details
at all of title or author. This was my "fever" book, read to me
only when I was ill. (Normally, I didn't tolerate fairy/folk
tales, except for Greek myths, which were entrancingly violent.)
There is some chance that this wasn't even in English, as I had
a Viennese-born babysitter who was quite capable of translating
from German, French, & heaven knows what else. I've
never really tried to track this down (I spend too much time
tracking down everyone else's books), but, if someone recognizes
it, I'd be delighted to know. Come to think of it,
it might have been a translation of Kornei Chukovsky -- anyone
know of such an edition?
It's my own query, but I now wonder whether
this was an edition of Ransome's Old Peter's Russian
Tales. Anyone recognize it?
I don't know this, but just to be sure, you
do mean "snow maiden," right? Because that Russian(?) story -
about a childless couple that builds a child of snow which comes
to life - is very different from The Ice Maiden,
which is a long Hans Christian Andersen story about a spirit of
the Swiss glaciers who furiously pursues Rudy, a handsome young
man saved from her three deadly kisses as an infant. (Sounds
like "The Snow Queen," doesn't it? Given the portrait of Rudy's
shallow, fickle fiancee, you can't help but wonder if Andersen
thought of the ending as a "happy" one, even though it was
supposedly based on a true story at Lake Geneva.)
Zvorykin Boris, ill.. Boris Zvoriykin
illustrated a book of russian fairytales, including the snow
maiden. the book I am thinking of is too late to be yours,
sometime in the 70s I think, but he may have done other
editions. see if his illustrations look familiar.
I5: Indian
chief
restored
by
magic popcorn
I am searching for one of the books my 4th
grade teacher read to us (1971). I have a vague memory of this
book having a blue 1" cover with a canoe sketch? The part
I remember most is the dying Indian Chief who had lost interest
in life, recovering because the magic food popcorn is discovered
and he regains his will to live. It is this excerpt that
compels my search. I think there may have been something about
the Hudson Bay Company mentioned. The story involves a boy
captive? I have called my former teacher, who is now
retired, she remembered me, but not the book. The school
donated all the old library books elsewhere (Ferndale,
WA). I have gone through national library searches, but
without a title or author, no luck. Can anyone help?
This has become an obsession.
There are several books about young boys,
Indians, canoes and the Hudson's Bay Company. But I don't think
any of them feature popcorn because corn doesn't grow anywhere
the HBC operated and canoes were used. Could the requester be
mixing two books together? Possibles - Olive Knox Little
Giant (Miss-top-ashish):
the
story
of Henry Kelsey illustrated by Clarence Tillenius, published
Toronto, Ryerson, 1951 "Historical novel for young readers
about an English boy who came to Canada in 1684 where he
joined the Hudson's Bay Company, exploring Northern America,
making friends with the Indians." Ronald Syme Bay
of the North: the story of Pierre Radisson published
London, Hodder, 1951, 125 pages "Pierre Radisson was
captured by Iroquois Indians when he was a boy and became a
great explorer and hero of the Canadian wilds."William
O. Steele The Far Frontier published New
York, Harcourt 1961 (Weekly Reader) "Story of a young white
boy from Philadelphia who is taught the ways of the Indians
and living off the land." Olive Knox (again) Black
Falcon published Toronto, Ryerson 1954, 192 pages "Story
of a boy kidnapped by Indians in Ohio in 1789 who went on to
become the first white boy to live on the prairies of
Manitoba."
On the corn side of the story, there's Runner
in
the
Sun:
a story of Indian maize by D'Arcy McNickle, illustrated
by
Allan
C. Houser, published Winston 1954, 234 pages, Land of the Free
series. "The story of Salt, a teen-age boy being groomed to
lead his people, who as he grows into manhood, is accepted
into the tribe and makes a life-and-death trek to the opulent
cities of the ancient Aztecs in search of a hardier kind of
Indian maize." Also,
more on the Hominy story cited elsewhere - Hominy and his
Blunt-Nosed Arrow by George and Doris Hauman,
published Macmillan 1950, 145 pages "... and whose skill won
him a real reputation with the tribes and a beautiful silver
arrow. Almost best of all - he discovers popcorn!"
(Children's Catalog 1956 ed.) Actually, that sounds like a good
possibility.
I8: I
made you look
I can't for the life of me remember how
this nursery rhyme continues: "I made you look, I made you
look..." Nor can my grandson's teacher. And I can't
find it in the internet. Help....
I8 may be the following: "I made you look,
you dirty crook, you stole your mother's pocket book. You
turned it in, you turned it out, you turned it in to
sauerkraut."
My dad always said -"Made you look, made you
look, made you buy a penny book."
Iona and Peter Opie's Lore and
Language of Schoolchildren (Oxford University Press, 1959) includes
several variants of an English children's rhyme, "Made you look;
made you stare"; the commonest seemed to be: Made you
look, made you stare, Made the barber cut your hair, Cut it
long, cut it short, Cut it with a knife and fork.
I always knew this one as 'Made you look,
made you stare, made you lose your underwear'.
When I was growing up, the rhyme was
"made you look, made you stare, made you lose your underwear"!
I10: Imaginary Friend Monster
Solved: Gary and the Very Terrible Monster
I11: Island Teacher
Solved: The Magus
I14: Indian and silver arrow
Solved: Hominy and his
Blunt-Nosed Arrow
I15: Ice cream portal...
Solved: The Tutti
Frutti Connection
I16: Indian bunny
Solved: Indian Bunny
I17: Island of airplane crash survivors
Solved: Strangers on
Forlorn
I18: Istanbul elevator mystery
Solved: Mystery of the
Golden Horn
I19: Indian boy plucks eagle's tailfeather
One of my friends sent me an email today
and told me that she is looking for a favorite book from her
childhood. I would love to help her. This is how she
described it "...........I have a favorite book I have never
been able to find either. I can still see the
pictures. This book was about an Indian Boy and in the end
he climbed a mountain and plucked an eagle's tail feather to
make a headdress."
Keeko, written and
illustrated by Charles Thorson. The illustrations
are wonderful-a charming picture book from the early 50's.
#I19--Indian boy plucks eagle's
tailfeather: Not Indian Two Feet and His Eagle
Feather, by Margaret Friskey, to save you
the trouble of even trying that one.
On #I19, Indian boy plucks eagle's
tailfeather, by far your best bet is Eagle Feather,
by Clyde
Robert Bulla. Originally published by Thomas Y.
Crowell in 1953, it went through a gazillion Scholastic
printings and is by
far the most common of such titles.
Here, however, are some other possibilities: "Eagle's
Feather," by Emily Post. Dodd, Mead, 1910. "The Eagle
Feather Prize," by Lyla Hoffine. McKay, 1962. "The Eagle
Feather," by Clide Hollmann. Hastings House, 1963. "Eagle
Feather for a Crow," by Alice Durland Ryniker. Persimmon
Hill, 1980. "Eagle Feather--an Honour," by Ferguson Plain.
Pemmican Publications, Winnipeg, 1989. "Quest for the
Eagle Feather," by John Duncklee. Rising Moon,
Arizona, 1997. "Eagle Feather," by Sonia Gardner.
Writers Press, 1997.
Thanks so much for the reply about the
book about the little Indian boy and the eagle feather.
I am forwarding the email to her and will let you know if that
is the book she was looking for. I can't tell you how
much I enjoy visiting your website.
#I19--Indian Boy plucks eagle's tailfeather:
Running Fox, The Eagle Hunter. Shannon,
Terry, Illustrated by Charles Payzant.
Chicago: Albert Whitman & Co., 1957. Hard
Cover. ISBN: 57-7755. 48 pages. This
story of a Hopi Indian boy in Arizona is not the one
described. In this, the boy steals an eaglet from the
nest, not a tailfeather.
I20: Irish setter helps girl cope with loss
Solved: Pattern for
Penelope
I21: Interactive book with zippers and snaps
Solved: What's in My
Pockets?
I22: Indian scout Henry
Solved: Kentucky
Frontiersman
I24: Indian's Massacre family, boy's revenge
Death wind? Early 1940'S A friend of
mine started reading A BOOK DURING WORLD WAR II. HE NEVER
GOT TO FINISH THE BOOK. HE BELIEVES THE NAME OF THE BOOK
IS "DEATH WIND". CAN'T REMEMBER AUTHOR'S NAME. IT IS THE STORY
OF A YOUNG MAN WHOSE LIFE IS CONSUMED AT REVENGING THE INDIANS
FOR THE MURDER OF HIS FAMILY. THANKS
Clifford Lindsey Alderman, The
Vengeance of Abel Wright. It's eerie that I happened upon your quest for
this particular book. I read it when I was very young and I
decided that I wanted it for my sons, so I did a search and
tripped over your plea. Is this the book that you are looking
for?
Not a solution, but a comment: Death Wind
was the Indian name given to Indian fighter/killer Lewis Wetzel,
who was an ancestor of mine. His story has been fictionalized
many times. The poster can do a google search for Lewis Wetzel
and will come up with several good web sites about him,
including several that list books about him. Wetzel was from
just outside of Wheeling, West Virginia, where his remains are
now buried. However, Wetzel's family wasn't massacred--though
several were killed over the years by Indians. He and his
brother Jacob were abducted by Indians when Lewis was thirteen.
He was shot, but survived, and the boys later escaped. From that
day on, he dedicated himself to revenge. Later his father and
brother were killed by Indians on the Ohio river. Hope this is
helpful.
I25: I am Sam
Solved: I See Sam
I26: Illustrated Stories of Heroes
When I was a very young child I had an oversized hardcover
illustrated book, which had the stories of various heroes from
history and legend. I specifically remember that it had the
story of Horatio's defense of the Bridge from the Carthaginians,
El Cid's last battle and Sir Gwain and the Green Knight. I am
hoping for author, title and availability information so I can
acquire it for my own daughter.
I remember something just like that...
I've seen a book by Enid Blyton
which seems similar, a large-ish book like a children's annual,
called something like Stories of Famous Heroes,
with a coloured picture on the cover. Unfortunately I haven't
been able to pin down that title or a date for it.
C85 El Cid sounds like I26 stories of heroes
I27: I love you deeper than
Solved: Owly
I 28: Indian and her horse
Solved: The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses
I29: Impossible 4d geometric shape
Solved: The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan
Hoag
I30: Indian headress mystery
flat rock
Solved: Key to the Treasure
I31: Infanta short story
Solved: The Birthday of the Infanta
2002
I32: I'm a lonely lightship
Solved: Blinky the
Lighthouse Ship
I32: If you want to go in the
cave, turn to page 50
Solved: Choose Your Own Adventure
I34: I only remember a
few sketchy details...
Solved: The
Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean, Noel)
I35: Inn with a tower
Solved: Really Weird
Summer
I36: Inventor
Solved: The Marvelous Inventions of
Alvin Fernald
2003
I37: Island with father
Solved: Pippi in the
South Seas
I38: indian kids series
Solved: The Bleeker
Indian series
I39: ice cream birds
Solved: The Ice-Cream
Cone Coot and Other Rare Birds
I40: ice crystals
Solved: Peter Crystal
Tales
I41: island with dangerous things and beings on it
I'm looking for a book I read in a college course about great
kids books. The course was 15 years ago and the book was out of
print then. I don't remember the title, but it was about an island
with lots of dangerous things on it (it was not Dangerous
Island--it did not sink). There were creatures on it that were
dangerous I think too--like very pointy, for instance. I think it
was on the Banned Books list at some time. Thanks for any
help--I'd love to track it down!
Maurice Sendak, Where
the
Wild
Things
Are. Couldn't
possibly be? Max sails away and becomes King of All Wild Things.
But he is the only child among them.
Where the Wild Things Are has really never gone out
of print...
My Father's Dragon. This may be it,
there's 3 of them, I ordered them for my daughter in paperback
from Scholastic last fall. I can't remember the author's name,
but she wrote them and her daughter illustrated them. I hope
this is it.
William
Steig, Rotten Island
(AKA The Bad Island), 1969 & 1984 (revised).
Summary: (from Library of Congress) Rotten Island
has always been a paradise for nasty creatures, until one awful
day a beautiful flower begins to grow, threatening to spoil the
island forever.
I42: Iowa Teenagers Killed Playing Chicken
Solved: Hot Rod
A paperback book written in the mid-fifties about Iowa teenagers
racing their cars on roads and highways. Good description of
what things were like then. I've been looking for the
last 15 years for the book. Have visited the University of
Iowa Library and closest I came was the author was probably a
contemporary of Henry Gergor Felson who wrote similar
stories. Story ends when they play chicken on the highway
and there is a head-on crash and battery acid drips into the
passenger compartment of a '37 Chevy.
Henry Gregor Felsen?, Hot Rod? This is only some information that may
help you get further along. It sounds as if you're certain
your book *isn't* one of Felsen's, and I'm not sure
either. (I read several, 35 years ago, but they were
always too graphic and gory to read more than once!) But I
checked Google using search words "Henry Gregor Felsen" and "hot
rods", and on a website called thecarplace,
in a safety discussion of a 2001 car, I found an extremely
grisly description from one of Felsen's books (or so says the
discusser) of just such an accident, including dripping battery
acid (no info on type of car) and names of victims. If you
recognize the excerpt, that could help. Then, at
another site, is a description, with photos, of the
actual area in Iowa where the accident supposedly took place,
and the names match. (Frustratingly, neither site gives an
exact book title (unless it is Hot Rod), and I
can't quite tell whether the second one is fact or some kind of
"fan fiction", but it clearly relates to Felsen's novel.)
Finally, another writer of similar stuff was William
Campbell Gault, if that's any help.
Henry Gregor Felson, Crash Club, late 50's. The cover of theis book had
cars painted with Playing Card synbols I read it in high
school in Virginia years ago. I have looked for a copy for
years would love to have one someday. Hope this
helps someone else.
Felsen, Hot Rod. This is DEFINATELY Hot Rod! I have
never forgotten the horrifying image of battery acid dripping
into the dead girl's eyes after the crash.
I43: in my pocket
Solved: A Rocket in My Pocket
I44: Ilgamoot the Groundhog
We pleaded with my father daily to read this book...and he
obliged. The story concerns a huge forest tree which houses
many animals and is threatened by a beaver. Ilgamoot the
Goundhog is an underappreciated member of the group and it is he
who saves the tree. Early 40's.
I45: Isthmus
Solved: The Amazing Vacation
I46: Indian search for buffalo
Solved: White Buffalo
and Tah-Tank-Ka
I47: Illustrations made of fabric/embroidery
Solved: A Child's Garden
of Verses
I48: illustrated fairy tale book
contained"Cinderella", "Rumplestiltskin", a
story about Leprechauns and others. beautifully illustrated in
color. glossy hard cover approx 9"x12". 1948.
C225/I48: Same book perhaps?
I49: Indians of the Americas
Solved: National
Geographic on Indians of the Americas
I50: Interior Decorator
Solved: One Perfect
Rose
I51: indian magic feather
It had a yellow dust jacket and was about two Indian spirits
(Native Americans nowadays), one evil and one good, and the search
for a magic feather with the "good" symbol which would counter the
evil. I vaguely recall one of the symbols being a moon, but
that could also be a red herring (I mean a false clue, not that
the symbol was a red herring). Several line drawings, I'd
estimate the reading age was about 3rd grade to 5th grade. I
read it in my school library in about 1963.
Bennett Wilson, The Magic Feather. A possibility.
The Magic Feather is not the book;
the one I remember had to have been written no later than
1964, and probably before that.
I52: InternationalStories-BigGoldenBook
Solved: Walt Disney's Surprise Package
I53:
I take back my wool!
Solved: Golden Book of
Nursery Tales
I54:
Incest study
probably has Incest in title; probably Dr.
somebody? A dispassionate and clinical study of incest. Unlike
most other books on the
subject, it is directed not at the victim, but rather discusses
the history of incest, the variations on the laws, and the
sociological implications. It is quite clinical. I recall the
cover was white.
I54 I found it but it
is dark red, not white, and I am afraid the emphasis IS on the
victim: Meiselman, Karin C Incest; a psychological study
of causes and effects with treament recommendations
Jossy-Bass
c1978
Revised/Expanded Stumper Description:
I saw this book in paperback at a bookstore. It was in a
psychology/self help section. I only got to browse it a little
bit. It was a book about incest, but it treated the subject in a
very clinical, non-judgemental, and objective way. It went into
the history of incest, the psychology of incest, the
multitude of different legal positions on incest, the
multitude of different social attitudes about incest, etc.
I think that the solution presented is not the book I am
searching for. I clearly recall that the book was NOT
about the victim but a dispassionate clinical study of incest as
a social condition.
Could this be Robin Fox's The Red
Lamp? I read it a few years ago while working
on a paper about the Westermarck effect, and it certainly meets
the description ("dispassionate and clinical"). Fox, Robin.
The
red lamp of incest. New York: Dutton, 1980.
I am the original submitter of this
request. I browsed the Red Lamp of Incest, and
it did not appear that this book was the one I was
searching for. In the original book, the author explores
incest as, in some cases, natural and normal and
acceptable. It also goes into great depth as to
how different societies treat incest and in many cases
encourages it.
Hamer,
Mary, INCEST, A NEW
PERSPECTIVE, 2002, copyright. This is a great book! It explores
among other things, the cultural and taboo aspect of
incest. The cover is not white, though. It's of a black
and white still from the 1959 film "Suddenly Last Summer", with
Elizabeth Taylor, with purple lettering. If this isn't the
book, I would still recommend it to anyone interested in the
subject
I55:
India, monkey, necklace, girl
Solved: The Stolen
Necklace
I56:
italian guy with wheel on his fake leg
Solved: The Hat
I57: in the orchard
two children in the orchard...It was a hard cover book, I think
it was an orange cover, but not sure...I believe it was a chapter
in a children's book or possibly a primer...the title of the
chapter was ? and ? in the orchard
2004
I58:
Indian Necklace
Solved: That
Barbara
I59: icarus a children's story
Solved: The Darkangel
I60: Indian Girl Journeys Down River
Solved: The Talking
Earth
I61: Italian Immigrant family
I am looking for a book written for kids
about an Italian family of immigrants who moved to America but
had no money so they had to live under a table that was covered
with a tablecloth. That's all I remember. I read this a
little over 40 years ago in 5th Grade and always wondered what
the name was. Thank you for your help.
I62:
India during the Mutiny
Solved: Tiger Burning
Bright
I63:
Island blasted free
Solved: Jane's
Adventures on the Island of Peeg
I64:
Imaginary Friend
The book was a children's book probably written in the mid
1970's. The book had a girl in it who had an imaginary
friend who was a monster. Mostly I remember that they were
out on a tree swing. I always thought the name of the book
was Geraldine but after looking for many years for the book I now
think that be a character's name and not the title. The
following bit of information may not be as accurate as my 4 year
old mind remembers but it may be helpful. I think the book
was orange or peach in color; at the end of the story I remember
the girls mom in the backdoor. The story line could be that
the girl thought her family forgot her birthday, I remember
something about a move and of a little sibling. I also think
she had a baseball cap on but as I said before I don't remember
exactly.
Hendrich Paula, Who
says so?, c.
1972. GK Hall, Boston. Illustrated by Trina Schart
Hyman. A girl loses her best friend, an imaginary creature, at
the end of a fun-filled summer but gains a new flesh-and blood
friend who seems very familiar
The book was a short book... Who
Says
So is 176 pages but thanks anyway. I think I
remember the book being smaller like the size of a Junior or
Tiny Elf book. The book was purchased at a discount
store in Memphis, TN in the late 1970's. I sort of
remember the monster had spots???
I've read Who Says So? and I
don't think it's a match with what the reader describes.
Some of it is vaguely reminiscent of A Birthday for
Frances by Russell & Lillian Hoban, but
there is too much that doesn't match for that to be right...
Lystad, Mary, Millicent the monster,
1968. Doesn't fit exactly but
as the requester was only four at the time...it does not
actually have a monster, Millicent is the
one who is the monster. There is a swing in it which is
why I thought of it, she has a little baby brother, and she
decides to be a monster. Cute story even if it isn't the right
one.
I don't think it is Who Says So. When I looked
that book up it's main characters were animals as far as I could
tell. Thanks for trying. It would be so nice to find
this book as I would love to get it for my children. The
one thing that I am sure of is that a character in the book was
named Geraldine.
Francis and Zenobia has
several elements that are the same as the I64 query: a little
girl, a birthday, an unusual friend. Her friend is an owl, so
the feathers may have been spotted. The publication
timeframe of mid-1970s is the same. The girl's birthday may have
been forgotten also. There is a birthday cake in the
story. At least part of the action takes place in a tree or on a
tree limb. This book is out of print and I think it was written
by Edward Gorey, but it was not illustrated by him. I know the
name Geraldine is missing, but so many other elements were
similar that I thought I'd make the suggestion.
I am still looking for this book if anyone has suggestions
please post. Perhaps it was a Tell-A-Tale book if anyone
is familar with those books during the 1970's.
John McInnes, Have You Ever
Seen A Monster? I
remember the book, she was sitting in a swing on the cover. I
think this is it, one of the lines is Have You ever seen a
monster? I have. My monster is... All the copies I could find on
various sites had no photo and just condition descriptions.
This sounds like the book I am looking for,
except I thought the girl's name was Gertrude. It was
about a little girl, with a friend who was a monster, and I
remember a tree on the front but I thought her and the monster
were near a forest. It had a picture that filled most of the
cover and then an orange or yellow border.
I am looking for the very
same book. That was my favorite book. Her name was
Geraldine. She loved to swing and one day a yellow and
orange monster came out of the woods to swing on her swing
because he loved to swing too. In the end they learned to
share the swing and her mom was looking out the back door at
Geraldine swinging with the monster. The sad thing is - I
don'\''t remember the name either! Somebody please help!
I am searching for this
book also! My dad used to read it to me as a child.
I do remember this line from the book and I believe it was
repeated several times:"I love to run. I love to swing, but most
of all I love to sing." I can still hear my dad singing this
line from when he read it to me as a child and yes, the girl's
name is Geraldine.
Carolyn
Joyce, The Marvelous Monster.
This was my favorite
book as a child. I'm glad I fianlly remembered the name.
I65:
Invisible
at
Halloween
party
Solved: Suddenly -- A Witch!
I66:
Imps or elves
A book I read when I was in 3rd grade --
about 1976 or so. It was oversized and involved a little
girl and imps or elves or some creatures that came out of mouse
holes, perhaps? It might also have been a compilation of
stories and I'm just remembering the first.
Coombs, Patricia, Dorrie and the
Witch's Imp,
1975. That's just a guess, but it's the only book I could
think of with an imp.
I66 It's too cold and dark to check this now
in storage to see if if matches: Will and Nicolas, pseud
of William Lipkind Perry the imp.
illlus
by
William
Lipkind
Harcourt
1956
I67: Indian boy
Solved: Keeko
2005
I68: Island historical fiction
Young adult. This book was about life on an island -
possibly north Pacific since they had some cold weather. The
time was somewhere before contact with westerners, I think.
I remember some scary parts, battles with people from other
islands. The main characters were a girl and her
family. Life was hard and somewhat primitive. It may
have been published in the 80s. (not Island of Blue
Dolphins)
Vague possibilities: Montgomery,
Rutherford. Amikuk. illus by Marie
Nonnast. World, 1955. polar regions; Aleutian
Islands; sea otters; Alaska. Finney, Gertrude E.
Stormy winter. illus by Don Lambo. Longmans,
1959. San Juan Islands - Canadian- American border dispute;
Haida Indians. McCracken, Harold. Caribou
traveler. illus by Rod Ruth. Lippincott,
1949. polar regions; caribou; Barren Grounds, Arctic
Islands. Catherall, Arthur. The strange
intruder [former title The strange invader]
Lothrop, Lee and Shepard, 1965. Faroe Islands; Faroes;
polar bears; rescues.
I69: Ice cream boy
Solved: Favorite
Stories Old and New
I70: I love you like salt
Solved: Cap o' Rushes (and other
titles)
I71: Indian boy collects ponies
Solved: Komantcia
I72: Indian Mound Mystery
I read this book in 1984, checked it out
from the library. It is about some kids, I believe the
main character was a girl around 12 years old. They have either
moved or are spending the summer at a new house and I distinctly
remember the house being described as looking like a “milk
carton.” The kids find some arrowheads and there is some
sort of mystery and at the climax of the story there is a
tremendous rainstorm and the river rises and one of the kids
almost drowns but they discover an untouched Indian mound.
I have been looking for this book for years and any suggestions
would be very helpful. It is definitely NOT: The
Secret of the Indian Mound by Wilson Gage or Indian
Mound Farm by Elizabeth Coatsworth.
Lavinia R. Davis, Buttonwood Island. I'm not sure if this is the correct
book, but there are some similaries - finding arrowheads,
finding an untouched indian mound, and a big storm at the end.
The children involved are all interested in horses and have a
riding club on Buttonwood Island, which is near the farms where
they live in Connecticut. The father of one of the boys trains
horses for a living.
Hi! I am the original poster of
this stumper and appreciate the suggestion I received that the
book might be Buttonwood Island. I have purchased this
book and read it and although it is somewhat similar, it is
not the book I am looking for. Any further suggestions
would be so helpful, I have been trying to find this book for
over 20 years. Thank you!
---
I am the original poster and wanted to
thank you for the suggestion but the book I am looking for is
not Buttonwood Island I read the book and it was
similar but not them same story. Any other suggestions
would be greatly appreciated, this has been bugging me for
over 20 years..... The book seemed very like a
Trixie Belden story but it is definitely not one of that
series, I don't think it was a series book at all, just the
style reminds me of Trixie Belden.
I73: Indians capture young girl
Solved: Ghost
Fox
I74:
India, escape from
Solved: Merlin's Keep
I76: Izzy
Solved: Call Me Heller,
That's My Name
I75: Inspector, monsters, and his dog
Solved: The Inspector
I77: incredibly illustrated fairy tale collection
A hardcover collection of fairy tales (two
of which I remember distinctly - Little Red Riding Hood and Rip
Van Winkle) from the 1970s or 1980s. The illustrations are what
set this book apart - each page is a veritable scene of life,
with not only the main character illustrated, but with a little
mouse or little creature in every treehole and crevice
imaginable. The illustrations were very busy - with more going
on than just the main character's plight. I don't remember the
title. Thank you for your help!
This sounds like it could be Fairy
Tales and Fables by Gyo Fujikawa, or one of
his other books.
The book you describe is definitely NOT Fairy
Tales and Fables by Gyo Fujikawa. Rip
Van Winkle is not in the Fujikawa book. The edition that I
have (c. 1970) does not have the rich illustrations you describe
(e.g., I saw not one mouse peeking out from a tree in the book).
Did you look at the Ponsot/Segur The
Golden Book of Fairy Tales? There's a reprint
available. See the Anthologies
Page.
I don't think the book
described is The Golden Book of Fairy Tales, translated by
Marie Ponsot and
illustrated by Adrienne Segur,
original copyright 1958 (reprint available). In the Ponsot
book, Rip Van Winkle does not appear. The illustrations
are beautiful and detailed, but not exactly as described.
Some of the illustrations are in black/white/pinkish tones,
rather than color and even so there are not pictures on every
page. I searched through my (reprinted) copy and never saw
scenes with as much detail as described.
I78: Ironic Tales
Solved: Mystery and
More Mystery
I79: itinerant farm girl
I read a paperback in jr. high, '78 or '79
but not sure how old the book already was. The main character
was a girl from a family of itinerant farmers, probably dust
bowl era. I think her mom may have been dead because there
seemed to be a budding romance between her dad and the town
librarian. I think she was a librarian. There was a scene in
which the girl observed that the lady was very prim and tidy,
but when she got up the back of her skirt was wrinkled, and she
made an observation that we are all like that, with hidden
faults/secrets or something. The story seemed to center around
the girl coming into adolescence and her hopes and dreams for a
normal home life. I think she was also a good student. It's all
a little fuzzy! Thanks so much!
Constant, Alberta, Those Miller
Girls, The Motoring Millers and Does Anybody Care About Lou Emma
Miller, c.1979. These take place around the
turn of the century and are about Lou Emma and Maddie Miller who
live with their father in Gloriosa Kansas. I know in one of them
one of the girls starts a lending library, and their father has
a romance with a woman he later marries. I believe she owns a
hat shop though.
No, I am sure this is not it. The period is too early, and they
didn't really live anywhere, which is part of why she was so
unhappy. She was hoping they could settle down and have a home.
They traveled, picking other farmers crops, etc. I don't believe
the main character had a sister, and the woman his father has an
interest in is either a librarian, or one of the girls teachers.
Doris Gates, Blue Willow. This is a longshot as there was no
romance involved but it does tell the story of a little girl who
is living the life of an itinerant farm worker during the dust
bowl. She travels with her father and stepmother from farm
to farm. They stay in one place until the work runs out
then they move on. The title refers to a blue willow plate
that used to belong to her mother. There is something
about a school teacher and a librarian but no romance with the
dad. You might check it out as it should be very easy to
find, even if only to rule it out.
Zilpha Keatley Snyder, The Velvet
Room, late 60s/early
70s. I think the mother in this book was alive, but the
girl (who's family are migrant workers) finds an abandoned
mansion with a library, where she goes to hide out. There
is some kind of puzzle about who owns the home, and I think a
semi-romantic resolution. Not involving the parents
though, but the home owners. Maybe something to check out?
It's neither Blue Willow nor The Velvet Room.
Written for an older audience than Blue Willow. I'm sure
the main character is at least 13--she' coming of age. I'm
pretty sure she experiences a kiss with a boy around her age,
with all that angst and joy stuff. I think he was also an
itinerant worker. Definitely a bit more bitter and cynical
than Blue Willow. She really wants better for herself. I
think her father's meeting with the teacher/librarian has to do
with that--perhaps getting her more schooling, or into a special
program, something like that.
Sue Ellen Bridgers, Home Before Dark. A long shot- Teen girl (Stella) and
migrant family return to father's family farm (tobacco). She
longs for a permanent home, family moves into cropper's house.
Mother(Mae?)dies and father begins to court spinster lady
(Maggie?) who owns a clothing store. Stella refuses to leave her
first real home when father marries Maggie. Stella dates rich
Rodney, but is also courted by poor boy. Link to
excerpt.
Lois Lenski, Judy's Journey. (1947) I haven't read this book, but found the
following summary here
and was struck by the possible similarities: Ten-year-old
Judy longs for a permanent home as her family goes from
sharecropping in Alabama to Florida, where they become migrant
workers. The family follows the crops north up the coast to New
Jersey. The hardships of the lives of migrant workers and their
children are realistically portrayed. Ten seems a little
young for a first kiss, but I don'\''t know how much time the
book covers, so maybe she gets old enough during it?
I80: ink bottle babies
My Uncle is looking for a book that he remembers as a child from
the 1920s and all he remembers is "Ink Bottle Babies". I
don't know if that is the title or just the subject. His
80th birthday is this November and I would like to get it for him!
Eulalie Osgood Grover, The
Sun-Bonnet Babies Collection, 1900s. " The inside cover of the
books shows three small babies beside a huge ink- well, while
two more are carrying an immense quill pen." I found this info
on the web. Its the closest I could find to ink-well babies and
since they are the size of one it sounded like it may be it. Its
also about the right time frame. Hope this helps.
Ruth Dyer, Adventures of the
Ink Spots, 1916.This might be the one your uncle is
seeking. The ink spot people are drawn in red and black. Cute
stuff. I hope this helps.
You might try The Adventures of the
Ink Spots by Ruth O. Dyer (Lothrop, Lee and
Shepard, 1923). The characters are ink spots, and the
illustrations are in red and black.
I too remember reading that book. I'm
54, but we had the book in our house in the late 50s/early60s
. The title is "the Ink Bottle Babies" and the babies were
fat drops of ink. I don't know the author though, and I'm
still searching
Laura roundtree Smith, Farie Babies, 1924. This book
has ink bottle babies "We all farie babies what do you think we
came out of a bottle of ink"- very cute and sweet. several
stories seems to be part of a series but I am no expert.
I81: ice planet
I read a book sometime in the late 80's,
sort of sci-fi type, characters were on a fictional planet, i
remember them talking about how beautiful the landscape was,
there was ice/icebergs everywhere, wintry and pretty. they were
having to leave the planet for some reason. the main character's
nemesis, was kidnapping homeless/abandoned kids off the street
and using them for experiments, kind of like the tv show dark
angel, making them an army of sorts. the main characters rescued
1 or more of the kids and were hiding out with them.
Anyone that can ID this, THANK YOU! I've been trying to find it
for 20 years!
Sounds a lot like The Golden Compass,
except that it was published in the 90's, not the 80's. Here is
the synopsis: In this first part of the "Dark Materials"
trilogy, Lyra's friend Roger disappears. She and her daemon,
Pantalaimon, determine to find him. Their quest leads them to
the bleak splendour of the North where a team of scientists are
conducting unspeakably horrible experiments. This book is
readily available in bookstores and libraries if you want to
check it out.
Sorry, The Golden Compass is not
correct. I am positive I read it during the 80’s,
because I was still in school at the time. But thanks for the
suggestion.
I82: I can stand up tall
"I can stand up tall...I can sit up straight in my own little
chair" are some of the words in the book that my Mother
remembers. I remember it being blue or a light color with a
little girl on the front and in the illustrations
throughout. It would have been between 1975 and 1980 when I
carried this book around with me everywhere I went. PLEASE
help me find it!
Phyllis Krasilovsky, The Very Little
Girl. There's at
least 2 editions, with slight updating. There's also The
Very Little Boy. It's about a little girl who
is getting older, just in time to take care of a new baby
brother. She does sit at her own little table in the book.
Can't be The Very Little Girl
because that was written in third person, not first person. "But
one day, she could reach the doorknob," and so on.
Not much help, but I've seen somewhere a
series of books I Am Three, I Am Four,
and so on. Could it be one of those?
I83: I Do My Best
Solved: I Do My Best
2006
I84: Inspirational Stories
Solved: The New
Reader's Digest Treasury For Young Readers
I85: Indoor forest
The book I'm looking for is from the
60's-70's era. The story involves 2(3?) children who go
and visit their Aunt/Neighbor. Her house has plants, trees
and vines growing all over the inside. They have tea
sitting on tree stumps. There is also a part about them
shelling peas. The children go into a garden/forest.
They have to navigate some brambles at one point. They
meet up with a witch and have some sort of
trouble/adventure. Alot of her brew/potion items are named
in this book. I've found 2 titles on your site and am
thrilled. I hope someone can help me remember this one.
Margaret Storey, Timothy and the Two
Witches, 1966. It
sounds like this one. Lots of people seem to remember this book!
See the Solved Mysteries for more info.
I86: If I was big...
Solved: Much Bigger
Than Martin
I87: International series
Solved: Stories from
Old China
I87: Isolated boy lives by schedule
Published b-4 c. 1970 The protagonist is a little boy who lives
in some sort of isolated situation: a house or on an estate
or in a tower or some similar (walled I think) place in which he
is basically alone. He has a guardian of some sort but the
most distinctive feature of his life that I recall is that he has
to live according to a very strict time-table. His entire
day is relegated to time intervals, in which he has to do whatever
it is that he does. this describes the opening of the story as I
did not get to learn what happened. Thank you for any leads
Ray Bradbury, Jack-In-the-Box. Sounds a lot like this short story by
Bradbury, which is included in his anthology The October
Country. A boy lives in an isolated castle and abides by
very strict rules, until one day he discovers that all the
people in his life (his tutor, etc.) are really an elaborate
series of costumes donned by his mother. She dies and he
gets released into the outside world for the first time.
Ray Bradbury, Jack-In-The-Box. I suggest this one- it can be found in
the collection "The October Country"
William Pene Du Bois, Lazy Tommy
Pumpkinhead.
(1966) Amazon did not have a review or a description, but
the stumper's question sounded like good old Lazy Tommy. I was
always fascinated by this character's inability to dress himself
and comb his hair. The illustrations only add to the weirdness -
definately a classic!
Regarding I87, they sounded like they might be the story (and
are clearly very entertaining in themselves) but, alas, neither
are the one I seek.
H. G. Wells, Love and Mr. Lewisham, 1900, copyright. Could it be the novel Love and Mr.
Lewisham by H. G.
Wells? It's not a children's book, but the first
chapter of the book describes the 18 year old Mr. Lewisham is
his attic room at the school in England where he is an assistant
master and his life is completely ordered by two lists he has
taped to his wall: a Schema and a Time-Table. You can read
the first chapter on this website
http://www.online-literature.com/wellshg/love-and-mr-lewisham/1/
. Ever since I read this book I have never forgotten the
description of the schema and sometimes whenever I get very
romantic about how I'm going to get all organized, I'll title
whatever I write down on paper as my schema (just like Mr.
Lewisham did!).
I88: Island blasted back in time
I'm looking for a science fiction book
about residents of an island that is blasted back in time by a
bomb. One of the details I remember is that they decided to use
bottle caps as their currency.
Stirling, S.M., Island in the Sea of
Time. I haven't
read it, but possibly this first book in a trilogy about the
island of Nantucket that gets sent back 3,000 years?
S.M. Stirling, Island in the
Sea of Time. A cosmic disturbance transports
the island of Nantucket and its inhabitants ovewr three thousand
years back in time to the shores of stone age America. In
addition to coping with the day-to-day problems of survival and
the trouble with losing all connection with the modern world,
the residents of the time-stranded island find their lives
complicated by the presence of native tribes across the water.
I don't think this is it...Island in the Sea of Time
seems to have been written in the 80s or 90s. I'm looking for a
book I read in the 60s or 70s.
I89: Irish fairy story
Solved: The Woman Who Flummoxed the Fairies
I90: Indian boy adventure
I read this book in the Takoma Park
Maryland public library in about the mid 1950s. It was an
adult or young adult book about an American Indian boy who had
to complete his manhood ritual to become a man in his
tribe. There were no whites in the story - everything was
American Indian. He built a birch bark canoe, he made his
own weapons and killed a deer. No illustrations.
That's all I remember except the warm feeling that the story
gave me - not harsh or brutal or upsetting. I know that's
not much, but would appreciate any suggestions that anyone could
give me.
Edith Lambert Sharp, Nkwala.
Parker, Red Streak of the Iroquois. This is a comming of age novel of a
young Iroquois boy named Red Streak because of a streak of color
in his hair I think. It was set in a pre-european contact
time I think, and had a lot of detail of the manhood initiation
rites, and daily life of the people who lived in long houses.
I didn't dig out my copy of Nkwalato
check
the
story
because my computer record says it has illustrations.
I91: Isabel, red haired witch
Solved: The Witch who
Wasn't
I92:Identured
boy-servant
Solved: Dorp Dead
I93: Immigrant short story
I am trying to locate the title and author of a SHORT STORY that
I recall reading as a youth (in the early 1960's). I believe it
was in a gradeschool text book. The story is about a couple of
boys who think they are playing a gag on a couple of immigrants
(father/son?) who are fishing in a small pond. The immigrants have
a tub of fish they caught and the boys put a bar of soap into the
tub, killing the fish. When the boys father finds out, he requires
them to replace the fish by catching the exact number and type of
fish they killed. The moral is that the immigrants depended on
these fish for food and the boys actions showed that they lacked
respect for the basic decency of the immigrants. The boys fishing
for replacements is on a very hot and steamy day and the fishing
is so slow that the fun of fishing becomes a laborious chore,
constantly causing the boys to re-think their actions. (ps - the
Library of Congress recommended attempting to locate this info on
Loganberry as they were stumped!)
That story appeared in either Projection
in Literature or Counterpoint in
Literature (Scott, Foresman: America Reads series)
in the 1970s. This is back when junior high and high school
English textbooks had some substance and presented stories which
dealt with adult themes, inviting thoughtful discussion. My copy
is in storage, and I can't remember the name of the story, but I
remember it vividly.
Flack, Ambrose, The Strangers That
Came to Town.
I think this may be the one. It dates from the '50s.
I'm pretty sure "The Strangers That Came to Town" was also
dramatized for a 1959 episode of "The Loretta Young Show."
I94: Impoverished knight joins troop of traveling actors
I read this book as a child, but I'm not sure if it was a
childrens' book since no such distinctions were made in our
household. At any rate, an impoverished knight (or possibly
a baron who WAS a knight) lives in his dilapidated castle with one
retainer, his squire. One day a traveling troop of actors
comes to town and the knight decides to join them, since life on
the road can't be any worse than starving at home. The
actors accept him and his squire and they go off. After many
adventures (during which the knight proves his nobility of heart
to his new friends) they all return to the castle. With so many
willing hands, the castle is soon repaired and all settle down
there comfortably and live happily ever after.
Theophile Gautier, Captain Fracasse. By
the description, it has to be "Captain Fracasse," all the
mentioned details match this book.
I95: Irish immigrant family, nine children
Solved: A Reason for Gladness
Interpreting
Condition
Grades
|
Cunningham,
Julia. Dorp dead.
illus by James Spanfeller. Pantheon,
1965. exlibrary; glossy heavy boards, missing
ffep. G [AQ11628] $6 |
|
I96: Indian plays hookey with bears
Solved: The Mighty Hunter
I97: Italian-American
Solved: Love and Pasta
I98: Ice cream
Book (possibly scholastic) about an explorer and Ice Cream.
He is on an Island maybe or with a tribe of sorts… and tutti
frutti ice cream. I remember a Rhino with a lot of scoops
stacked one on top of another????
Is this a picture book or a chapter
book? If it's a chapter book, you might be thinking of The
Ice
Cream Heroes by Judy Corbalis." Delivering
an ice pick to his mountaineering mother in the Himalayas, Oskar
and his friend Henrietta (a girl dressed as a gorilla-gram) meet
a tribe of abominable snowmen and find themselves captives in a
palace made of ice cream." There's no rhino in it that I
remember though.
2007
I99:
Imaginary, Naughty Friend with Girl
I am looking for a children's book that I used to get from the
library as a child in the early 80's. I may be wrong but I
believe it was a small, square pink book. Although my memory may
be failing me here. It was about a little girl who had an
imaginary friend. The imaginary friend would do all sorts of
naughty things and the little girl would get in trouble because of
them (I think her mother used to scold her). I wish I could
remember some of the things the imaginary friend did, but for some
reason I think there was something about a stick of butter.
I have been searching for this bbook for years and would be so
grateful if somebody was able to figure out the title!
Brewster, Patience, Nobody, 1982. Whenever something happened and
mom asked who did it, 'Nobody' always got blamed.
"Although Sarah frequently claims "Nobody did it," no one is
more surprised than she when Nobody is finally revealed to be
somebody." I don't remember it being pink, I remember the
pages as mostly white. I think Nobody resembled a stick
figure with curls - but I could be remembering incorrectly - so
this may not be the right book.
Greenfield, Eloise, Me and Neesie, 1975. While I cannot find any references
to sticks of butter, I believe this is the book. The
child's imaginary friend is constantly getting her into
trouble the copy I have is "squarish" and red which could
easily have faded to pink in the copy you remember. A
sample of the dust jacket blurb: "Neesie was Janell's best
friend and they had fun all the time. Before Neesie came,
Janell didn't have anybody to play with. Neesie got Janell
into trouble, too--especially when Aunt Bea arrived." I
hope this helps.
Zolotow, Charlotte, Three Funny
Friends, 1961,
2003. I am positive that this is the book you are looking
for.
Zolotow, Charlotte, Three Funny
Friends, 1961. It
is the 1961 edition of this book, illustrated by Mary
Chalmers."A little girl moved to a new town. She didn't know any
children there, but she wasn't lonely because she had three
funny friends. Guy-guy, Bickerina, and Mr. Dobie."
(and its Guy-guy who puts the butter on top of the stove where
it melts)
I100: Ice cream and animals
I'm searching for a children's book published in the 1960's or
early 1970's about a new friendship between two animals. One
animal was large (I think it was a bear), and the other animal was
small (I think it was a mouse). They tried to find something
in common that they could do together. They would think of
something that they both liked to do (such as riding bikes), but
then realize that one liked to ride slow and one liked to ride
fast, so they would get discouraged and say they didn't think they
could be friends. The last part of the book was about eating
ice cream. Even though they liked different kinds of ice
cream, they realized that "Every day at 3:00 (??) o'clock, we can
eat ice cream together!" (I'm not sure about the exact hour
of time.) I think one of the characters might have been named
'Sam'. It might have been the bear.
Beatrice Schenck de Regniers, How Joe
the Bear and Sam the Mouse Got Together.
Beatrice Schenk de Regniers, How Joe
the Bear and Sam the Mouse Got Together. I'm pretty sure this is the book. I've
seen a couple of versions as far as illustrations go, but the
text matches your description.
I101: Indentured Servant - story of a teenage girl
Solved: The Iron
Peacock
I102: injured animals serch for utopia
Solved: Sandeagozu
I103: illegal medicine
It's a book I was reading about 20-25 years
ago when I was home sick from school with the chicken pox and I
didn't finish reading it, I do not remember the title, author or
characters name. A young boy/man lives in the future where
medicine is illegal and it's illegal to treat anyone that is
sick or injured. He finds a computer of some sort in an old
ambulance was lost/buried(?) in an old part of a city. The
computer will give a diagnosis based on the symptoms that are
entered into it (I remember something about purple splotches).
Later in the book, he is recruited(?) into a group who's purpose
is to help people die at a time and place of their choosing.
Part of the recruiting process is that he was given something
that caused temporary amnesia, placed in some type of enclosed
pool where it was pitch black and he had to figure out how to
get out of it. I hope someone will know this book as I'd
reall like to find it and finish reading it.
Alan Nourse, The Bladerunner,1974. I think this may be Nourse's The
Bladerunner, from memory of reviews I'd seen (I've not
read it). At least Nourse's premise is the same --
idealist fights against system in a future where medical care
has been forbidden. The Nourse novel should not be
confused with the movie "The Bladerunner," which was based on a
Philip K. Dick novel (though as I recall the film company
did buy rights to Nourse's novel, just so they could use
the title).
Unknown, POSSIBLY Deathwatch
or Death
Watch. I know EXACTLY the book you are talking
about, but am unsure of the title. I remember it being
"Deathwatch" but can't find any book by that title that fits
my memory (I came across this stumper whilst searching for it
by keywords). The plot summaries for the suggested match,
Bladerunner, do not match. I do recall that it was in the
juvenile fiction section of my library, that it was already
old when I read it probably in the early 1990s, and that the
illegal doctors borrowed names from mythology, such as a
varient on Asclepius, Greek god of medicine. I also
recall the dark, sealed water-filled room scene - but I think
that is actually a scene from Starship Troopers by Robert
Heinlein.
I104: Ice Cream Mystery
Solved: The Chocolate
Chip Mystery
I105: Ice cream man, ice cream shop
Solved: The Little
Store on the Corner
I106: Indians with spoons chasing Indian with Ice Cream
Solved: Hilary Knight's ABC
I'm looking for a ABC book I had as a child, so it was out in the
1960's, early 70's at the latest. Someone said it may be a
large golden book but I'm not sure. I just remember the "I"
pages, had Indians with spoons chasing another Indian holding a
bowl of ice cream. If I see the picture I'll know it.
I've been looking for it for about 10 years now.
The Little Golden ABC, 1951.
I
have
a
1951
Little
Golden
Book
version.
The
picture
for
the
letter
"I"
is
of
an
Indian
sitting
on
an
iceberg
eating
ice
cream.
The
cover of the book features a dancing alligator, bear and
clown. Originally, inside the back cover there was a jig
saw puzzle of a zoo.
That's not it, but thanks. It's
definitely like the picture I described.
-
Someone told me that it could be a Rand
McNally book by Dean Shirley.
Faustina H Lucero, Little
Indians' ABC, 1974, approximate. Could
it be Little
Indians' ABC? I don't have a copy of the book,
but Indian children from different native American tribes use
different items for every letter of the alphabet.
Hilary Knight, Hilary
Knight's ABC, 1961, copyright. I found
it! Thanks for everyone who took the time to look.
I107: I can count
It is a tall book with a black hardcover.
There may be a joker and/or a crown on the cover. My mom thought
the title was "I can count", or something similar. On each page
there is a picture of an item for a kid to count (example 10
lady bugs). On the last page it asks if you can count the stars
and there are hundreds of stars. It must have been published
somewhere in the 1960's.
I108: Invisible princess wishes to go home
Solved: Good Charlotte
I109: Indians and horses picture book
1930 -1950. Read this book in 1952.
Could be along the lines of The Dun Horse, as a
story. Illustrations of many different colored horses
could be by Native American artist, but not Ledger Book style
exactly. Quest or migration/buffalo involved? Was a
2nd Grade library book. Not Whistling Two Teeth.
Probably not a long or complex book. Don't think it was a
Little Golden. I've considered hypnosis.
I110: Irish Protestant and Catholic Marriage
Solved: Sadie &
Kevin series
I111: Irish Dancing
The story is in the "olden days" because a
character, maybe the brother, had a job lighting gas
lamps. A girl wants to win a prize doing Irish
dancing. The family is poor, the father has died.
The girl and her brother live with the mother and the
grandfather. I have an idea they lived in San
Francisco. I read it during the mid 1970's so it was
definately written before then.
1970. Many details are different, but this
sounds a little like Molly Weir's three volumes of
memoirs of growing up in Glasgow titled Shoes Were for
Sunday, Best Foot Forward, and
A Toe on the Ladder.
I looked up Molly Weir's books and it is
not what I am looking for.
I112: I have a turtle
Solved: I Have a Turtle
I113: Irish Maeve sees the future in metal mirror
This is a romance novel, I think, about a
woman named Maeve who is supposedly descended from the same
named Queen, in Ireland. Her father is a local doctor, I think.
She has a metal mirror that she can see the future in, and
she sees her first husband, named Joel(?) in there. Joel is an
American. He dies of some fever or something soon after they get
married, and Maeve come to the U.S. and finds out she is
pregnant with Joel's kid. Joel's family at first ignore her, but
then take her in once they realize she is pregnant. They act
nice to her until the child is born, a girl Maeve names Nora but
they call Deborah. They scheme to take Nora away and falsify
records to show Maeve is a woman of loose morals. Maeve allows
them to do this, marries a doctor in the nearby town, has
another daughter named Patty and the rest of book deals with her
trying to win Nora back and all the various prophecies she sees
in the mirror.
I read this book, too, and now I need to
know the name of it! I was thinking it was a Phyllis
A. Whitney book, but I couldn't find one that fit the
description. I seem to remember it having the word "sea"
in the title. I believe it was a sea town they lived in.
I114:
Illustrated Mum
The book is an illustrated children's book in a cartooish style
in bright colors. It is about a mum with tattoos and possibly
piercings. It is not Mommy has a Tattoo or The
Illustrated Mum.
Graham, Bob, "Let's Get a Pup" Said
Kate, 2000,
approximate. A long shot, but Graham's picture book is
done in colorful, cartoon style and the mother has tattoos and
piercings. The book is about a family (Kate and her
parents) adopting a puppy and a large older dog.
I115: Ireland time-travel, brother/sister duo
Looking for a book, maybe a short series that was in a K-4
library in the early 80s. basic plot that i can remember
there was a brother/sister duo, that somehow went back in time to
ireland. somehow related was a deer/stag/fawn. boys
name i believe was brian, which changed to brann when he went
backwards. not much to go on, and i am not holding my
breath, as i recall they were an enjoyable read for an advanced
reading class, possible 5-6th grade level reading. any
ideas, bounce them around and maybe i can recall more?
Mary Tannen, The Wizard Children of
Finn. This is a
book about Fiona and her brother Bran who go back in time and
meet Finn McCool and the Fianna. There's a mysterious
family connection- perhaps their father is out of the
past? There's a sequel- "The Lost Legend of Finn".
Mary Tannen, The Wizard Children of
Finn. Possibly The
Wizard Children of Finn? A brother and sister go
back to the time of the legendary Irish hero Finn MacCool, and
discover he was an ancestor of theirs.
Nancy Bond, The String in the Harp. This is probably The String in
the Harp, by Nancy Bond, which was a Newbery
Medal honor book in 1977. There were a couple sequels though, so
it could be one of those.
Tannen, Mary, The Lost Legend of Finn, 1982. New York : Knopf : Distributed by Random
House, ISBN: 0394852117 / Determined to find out the truth about
their father, Bran and Fiona use their uncle's magic book and go
back in time to ninth-century Ireland. Sequel to "The Wizard
Children of Finn."
I116: Illustrated 1970's fairy tale book
My grandmother gave me a hardback book of assorted fairy tales,
containing, as i remember, at least 20 stories. i believe
that they were from different authors (grimm, andersen) and
included a story about snow white and rose red, beauty and the
beast (i believe), the swan prince. the book was
illustrated, in color, and probably was published in the 1970's,
as that is when i received it.
Ottenheimer Publishers, Inc., My
Giant Storybook, 1972,1973, copyright. This
might be the book. It is on the found pages (my original
post : ) ). It has Snow White and Rose Red and Beauty and
The Beast but not The Swan Prince. But it has a lot of
other common fairy tales from Grimm and Anderson, etc.
I117: illustrated fictional animals in jungle or forest
1970s hardcover
Solved: Ratsmagic
I118: Indian Boy brings first Appaloosa horse to his tribe
Young native boy (Nez Perce I think)has vision of strange four
legged animal with a spotted rump. He leaves his tribe to go
follow his vision, meets white men for the first time, eventually
steals two horses, a mare and an Appaloosa stallion, and struggles
to bring them back to his tribe. On the journey the stallion
dies, but the boy puts the stallion's skin on the mare so his
people will believe him when he returns home. He makes it
back, the mare has an Appaloosa foal, and the Nez Perce horse
dynasty begins.
Glenn Balch, Spotted Horse. The solution to stumper #I118 is,
without a doubt, Glenn Balch's Spotted Horse.
I read this book over and over again when I was young (although
I don't recall the Native American putting the stallion's skin
on the mare), checking it out many times from the school
library. I loved every single Glenn Balch book I
could get my hands on- oh, the thrill of discovering new Glenn
Balch books at the library! Simply terrific
writing. Many happy hours spent reading them, many happy
memories.
Glenn Balch, Horse of two Colors. Hi, I'm the person who sent in the
solution to Stumper # I118 as being Glenn Balch's Spotted
Horse.
But
after
deciding to do a Google search on Balch as a trip down
memory lane, I have found out my own memory was not as good as I
thought it was. Apologies... it turns out that the book is
called Horse of Two Colors, not Spotted
Horse, as I thought. Apologies to the poster!
I119: Illustration
Hi, this is a tough one. I'm looking for a particular children's
book illustration. I think the name of the illustration is "the
land of nod" but I'm not totally sure about that. The image is of
2 children in a tiny boat and there is a huge goldfish next to
them. I think the children are wearing nightgowns. It is a vintage
illustration, prob from the 1900's -1920's. It's very charming.
Also, the illustrator MAY be "Margaret Evans Price", I know she
illustrated a book called "land of nod" but I don't know if this
image is in it. She also illustrated many other books of fairy
tales, poems, etc so it could be an illustration from one of
those. Any help appreciated. Thanks!
Field, Eugene, Winkin Blinkin and
Nod. It sounds
like it could be an illustration for Field's poem--there
have been so many illustrators: Cooney, Dutton,
Johnson, Westerman, Jeffers, Berg, Parrish...
Gertrude Elliott, illustrator, The
Golden
Book of Poetry. I think this is from my
mother, Gertrude Elliott's illustration for the Land of
Nod, probably in the Golden Book of Poetry.
I always loved it too. I'm unable to find my copy, perhaps
someone else can check this. I seem to remember it was on
the endpapers. A deep blue sky-sea with a big golden fish,
night clothes, a sail, perhaps. It's one of the
illustrations I would love to have in the original. I have
so few - the Oh Ball, The Gold Fairy Book, Jamie and the Fire
Engine, her first book, in 1940.
Gertrude Elliott, illustrator, The
Big Golden Book of Poetry, 1940's. You may mean Wynken
Blinken and Nod, by Eugene Field, in the Big
Golden Book of Poetry. The illustration is a
wooden shoe afloat in a skylike sea, with three children in
nightdress, and a big golden fish.
2008
I120: Illustrated children's activity book
I'm looking for an illustrated children's activity book that I
received in the sometime between 1972 and 1978. I don't know
the title, but the book was an oversized hardcover. The dustjacket
was mostly white on the cover with a yellow and white checked
border on the edge. The fabric of the book was a dusty yellow, and
I believe the book was over 12 inches tall and approx 3/4 to 1.5
inches thick. All the illustrations were ink and there were no
photographs. There weren't a lot of colors used for the
illustrations, and I remember them being mostly black or rust
colored; no full color. This activity book was full of
songs, stories, riddles and crafts. Some specific items I remember
from the book are as follows: the "I once met a man coming from
St. Ives" riddle with the full-page illustration on the left page,
and the riddle written out on the right page. Besides a recipe for
playdough, I also remember a craft where a doll could be made by
just folding a handkerchief or washcloth. One side of the doll is
a woman (has a skirt) and the other side is a man (pants).
Thank you in advance for searching for this wonderful childhood
memento!
Eleanor Graham Vance, The
Everything Book, 1974, copyright. The
cover is just as the requestor describes, an oversized hardback
book with a yellow checked border. On page 74 is the rhyme,
"As I was going to St. Ives" and the opposite page is a full page
illustration of the rhyme. It also contains instructions for
making Mr. and Mrs. Hanky Panky, a boy doll and a girl doll made
out of a hankerchief, and a recipe for play dough.
I121: I like to see...
Solved: I Like to See: A
Book about the 5 Senses
I122: Illustrated adventure/mystery
Solved: The Path of Peril
I123: Illustration - kids with old lady
Solved: Gone-Away Lake
I124: Indian Brave Befriended By Young
Pioneer Girl
Solved: Bread-and-Butter Indian
I125: Ice Skating Silver Seven
Solved: The Silver Seven
I126: Illustrated
children's songbook packaged with recording
I am looking for an illustrated
songbook that went with a recording we had in the 1970s. It had
lots of the typical nursery rhymes including: Polly Put the Kettle
On (the book had a picture of two little girls having tea), Little
Tom Tucker (picture of a boy singing under a window), London
Bridge (picture of the bridge burning/in flames), Dance to Your
Daddy, Dame Get up and make your pies, Old King Cole (picture of
the birds coming out the pie), Little Jack Horner (picture of him
pulling out a plumb on his thumb). This book also had Ride a
cock horse to banbury cross and there was a great picture of the
woman with rings on her fingers and bells on her toes (and I can
hear the woman's voice singing the song in my head!). It
seems like it might be a reworked version of LITTLE SONGS OF LONG
AGO by Alfred Moffat b/c I've looked at the 1912 version and the
illustrations aren't quite right though many of the songs
are. I can remember following along in the book with the
recording (which was most likely a record album/vinyl). Any ideas?
I127: Indelible
blue india ink
Solved: "The Blue Nose", Treat
Shop
I128: Indian boy, toy canoe
Solved: Paddle-to-the-Sea
I129: Imaginary Zoology
Solved: After Man: A Zoology of the Future
I130: India?
Read it not too long ago, but
totally forgot the mans name in the book or the book title.
About some guy that revolves around india? Bangledesh? that
're appears' at different times around a fortress or temple in the
hills in the far east somewhere.
Rudyard Kipling, Kim. This is a bit of a long
shot, since although it involves a holy man there are not many
temples described, but could this possibly be Rudyard Kipling's
classic book Kim? Kim is the son of an Irishman who was brought up
more or less as an Indian native. The book details his travels
around India and Bangladesh with a Tibetan lama and his
involvement with "The Great Game," as the British called the
spying they did during the colonial era.
I131: Investigator, missing Russian
ballerina, teleporter system
The book concerns an investigator
who is looking for a missing Russian (I think) Ballerina who was
traveling with her luggage via a teleporter system that is world
wide. The system has sending stations, and receiving
stations. Before transport they weight the person, and the
cargo that will be transmitted to determine how much power to push
them into the system with so they will arrive at their
destination. Without accurate measurements they will
overshoot, or undershoot the destination. Later in the novel the
investigator is in one of the "relay" rooms. They have large
metal spheres that somehow boost the signal as it moves
along. They ping, or ring, when a person or signal is
transmitted. The plot revolves around the Russian Ballerina
who goes into the system but never comes out of the teleport
system. It runs very much like a murder mystery, the
investigator looks into other deaths related to the system.
One of which was the death of a linemen, the persons who get into
a suit with a power supply of its own and coils on it that allows
them to flow in the system, to pull people and items out.
The linemen have a job where they are paid very well and retire
only after a few years of svs due to the high hazard level of the
work. This lineman had been retired a few years was living
in a posh California home, when he fell into a depression.
He took his life by putting a pistol to his head and pulling the
trigger, twice. Linemen who live develop very fast
reflexes. The setting is very 1950s to 1960s.
The cars, they cold war… all still a factor in the system.
They treat the teleport stations very much like an airport of
today, making a point that the system is expensive and not used
for short trips. They depend on a recovery drug that is
taken to assist with the transport shock, a pill. One trip,
with the drug is fine, a few more and it starts to catch up with
you, and you really start feeling poorly.
Lloyd Biggle, All the Colors of Darkness. It's been a long time since
I read it, but this description reminds me of All the Colors of
Darkness, one of Biggle's
novels featuring the detective Jan Darzek.
Sorry, not "All the
Colors of Darkness",
but it sounds like a good read. Thanks for the
effort. Still looking.
SOLVED: Gary K. Wolf, The
Resurrectionist, 1979. Investigator, missing Russian
ballerina, teleporter system The Resurrectionist (July 20,
1979) (ISBN 0-385-13141-0) Thank You and the Site for keeping
my hope alive of locating this book. I know it is
Sci-fi, not what the site was for... But it helped keeping me
looking. Best part is that today while talking over
brunch with other readers, I was able to give your site out
for a stumper for another child's book! She may be
asking soon, or searching the past answers! Thanks
again!
I132: Intruder
encounters grandma, she loses finger(s), he flees
Solved: Gift From the Mikado
I133: Ice
cream shop
I am looking for a book from the
mid-70's that we got at a school book fair I think. A boy
gets a job in an ice cream shop but he does not know that the
owner puts a tiny scoop in the bottom of each cone.
Customers are upset until the new guy learns the trick.
Little
Store on the Corner by Alice Miller.
There are two differently illustrated editions. See Solved
Mysteries.
Isn't this the same as S594?
Yes, this definitely sounds
like the same book as stumper S594, based on the descriptions
given, and Little
Store on the Corner by Alice Miller seems to be the consensus on that
one.
I134: Istanbul, Constantinople, children's
picture book
I remember reading this book in the
80's. It was an illustrated picture book that showed Istanbul
changing through the ages, from Constantinople to Byzantium to
Istanbul. The background was the changing cityscape, and the
foreground, I think, was daily activity around the docks, the sea,
etc.
I135: Illustration of naked boy outside at
night
Solved: Silly Will
I136: Inked Patterns that Produce Magic
Solved: The Barbed Coil
I137: Identical twin girls
Solved: The Mystifying Twins
I138: Irish
girl and wolfhound in time of Queen Elizabeth
About an Irish noble girl (time of
Elizabeth I) whose father is killed and her wolfhound is taken and
she becomes a ward in England. She is reunited with the
wolfhound at a bearbaiting where he is being fought, and the dog
is friendly to Elizabeth I, who gives the girl the dog back.
Patricia Beatty. This is definitely a book by
Patricia Beatty...I read
it and loved it as a kid. I just can't remember which one! I
*think* it's Rufus,
Red Rufus; but since I can't find a description anywhere,
I'm not sure. Some other titles it could be are Holdfast, Master
Rosalind, or King's Knight's Pawn. Good luck!
John and Patricia Beatty, Holdfast.
"An
Irish
orphan, separated from her wolfhound when they are captured and
taken to England in the reign of Elizabeth I, yearns for her dog
and native land."
John and Patricia Beatty, Holdfast.
I
replied
yesterday, but I wasn't sure of the title, although I knew the
author! I kept looking, so I can now say positively that
it's "Holdfast".
The
summary
I
found
says:
An
Irish
orphan,
separated
from
her
wolfhound
when
they
are
captured
and
taken
to
England
in
the
reign
of Elizabeth I, yearns for her dog and native land.
Great book.
I139: Illustrated
fairy tale books
I am looking for a set of
illustrated Fairy tale books from the 1960's or early 70's. They
were oversized and had 2-?3 fairy tales per book. Beautifully
illustrated. Some of the stories were Puss 'n Boots, Rapunzel, The
Frog Prince. My mom thought they might have come with
encyclopedias or food store[...]
Your mother is
right--they were oversized hardcovers, with lovely illustrations,
and sold in supermarkets around 1971. I know this was
solved, if not on this board, then on another stumper board
several years ago--and I'd love to be able to nail it down for
you, but I'm not hitting any of the right titles. I'll keep
trying though.
I140: "It was a dark and stormy night"
spiral book
Solved: Arm in Arm
2009
I141: invisibility
cloak, seven league boots don't work properly
Solved: What the Witch Left
I142: Indian Folk Lore & Legends -
illustrated children's book
I read this in the mid 50's -
illustrated book on indian legends & folklore - for example
"How the fox got its tail" "How the eagle got its wings" etc.
I143: ice cream man dishes out large scoop
on top
a childrens book about a ice cream
man who dishes out a large scoop of icecream on the bottom and a
small scoop on top then a different man comes and does the
opposite and disappoints everyone.
Alice P. Miller, The Little Store on the Corner, 1961, copyright. This has
been solved before, I know. "This is the story of a kind man who
runs the kids' favorite ice cream store -- he gives out free toys,
and is generous with the ice cream and peanuts. One day his son
comes home from college, and takes over the store -- skimping on
the ice cream, toys, and the fun -- because that is what they
taught him in business school. At first the kids boycott the
store, then, feeling bad, teach him how to run the store as a
store, and not necessarily a business. Overall a kind story, with
simple, fun illustrations. (From a reviewer)"
I recall that book, seems the
original owner served ice cream in large scoops with a "ruffle",
and would add extra peanuts to an order. When he got ill, his
son? nephew? took over, served smaller scoops of ice cream sans
ruffle, and removed peanuts instead of adding them. Customers
stopped coming until the neighborhood kids (who missed the old
owner) showed the young man what to do, convinced him this was
the way to do good business.
I143:
Solved: Island
of Fog
I145: Iris and Rose (is
this the title?) - A UK novel about two women
Solved: Iris and the Ruby
I146:
Interactive Little Indian
Children's Book Hardcover
About a nat. amer. boy who
goes out & you do the motions w/ him. It was originally
bordered in pink? Remember things like, "he ran and juuuumped over
the river" & you do what he does-run or jump. It illustrated
the actions & also, you or he did the actions n reverse 2 get
him back home. 70s or80s?
I147:
Irish/Celtic/Welsh Man Dog Elves
This was about a man and his dog. I believe one of
their names started with a C, and it had a Welsh/Irish/Celtic
flavor to it. There were elves/fairies chasing them, and I
think the two escaped from inside a mountain or a hill. There may
have been a flute (maybe the elves were after it). Pre-1985.
Susan
Cooper,
The Grey King. This certainly sounds like the
book in question, there is a description on the solved mystery
pages.
I148:
Ill girl in sick bed
Solved:
Kristy's Courage
I149: Island Jungle
childrun B&B
I am searching for a purple
hardcover book I read at 9 or 10 in the mid 70s from the
Library. It was about several kids who converted a
house/building into a B&B & ran it. I don't think it
was Boxcars. I think it had Island, Jungle & Urban in the
title. Can you help me find it? Thanks.
This
is a longshot, but could it be one of the books by John Rowe
Townsend? He had
stories about British children in a run-down, gritty urban
setting. In one of the books, the kids got together and cleaned
up the neighborhood where they lived. I don't remember them
having a bed and breakfast, but I also read them a long time
ago, and people remember different details. :)
As an addition to the comment I just
sent--the reason I thought of John Rowe Townsend was that the title of the
book is Trouble
in the Jungle-and looking it up online, the cover is
purple.
I150: Insect
families
tucking their kids into bed
Perhaps
a
cricket family, grasshopper family, and another one. They
all lived in the same little building (perhaps a mushroom?) and
sometimes they would hear one of the other families dropping
their shoes on the floor as they prepared for bed. Very cute illustrations, smallish
sized book, maybe purples and greens. I was reading it
in the early 80s as a child; it didn't seem much older than
that. That is all I can remember, but I'd love to find
it. Thanks for your help!
N.M.
Bodecker, The Mushroom Center
Disaster. A
possibility? I read this in the 1970's. It was a small hardcover
book, with a primarily green dustjacket with several mushrooms on
it. There was a ladybug landlady who rents out one of her mushroom
houses to a cricket (or grasshopper).The illustrations were pen
and ink (black and white).
I151:
Illinois White Horse Buffalo Sod
A white horse is injured and left
by his owner with a farm family in IL (late 1800s). The family
moves west (probably to the Dakotas) and starts a new farm.
Descriptions of how hard it is to plow and plant the prairie soil
(they plow lengthwise and crosswise and it comes up in squares)
and of the steam threshing equipment. The children explore in a
buggy drawn by a lame horse, finding places where the buffalo once
passed through and tore up the soil. At the end of the story ,
there's a horse race (county fair?) and the lame horse wins.
I152:
illustrated nursery rhymes
Solved: Traditional (Illustrator Wallace
Tripp), A great Big Ugly Man
Came Up and Tied his Horse to Me
I153:
Interacting Portraits
I am looking for a flip book (items
on pages appear to move as pages are quickly flipped with
thumb). No words. Published 1970-80's? Portraits
hung on a wall come alive and interact with each other and with a
young girl in Victorian dress as she looks at them
I154: Infant
Marooned on an Island
Infant marooned on island
grows up alone people come to find him and he hides from them to
stay on island
Don't recall the title, but the plot sounds
familar. The "infant" is a boy whose very wealthy parents have
no time or attention for him when the family yacht sinks
he is marooned on a deserted island along with several trunks of
theater costumes. Once he settles down on the island, the boy
befriends the local animals, learns to enjoy his peaceful life.
He fools people searching for him by dressing up in the various
costumes, the story ends with him and his animals happy on his
island. Hope this helps.
Tomie de Paola, Nicholas Bentley Stoningpot III , 1982, copyright. A bored
little rich boy is shipwrecked on a faraway island where he is
happier than he has ever been before.From the Horn
Book..."amusing, fanciful tale of a poor little rich boy happily
cast ashore on a desert island when the cruise ship he is
vacationing on sinks in a storm. Also washed ashore are
interesting bits of flotsam and jetsam, which keep him occupied
and provide him with disguises to fool possible rescuers, as he
is determined not to leave until he is good and ready"
Possibly Rosalie K. Fry's The
Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry (the basis for the movie "The Secret of Roan
Inish"). First American ed. 1959. Previously published as
Child of the Western Isles in the UK, 1957.
I155:
Illustrated, Interactive Mystery Book
1970s book. Kid
sleuths
in London solve mysteries. Reader
sees full page illustrations and looks for clues.
For one, sleuths must find a secret entrance and careful
reader can see a manhole cover was slightly raised and eyes were
peering out from under it
Hans Jurgen Press, The Black Hand
Gang, 1975, approximate. Could you be looking for The
Black Hand Gang? They're translated from the German, so I
don't think they took place in London, but I think the police
are drawn to look like bobbies, so someone might remember it
that way. I think there were several titles, most included
the word "adventure".
I156: Island
I remember reading this in the late 80's but was it an older book at
that time. it was about 3 children, 2
of whom were siblings who built a raft and ended up on stranded on
an uncharted island that, as legend had it, only appeared out of the
sea every so often. they cooked sea
gull eggs and fished and made a home on the island.
then
the
waves
started coming up and they realized the island was going to
disappear again. ends with them getting safely off and they have
discovered gold bars that were hidden in the cave on the island. My copy was hardcover and yellow.
Helen Mather-Smith Mindlin, Dangerous Island.
I'll try again since my previous answer didn't appear after the
last two updates.
Helen Mindlin, Dangerous
Island.
Mindlin, Helen Mather-Smith, Dangerous Island, 1956, copyright.
This Weekly Reader Book Club selection is the one you're looking
for. It has illustrations throughout, and a map at the
beginning. Frank, his sister Dorothy, and their new-found
friend Pug build a raft, and then get swept out to sea.
They discover the island that sinks and then reappears, and yes,
there are gold bars hidden there.
Helen Mather-Smith Mindlin, Dangerous Island.This one was a
Weekly Reader Book Club selection in the late 50's or early
60's, and still gets asked about fairly frequently!
I157: Immigrant
House
Solved: Mabell Shippie Clarke Smith, Ethel Morton at Rose House.
I 158:
Inkwell, boy falls into
Solved: Drescher, Henrik, Simon's Book. 1983.
I159:
Imaginary animals, poems about them, slightly menacing,
grinning cat and loch-ness type monster
A book of poems about imaginary
animals, longer than it was tall, a sequel was made, maybe
illustrated by edward gorey, about imaginary animals, there was
some slightly dark humor, one animal looked like a giant cat,
grinning, another looked like a loch ness monster.
2011
I160: imaginary
beds
I read a book when I was little about all kinds of imaginary,
fantastical beds. I remember that my
favorite one was the flying bed, but I know there were other
kinds, too. I was born in 1967, so
would have read it some time in the 70's, but I have no idea of
the date it was published or the author. It
is a kids picture book with lots of illustrations.
William
Pene
DuBois, The Twenty-One Balloons. Could you be
thinking of the classic "Twenty-One Ballons"?
It describes a number of fanciful labor-saving inventions,
including a self-making bed and beds that rise on pedestals
through the roof.
Plath,
Sylvia, The Bed Book. A poem by Sylvia Plath - with all
sorts of beds including a submarine bed and jet-propelled
bed. Note that the US version and the UK version (both
published in 1976) have different illustrators - the UK version
was illustrated by Quentin Blake and the US version was done by
Emily Arnold McCully. You can see both covers at the
LibraryThing page http://www.librarything.com/work/170679/covers/'
At Loganberry we currently have 2 copies of Plath's The Bed
Book (1976 US edition) in stock. Let us know if you'd like to order
a copy from us!
Mary
Norton, Bedknob and
Broomsticks.
Bedknob and Broomsticks had a bed that would fly when the a
bedknob was twisted.
I160a: Ivy who shoots
ivy from her fingertips
It's a book about a character who
somehow gets trapped by a mean jealous character named Ivy who
shoots Ivy out of her fingertips. There may be a character
named Violet? it's a large thin book with a maybe blue or purple
cover. Her friends have to rescue her from Ivy and her evil
cohorts...
Lisa Norby, The Herself
the Elf Storybook, 1983, approximate. This is The Herself
the Elf Storybook. It
features Herself, her friends Snowdrop, Meadow Morn, Willow Song,
and Woodpink. In working to defeat Ivy they meet a male
sprite named Wilfie, who wears a caterpillar as a hat.
I161: Irish boy finds
family living underground
Irish boy discovers family living
underground. They have been there since potato famine and have no
idea it's the mid 20th century.
I161a: Italian
family: sheep manure, love and ashes
Book from late 60's/early 70's
about an italian family (the son) pre WWII, he plays piano in NYC
or Jersey, makes a "fakebook" to help him play current songs he
doesn't know, grandfather grows roses and I THINK the title has
the words "sheep manure, love and ashes" in it but I can't find
it! If I remember correctly, it was autobiographical and I THINK
the man's name was "frank" - I hope we find it!
This wouldn't by any
chance be Joe Vergara's Love and Pasta (1968), would it? Was there a
father who played a card game with a queenless deck, refused to
use a cash register at his business, and insisted that dandelions
were food and not weeds?
You mentioned a book, Love and Pasta --
I don't think this is THE book I'm looking for but am not
sure. I think I did read this and its possible I've confused
2 books in my memory.... I wouldn't mind checking it out to
see if it is the one I'm thinking of but at any rate, I'd enjoy
having it.
I162 "I died on"
Looking for an adult book from the
30's/40's. Very first line in the book began..."I died on..."
story told in 1st person by the deceased. Her spirit was
drawn back to the living whenever any of her loved ones were
thinking about her. As time went on she was drawn back less
and less.
Alice
Sebold, The Lovely Bones. Just a wild guess, based on seeing
the trailer for the film!
Although it sound similar, it's not
The
lovely bones. Beginning of
that is - My name was Salmon, like the fish, first name Susie. I
was fourteen when I was murdered on Dec 6th 1973 It was published
2002, so much later than 30s-40s.
I wonder if this is
something by Marie Corelli
or Sarah Orne Jewett.
There were a lot of women in that period who wrote stories about
ghosts, the afterlife, etc.
2012
I163: Insects, crickets, fairy
ball
Oversized with insects, reason for crickets making cricket noise
because of fairy ball beautiful illustrations forest garden maybe
very large linen maybe over 18 inches long.
I164: Illustrated
book of dark tales
I read this in the early 90s.
Children's book, but not childish. It was a full color illustrated
book of either short stories or long poems. Dark, twisted stories
with fantastic artwork. Bold coloring. Hardcover book with dust
jacket. I remember a long staircase and a box with a heart in it.
I165: Island Treasure
Mystery
SOLVED: Barbee Oliver Carleton, The Secret of Saturday Cove.
I166: Ice
cream parlour
I used to read this every time I went to the school library
starting in the mid to late 70's. It
was about an ice cream parlour run by an old man and was
illustrated completely in pink and yellow. I
haven't been able to remember anything else about it, but it might
have had a boy and girl in it as well, maybe as brother and
sister.
Alice
P. Miller, The Little Shop on
the Corner, 1961.
You might be thinking of this one, but note that it has been
issued with illustrations by two different artists. 1961, by John
Lawrence, and 1973, by Lisa Weil. A popular ice cream shop owner
retires and his son takes over, but the local children are unhappy
with the way the new owner runs things.
Little Store on the Corner by Alice P. Miller? See Solved
Mysteries. There were two
editions with different illustrators - and the child who saves the
day is a boy in the first edition, but a girl in the second!
I167: Inspirational Stories - A collection
of faith inspired stories
Date: 1940's - 1950's ? My family had this book
when I was young (born in the 1950's). This
may have been a juvenile book, but may also have been adult
non-fiction. It was a collection of
stories, that were inspirational or religious based. One story was
of a mother who was walking along a dike (I'm thinking in
Holland), pushing her baby in a buggy. A strong wind blew the
buggy down into the water. Someone
jumped in & saved the child. Another
story was of a house fire, where the only thing that didn't burn
was a Bible. I can't think of any
other stories, no idea of author, or even what the book looked
like. This
seems
pretty
random, and not your basic childhood book, but I'm taking a chance
someone may know of it.
Arthur
S Maxwell, Uncle Arthur's
Bedtime Stories Vol 5, 1951. This was from a set
of Children's religous bedtime stories. My mother said her mother
bought them from a door to door book salesman when she was young.
It has the pictures and stories you describe.
Arthur
Maxwell, Uncle Arthur's Bedtime
Stories,
1920's. These have been reissued, in paperback. The website
says they have the original illustrations, You can google Uncle
Arthur to find them.
I168: Illiterate
Prince Ola Witch
When I was a boy in the mid-1970s,
my teacher read us a story. I don't know the title or
author, nor can I describe the book cover. But the story was
very unusual and remains with me to this day. It went like
this:
There was a young
prince who did not like to study and preferred to spend his days
wandering around the forest. As a
result of these bad habits, he never learned how to read. One day while walking in the forest, he
meets a beautiful girl named Ola. He
quickly falls in love with her and meets her every day in the
forest. However,
she
doesn’t
approve of his not having learned to read. She
tells him that if they are going to spend time together, she will
teach him how to read. She begins to
teach him the alphabet. At some point, for
reasons I can’t remember, an evil witch abducts Ola.
The prince sees the witch running off with Ola, and pursues
them. The witch tries to thwart the
prince by throwing obstacles in his way. She
creates a river or a sea of melted butter, but the prince
courageously crosses it. I think (but
am not certain) that the second obstacle is a giant mountain of
whipped cream or ice cream. In any
event, the witch uses her magical powers to create a number of
these colorful obstacles, but the prince overcomes each one. Finally, the witch, exhausted from the chase,
confronts him and makes him the following offer:
She will create two rooms. In
one room will be Ola. In the second
room will be a ferocious tiger (or lion). All
the prince has to do is pick the door leading to Ola and the witch
will let them both go and never bother them again.
However, if the prince picks the room with the tiger (or
lion), he will be devoured, and Ola will remain the witch’s
prisoner forever. The witch sweetens
the offer by promising to put a sign on the door to each room
indicating what lies behind it. The
prince agrees, but then has to figure out how to select the right
door, even though he only knows a few letters in the alphabet. This children’s story has elements
similar to the famous short story “The Lady and the Tiger” but it is very
different both in the backstory and the conclusion.
If anyone can identify this story and its author, I would
be very, very grateful.
I169: Imperial
intrigue, science fiction
SF, Hardback, >=1970s, Far
Future, Imperial Intrigue: Thought named "Lords of
Space".Confirmed not War Lords of Space by Dennis Hughes. Don't
think Space Lords (Cordwainer Smith) Characters:Victor (Viscount
of Regalia), Imperial Agent Mourne, Lady Katrina,Princess
Isabelle, Julane (hooker), Duelist.
TITLE
The book as I thought I remember it was named "Lords of Space".
Note, I have confirmed it is not the similarly named War Lords of
Space by Dennis Hughes and I don't believe it is Space Lords by
Cordwainer Smith. I don't know the author's name. I believe it was
a standalone novel as I could never find another related book.
AUTHOR
Though I cannot remember the author, I remember the story line in
some detail and have sketched it out below. I am hoping one or
more of the key words/scenes/phrases/characters might trigger a
memory of what the book might be.
Note, I have checked through several popular pulp authors of the
time (Lin Carter, R.L. Fanthorpe, Alan Nourse, etc.) Though I
can't swear to it, I don't think those three at least were the
writer. Though, with Fanthorpe, he has so many pseudonyms, it very
well could have been. But, the novel was longer. A hardback, not a
pulp paperback, so not in the type of format of these authors.)
SETTING
Far future during a galactic empire. Society a monarchial
structure with Barons, Counts, Viscounts, etc. Citizens go heavily
armed and duels of honor are common (think L. Neil Smith
Probability Broach). Professional duelists double as assassins.
Simply hire a prominent gunmen to challenge the high-ranking
person you want to kill and you can do so freely. Multiple alien
species involved. Royal court intrigue, vying for accession to the
throne, etc.
KEY PROTAGONISTS
Victor (Viscount of Regalia) and Lady Katherine
Duelist/Assassin > and ladyfriend Julane
Empire Agent Mourne and Princess >
PLOT
The book told the story of three protagonists and their
interaction during an attempted coup of the empire's succession.
KEY OPENING SCENES
In the opening scene, the Duelist/Assassin is eating in a
restaurant. He is approached to challenge/assassinate a person. He
is not immediately interested, so names a figure that is more than
double his usual fee with half paid immediately up front.
Surprisingly, it is accepted. When asking "Who am I supposed to
duel, the Emperor?" "No," replied the hiring figure. "Merely a
minor figure in the court hierarchy of little account. The
Viscount of Regalia".
The duelist accepts and returns to his meal, wondering at why the
amount of money is set so high. His meal is interrupted when a
group of boisterous youth begin disrupting other diners. When
asked to be quiet the youth replies he is wearing a blue band on
his arm (denotes he is carrying weapons) which makes him as much a
man as anyone there. Though a wife begs her husband to not do it,
in a challenge duel, one of the other patrons seriously wounds the
young man, causing the others to leave.
In the next scene we meet the Victor, Viscount of Regalia. He is
with his bodyguard (alien, blue skin, 4 arms, with the upper as
large as most men's legs, in addition to blasters, is carrying a
sword along his back). As a military commander, the Viscount is
carrying a standard blaster and a military rapier. ("Neither
weapon was strictly ceremonial"). The Viscount and his bodyguard
head over to the regional military HQ. Other background
information is discussed.
In scene three, on their way, they are met by the duelist
character and challenged. As a matter of honor, the Viscount
cannot refuse. A duel is setup. However, just as they are facing
off, the alien bodyguard cries out and fires. Believing it is a
trap, the duelist turns "and nearly puts a full clip into the
furry chest, when he realizes he is not aiming at him." Instead
the alien spotted a sniper. The combined fire of the three kills
the sniper. Then we learn the sniper was not aiming at the
Viscount but at the duelist. The consensus is that the aliens who
hired the duelist wanted to erase any possible connection to the
alien who hired him. The duelist and Viscount part ways.
MIDDLE SCENES
Lady Katherine. Love interest to the Viscount, they meet at a
court ball. We learn that she is related by blood to the current
Emporer. They leave together for his home planet and learn more
about his background. We meet the Viscount's chief amourer (from a
planet called Tranth). Lady Katherine is kidnapped by the corrupt
Baron in a bid for power. The Viscount goes after her with his
bodyguard.
In parallel, we are introduce to Mourne. He is an Imperial agent
authorized to pretty much be a fixit person with broad discretion
to kill as needed (think James Bond 00 designation). Mourne is
very short, but very broad and very strong. In his opening scene,
he is currently in some trouble with the service (think James Bond
in License to Kill).
Being brought back in, he is tested by the service (sneak attack
by the guards bringing him in) and promptly clobbers them, ripping
away the kibustani wands they are carrying and knocking them
about. Kibustani wands are a non-edged martial arts weapon with a
flared end (2-3 cm in width) tapering to 1-2 cm at the other end
with a hook. They are light, non-metallic and perfectly balanced,
yet practically indestructible.
(side note. I have a martial arts weapons background and searched
for kibustani wands on the net, but could not find any reference.
The seem to be a cross between a short staff a "jo" and a Japanese
nunte staff).
Mourne finds out he is being brought back to serve as bodyguard to
the Princess. He is given his personal ship back and goes to meet
her. After some initial scenes in which the princess dismisses
Mourne's capabilities (he is almost as short as she is),
eventually, the princess and Mourne are also kidnapped by the
Baron. We find out his intent is to force the Emperor to name him
as successor by marrying Katrina (hence establishing a claim to
the throne) and removing the princess as the most direct in line
to ascend. The princess has no other siblings. The Viscount turns
out to be an unknown next closest blood relative and was a
decorated military commander, hence a threat to the succession
plans and why the original assassination attempt.
The Baron removes their Mourne's and the princess' clothing, locks
them in an enclosed room and moves on to his next step. Mourne
starts teaching the princess how to attack/defend while trying to
figure out a way to escape.
Cutting back to the Duelist. While the other stuff is going on,
after sitting in a bar dring zlith and turning down a proposition
from a green, fur-patched waitress, he ends up meeting his love
interest (Julane) when he rescues her from some local toughs
(Being about 10 when I read it, I don't know for sure, but
remembering back in context, I think they were probably her
pimps). The duelist finds Julane struggling with them in an alley.
They draw and he promptly blows them away, taking Julane to his
hotel room.
Julane is thrilled at he luxury, taking long hot showers, eating
as much as he did (including "even old-fashioned Terran
spaghettti") and generally enjoying life. As part of the story
backdrop, we find that our Duelist's unarmed father was killed by
another professional duelist who had insulted his mother. Though
unarmed, his father attacked the man and was killed. As it was in
self-defense, the assassin was released.
Our duelist was only 9 or 10 and began practicing to get revenge.
"By the time I was 15, nobody on the planet could touch me." He
left and started chasing after the assassin, financing his way in
duels. He falls in love with Julane and wants to take here with
him to Donizaria (where he has a lead on the assassin).
Interesting side notes. Instead of laser blasters, he carries a
pair of Rorvko-Jenkins cartridge firing guns. They force him to be
more accurate than a beam weapon and he can load them with various
types of rounds. He is skilled enough to know how many cartriddges
are there based on the weight of the gun. We also find out that he
is only 20 years old.
Somehow, in a twist, the Baron's men find out he survived and come
after him. Just before he is ready to leave for Donizaria, he
comes back to the hotel room to find Julane is dead, murdered by
the Baron. Vowing revenge, our Duelist sets out to find the
Viscount as he believes that to be the connection to the
murderers.
CLIMACTIC SCENES
The Viscount and the Duelist take off after Katrina and Julan's
murders. Eventually, they found out about the kidnapping of the
princess. Meanwhile, Mourne and the princess have engineered an
escape (the princess gets in a throat jab on the guard coming in
with food and then Mourne beats the living crap out of him) and
are running through the halls .
The duelist is killed by the Baron's men after breaking through
the outside wall and killing the Baron.
The Viscount and his alien bodyguard meet up with Mourne ("Mourne
thought, "What a sight I must make. Nude, bloody, blaster in
hand".) and the princess. Finishing off the Baron's men is
completed, all is well and the Empire is safe.
I170: Islands /
Atlantis-like
Two nearby islands. One quite industrial, one not so. I recall the
industrial one sinks or meets a bad end. It was a hardback, big,
landscape book (about a foot wide). I think it was fully
illustrated. Dates from pre 1990. I think it was aimed at young
teens.
I171: Indian
tribe adopts girl and names her Sunflower
Indians kill settler & wife, 2 daughters survive, taken by
tribe & walk for days. Adopted by tribe, older girl witnessed
killing, hates Indians, younger girl assimilates, receives Indian
name Sunflower, marries brave and single arrow kills them both
while riding horseback, read in 1960's.
Benjamin Capp or Capps, A Woman of
the People
I172:
"it
will
Beano
good," mouse kidnappers
SOLVED: The Church Mice in
Action
I173: Illiana (?)
Teenage Girl Detective
A trilogy? Might have been yellow or white. I think the girl's
name was Illiana, a teenage detective? Anthropology Mysteries? I
remember she visits Greece or Italy, gets lost or locked in an
ancient underground ruin, might be searching for (or finds) a
piece to a chess set that is a clue. JuvFiction.
Lloyd Alexander, The Illyrian
Adventure, 1986. The main character in this series
is actually named Vesper Holly, I think you may be getting the
Iliana from the "Illyria'' of the title. Vesper Holly, the
orphaned daughter of a wealthy archeologist, solves mysteries and
has adventures despite the ''help'' of her bumbling guardian,
Uncle Brinnie. There are a total of six books in the series: The Illyrian Adventure, the El Dorado Adventure, the
Drackenburg Adventure, The Jedera Adventure, The Philadelphia
Adventure and the Xanadu Adventure.
I174: Identical
Monsters
SOLVED: Lucretia Fisher, Thomas
Jardine (illus), Two Monsters -
A Fable, 1976.
I175: Itching powder
keeps giant's slippers warm
I vaguely recall a picture book
from my childhood (1980's). There was heat or itching powder or
dust on some slippers. One picture had the dust being blown off
the slippers. The end had the giant (i think), his feet up and a
big smile on his face, the last of the dust keeping his feet warm.
I176
Indian Boy, father, stolen horse
1950's vintage-story about a young Indian boy and father who try
to recover a stolen horse (red?) from an enemy tribe. The
father is captured, made a slave and the soles of his feet were
burned(on purpose so he would not try to escape.) His son
comes to rescue him. Thank you.
I177:
Italian Romance Masked Man
Solved: Wings of a Falcon
I178: Internet Boom
Fiction book about a guy who sees people making money in
the Internet boom and makes a company to take advantage. It is a
play on commentary of how messed up the markets were back then. A
key plot point was buying an italian warehouse to be boost
revenue.
I179:
Imperial Russia story featuring author's ancestors as girls
Looking for series of books set in Imperial Russia about the
author's ancestors as girls. Author's name was like Almedeing, and
books had a single name as title. I read these books in the
early/mid '70's. final book had the girl & governess fleeing
to England.
I think you must be looking for something by E.M. Almedingen.
I remember seeing her name on book spines in the library.
The Wikipedia article on her lists some of her books, and there
are more on goodreads.com. I hope your books are among them.
E.M. Almedingen was a Russian
living in exile who wrote numerous novels, biographies, and
memoirs of her life in Russia before the Revolution. She is
probably the author you are looking for.
J4: Jemima and the kitten
Solved: Joan Wanted a
Kitty
J6: Journeying
kids
make
animal
friends
Solved: A Long Way to
Go
J9: Jenny
Solved: The Jennifer
Wish
J12: Jason and the golden
fleece, a variation thereof
It was a novel based on the myth "Jason and
the Golden Fleece", in the book a girl, she was either a
Princess or at least from a wealth
family. She was on board the ship with Jason, I think she
ran away. I do remember that she was trying to escape her
parents plans for her, possible an arranged marriage. Does
this ring any bells, I do not remember either the title or the
author.
J12 jason and fleece variation: perhaps The
Dawn
Palace:
the
Story of Medea, by H.M. Hoover, published
Dutton 1988, 244 pages. It's a novel about Medea and Jason.
J12 jason and medea: there's Strangers
Dark
and Gold, by Norma Johnston, published
Atheneum 1975, but it looks like more the complete Argonaut
story "Jason,
Medea, the Argonauts, the quest for the golden fleece, and the
final tragedy that rose from the unequal love between Jason
and Medea. 12 up." Another possible is Witch Princess, by
Dorothy Johnson, illustrated by Carolyn Cather, published
Houghton 1967. "Told from the point of view of Daphne, a
handmaiden to Princess Medea, the author takes her turn at
interpreting the mystery and legend of the Witch Princess.
Ages 12-up." (HB Oct/67 p.535 pub ad) Was the novelization
for young adults or for adults? For instance, did it include or
hint at Medea's murder of her young brother while escaping with
Jason (throwing his body into the sea to delay her father's
ships pursuing them) or at Medea's later murder of her own
children by Jason?
J14: Journeying girl finds eggs
Solved: Nobody's Girl
J15: Judge, fair and wise
the second book was an oriental book with a
large green lion looking statue on the front. It was about
a fair judge. The story was a bunch of short stories, the
first story was about a poor man that stole the
scent of chicken from a restaurant to make
his plain rice taste better and he was taken to court by the
cook. The judge in turn had the poor man pay him with the sound
of money.
J15: One of my all-time favorites. It's The
Case
of
the
Marble Monster by I.G. Edmonds, 1950s,
originally
known as "Ooka the Wise". BTW, the proper
pronunciation is "oh-oh-ka"! There are 17 stories about the
cases undertaken by the clever but unconventional early
18th-century Japanese judge. Back cover: "If you
were a judge, would you: -punish a man for stealing a SMELL?
-call in a WILLOW TREE as a witness to a crime? -order a
barber to give an OX a shave? "Judge Ooka does all these
things. And when Ooka commands, let the thief and the cheat
beware!"
The Case of the Marble Monster and
Other Stories is the version I have which is a
Scholastic paperback that I got from a school book order in
'67-'68 and does have the illustration described. The judge is
named Ooka and
always makes wise and fair judgements.
This version is not a complete collection; I saw a large
hardback at a bookstore which contained more stories.
I checked my copy of The Case Of the
Marble Monster and the author is I. G. Edmonds
and Ooka the Wise is listed as the original
title.
This sounds like I.G. Edmonds The
Case
of the Marble Monster and Other Stories (original
title: Ooka the Wise), illustrated by Sanae
Yamazaki, published by Scholastic in 1967. I have the
Scholastic edition and it does
have a picture of a green statue in front,
of a lion-dog, if I remember rightly.
One further note: For those who like
accuracy, the stories in COTMM are taken from two
older collections of the 1950s - Solomon in Kimono and
Ooka: More Tales of Solomon in Kimono. Each book
has at least a dozen stories in it. The afterwords make it clear
that many stories the Japanese attribute to Ooka are actually
fictional Japanese folk tales - or sometimes not even Japanese,
as in the Aesop-derived tale of the Stronger Stick! However, the
stories in COTMM which DO seem to have a direct
connection to Ooka are: Marble Monster,
Terrible-Tempered Tradesman, Tosuke's
Tax, Willow Witness, Wasted Wisdom, Suspect Statue, First Two
Sons, and Death Decree.
J16: Julie and Tim
My junior high school library had this book
in the mid '70s. It takes place in the '50s after the
Korean War. The main character is (I think) Julie, and she
is in college and by the end of the book discovers that her true
love is Tim, a disabled Korean vet, and fellow college
student. I've searched all kinds of "malt shop" romance
authors and can't find this one. If all else fails, I'll
make a trip to my hometown and talk my way into the school
library. Unfortunately, these old books get
discarded. Thanks for your help.
J16 julie and time: a long shot, and I
haven't read the book, but perhaps The Day and the Way We
Met, by Mary Stolz, published Harper 1956,
250 pages. It's a sequel to Ready or Not, and the
main character is Julie Connor. "The book opens with
Morgan's marriage and it is Julie's turn to take over. Far
less successful than her sister at homemaking and mothering,
Julie has to struggle with problems that never bothered
Morgan. ... at first in her own dreamy adolescent world,
in love with Geoff, her much older brother-in-law; and
breaking away at last toward maturity and a realization of the
world around her." (HB Aug/56 p.274) On the other hand,
this is a fairly well-known book, so if it were correct someone
would probably have already suggested it.
Craig, Margaret Maze, Julie,
(1950's). Same as J73 which I
answered. I own the book and read it recently. :)
J17: Jesus makes soldiers out of clay
i am looking for an older book which
contained stories of Jesus as a child. One was where he made
soldiers from clay and brought them to life.The book I read
originally belonged to a minister (retired). Thank-you.
This isn't much help, but there are several
stories from the Apocryphal Gospels (the writings removed from
the official King James Bible) about the childhood of Jesus. Two
or three deal with him playing in the clay by the
river, either making dams or figures of
birds etc. These stories were popular in the Middle Ages and
Renaissance, and some became carols (Withy Tree Carol, Cherry
Tree Carol etc.) I have not heard of any being made into
modern children's books.
The Infancy Gospels or The
Mysterious
Stranger. There are two possibilities. The
first is the Infancy Gospels. Jesus is portrayed as innocently
using his miraculous powers in play, also doing a lot of damage
when he has a tantrum. He's a bit of a brat. This is online, and
also in "The Lost Books of the Bible & the Forgotten Books
of Eden" -- we had that in the house when I was real little, and
I used to read the Infancy Gospels all the time. The second
possibility is a wonderfully tragic book by Mark Twain, "The
Mysterious Stranger". In medieval days, a child angel (named
Lucifer, after his Uncle Satan) comes to earth and plays with
human boys. He makes birds, animals and people out of clay and
brings them to life. When his clay people make too much noise he
squashes them. A girl asks him to make her father happy and he
makes him a lunatic, because only crazy people are really happy.
Shows Mark Twain'\''s sour view of God! I'd recommend it for
older kids, maybe 11+ as I read it at that age and loved it.
Hope this helps.
J18: Jerry and his cat Penny
Solved: Surprise
in the Tree
J19: Joey Kangaroo
Solved: Whoa Joey!
J20: Janetje jan VanMeter Eldon
Solved: The Phantom Treasure
J21: Jumping beans
Solved: Jumping Beans
J22: Juvenile SF
Solved: Venus Boy
J23: Jelly Beans
It was a picture book and involved a large jar of jelly
beans. I think a child wanted to get at the jelly beans but
they were on a shelf and he/she couldn't reach them...
Jelly Beans for Breakfast?
J24: Jenny's Adventure
Hi there - I love your site! It was highly recommended to
me for my problem. I am looking for a children's book that
was a favourite of mine when I was a young girl. I believe
it is called "Jenny's Adventure." If I remember correctly,
the story was about a little doll named Jenny who goes on an
adventure through town. She encounters many different situations
and characters but (I think) makes it home safely again.
This book would be fantastic to give to my parents right now as I
just finally accomplished my greatest adventure!
I had some further memories surface about the stumper I had
sent to you a few weeks ago. It is a thin,
children's picture story book. I believe that the doll in
the story (Jenny) first encounters the mailman and gets a lift
with him in his mail sack. She then wanders along and I
think then meets up with forest creatures. She finds
herself in a bit of trouble in a bush of thistles and ends up
getting a few cuts and bruises. I also remember that Jenny
meets a badger, who I think is not very kind to her. I
know that she gets home again safely - maybe by one of her
friends from the forest or maybe on the back of a dog? I
can't quite remember. I don't know if that is any more
helpful - but the stumper has been on my mind since I sent
it. Thanks again.
A quick search at Bookfinder.com shows two
books entitled Jenny's Adventure. The most
likely one is by Jean Gilder. The other author is
Ursula Ridley.
J24 jenny's adventure: more on the suggested
book - Jenny's Adventure, written and illustrated
by Jean Gilder, published Medici Society 1979. "The
delightful adventures of a day in the life of a rag doll named
Jenny. Illustrated beautifully by author with full page color
illustrations on every second page as well as small black and
white illustrations on the pages with writing."
Jenny's Adventure by Ursula
Ridley is definitely not the one required. It concerns a
girl in a middle-class family in Northumberland, England. With
the help of her father and some old miners she opens up an old
drift mine in a field near her home. The last few chapters
concern her adventures with a boy on the run who chooses the
mine to hide out in.
J25:Japanese dollshouse
Solved: Miss Happiness and Miss Flower
J26: Jungle Bad Luck
This is a rather hard-hitting book I read in the fifth grade in
the late sixties/early seventies. It involves a white
(English?) boy and an older (African?) man on a trek through the
jungle. During the trip the boy shoots a monkey in the
stomach with an arrow, something the old man tells him is a
terrible thing to do and which will bring bad luck. His
prediction comes true when he steps into a trap which severely
injures his leg. The boy has to try to care for his injury
and get him back to civilization alive (something he ultimately
fails to do, as I recall, although he makes it back himself).
Theodore Taylor, The Cay. This does not fit the "jungle" setting, but it
is a survival story of a young British boy and an older black
man. The boy is shipwrecked, I believe, during WWII and
the old man helps him to survive. The boy eventually makes
it home.
I certainly know the story - I thought it
was a short story not a book. The boy (no name I can remember)
is taken by a old family retainer into the jungle (India?,
Burma?), against the mothers wishes. They make a bow - which the
boy uses to shoot the monkey. The rest is as posted.
Sherman D.R., Old Mali and the Boy. Jeffrey, a 12-year- old fatherless boy, loves
listening to the stories told by his mother's gardener, Old
Mali.
J27: Jelly babies get their legs stuck together
Solved: Peter Puffer's
Fun Book
2002
J28: Jennifer never cleaned her room
Solved: The Big Tidy-Up
J29: Jonathan Wonathan Higgins McGee Yellow Cat Purple
Ears
Solved: Yellow
Cat
J30: Jump Rope Tales
Solved: Elsie Piddock
Skips in Her Sleep
J31: Jackie and Jennie
Bunny
The third book was a story we found is a school primer, I
think. It was about little Jackie and Jennie Bunny. My
daughter remembers that they were in the moonlight on a ridge and
that some one of their community was eaten. I seem to
remember that Jackie was rather naughty. Is this
kind of information sufficient to manage a
search? I will appreciate your help. Thank
you.
J32:
JoJo the Monkey
Solved: Tony and Jo-Jo
J33: Jewish Family with
several children
Solved: All-of-a-Kind
Family
J34:
Jinx
Solved: Jinx, the Alaskan Husky
2003
J35: Jewish Inspiration
I am looking for a book, that is either Jewish or Inspirational
catagory...I am fairly sure the book is written by a Rabbi, I
thought his name was Duboise( or something like it) He talks
about over coming lifes stressful situations and starts off
talking about his home buring to the ground in
California. I read it in 2000, lent it to a long gone
friend, and now can't remember the name of the book.
Lionel Blue. Rabbi
Blue has written many books of thoughts and
inspirations it could be one of his.
When Bad Things Happen To Good People
by Harold S. Kushner
J36: Junket Is Nice
Solved: Junket is Nice
J37: Jewish Holocaust Book-Short Stories
Solved: Hasidic Tales
of the Holocaust
J38: junior genius
Solved: The Fabulous
Flying Bicycle
J39: Jewels in teddy bear
Solved: The Teddy Bear
Habit
J40: Japanese Folk Tale?
Solved: Kap the Kappa
J41: Jump to conclusions
Solved: The Phantom
Tollbooth
J42: japanese? illustrated picture book
Solved: Umbrella
J43: Jerusha the duck
Solved: "Quack," Said Jerusha
J44: Judy, Junior Nurse
Solved: Judy, Junior Nurse
J45: Japanese dolls owned by English girl
Solved: Little Plum
J46: jewish tailor on lower eastside nyc
Solved: All-Of-A-Kind Family
J47: Julick's old books
Swedish or Scandinavian, 1950 or
earlier? Story about a visit to the man in the
moon. Illustrations were black and yellow line
drawings. One picture was having tea in a yellow tulip
flower. Might be a foreign author from Scadinavian
country. Book was in English.
john cotton, Tommy's Trip to
the Moon,1950s.This sounds like Tommy's trip to the
moon with original illustrations by Elisabeth Halfdaner and
english text by john cotton. Printed by helsingborgs
litografisks ab, sweden. Really rare book with beautiful
illustrations.
J48: jungle picture book -girl riding on bear
Solved: Oh What a Busy Day
2004
J49: June is the month of the Barefoot Moon
Solved: Going Barefoot
J50: Joanna's Fairy Queen's Birthday
Solved: A Day in Fairy Land
J51: Japanese survivor of Atomic Bomb
Solved: My Japan
1930-1951
J52:
Jody's Adventures?
The story was in a thick red book with 3
other stories, 1920-1940.. I think the title on that was
Mystery and/or Adventure stories for girls. The book I am
looking for is about a girl named Jody (I'm sure this is correct
but you know how faulty memories are!) who is kind of a
tomboy. The only two things I remember are: 1) She is out
camping and gets caught in a huge downpour and manages to make a
meal in her dutch oven. And: 2)That whover she is living
with (and I don't think it's her parents) teaches her to
can. They can tons of stuff and I believe she enters some
into a fair.
This is just to eliminate a possibility --
EVERY GIRL'S MYSTERY AND ADVENTURE STORIES is "a
thick red book" in the right time period (1935), and since it
contains MIMI AT CAMP by Anne Pence Davis, I thought
that might be the story asked about. But I've just skimmed
it and find no downpour, no Dutch oven, no canning scenes, and
no Jody. Mimi (who is described as a tomboy) lives with
her parents also. (And the book contains only three
stories in all, not four.) So I'm sending this message to
indicate this is not the book sought, and perhaps save someone's
else time.
Agnes Miller, Mystery stories for
girls, 1934. A
possibility for J52. four books in 1 volume: Titles
include The mystery house, The valley feud, Their golden
quest, and The Whispering Charm.
The title, date, and the four stories all seem about right.
Just a thought that maybe you are mixing up
the Jody story with part of Elizabeth Enright's Then
There
Were
Five. There is a chapter in that book where
the oldest sister, Mona, goes on a canning spree while their
housekeeper Cuffy is away. She gets into some trouble but
their neighbour Mr. Titus shows up to help, and they end up
making all kinds of jams and relishes in time for Cuffy's
return.
A couple of comments have been made about
my stumper but I don't think any of them are what I am looking
for. I would like to find out what the stories are about
in the Agnes Miller Book (again I don't think it is the
one). How do i do that? Thank you.
2005
J53:
Jerusalem tomb opens
Solved: Revelation
J54:
Jiggs
Solved: Everyday Story
Book
J55:
Jack
and
Jill
in the Moon
The book I was looking for was a middle
school age book. I read it serveral times in the late 60's. The
story is about 3 (or 4) children who spend the summer with their
grandparents on their farm. The couple of things that I can
remember that mark it as unique is the story the grandfather
told about Jack and Jill in the moon, as opposed to the man in
the moon. It had black and white plates of the moon to show how
you could see Jack and Jill. Also there was a side story about a
fairy circle on the farm, and how the children saw the fairies
putting on a sort of play in the barn.
J55 Thought I had it- I had just
learned abt the Jack and Jill legend from this book, but it
isn't fiction about a family: Branley, Franklyn M.
The moon; Jack and Jill and other legends.
illus by Jane Teiko. Oka: Ginn c1972. explanation of
old beliefs about the moon; legends; Jack and Jill; juvenile
nonfiction picturebook by an award-winning author; many colorful
illustrations by Jane Teiko Oka.
J56: Jerome
Solved: Kildee House
J57:juvenile
girls' mystery series
Solved: Augusta Huiell Seaman mysteries
J58: Jake, Jake for goodness sake
Solved: Jake
J59:
jealousy,
school
play,
switched identities/magic
Solved: Fifth Grade
Magic
J60:
jumper, jumper
Solved: Here and Now
Story Book: Two-Through Seven-Year-Olds
J61: Juvenile Science Fiction Story - Anthology
Solved: The Anything
Box
J62:
jeweled owl
Solved: The Ghost Next
Door
J63: John Ware
My father-in-law is looking for a series of
children’s books about John Ware as a pioneer woodsman. Circa
1940.
Altsheler, Joseph A. Could it
be Henry rather than John? I found this on the solved
pages -- "The protagonist is Henry Ware, who was captured and
brought up by Indians but returned to an English settlement to
warn of an impending Shawnee attack and later became a renowned
scout and fighter. (In fact, the full name of the book is
Kentucky Frontiersman: The
Adventures of Henry Ware, Hunter and Border Fighter).
I read a bunch of these when I was young
I think there were a total of eight in this
series. I remember in particular a passage from one of the
books describing how, just after being captured 9or recaptured)
by Indians, Henry was forced to run single-file with members of
the tribe with his hands tied behind his back. At the
conclusion of a several-hours run, Henry and the Indian chief
were the only ones who had never broken a sweat."
Altsheler, Joseph A., Kentucky
Frontiersman,
1989. I bet this is one of the books in the series.
I think there wree a total of eight. The protagonist's
name was Henry Ware, not John Ware, but this otherwise
fits. See Solved Mysteries.
J64: Junk Yard
Solved: The Three
Investigators series
J65: John Hollis
Solved: The
Wyndcliffe
2006
J66: Jenny, plants and hominy grits
Solved: Jenny, Sam, and
the Invisible Hildegarde
J67: Jestors, young man & royal baby
Solved: Taash and the
Jesters
J68a: jumped out of his shoes/bump in the woods
Solved: Little Bear's
Visit
J68b: Jeep desert hunter hunted mesa
Solved: Deathwatch
J69: Japanese doll
I read a book in the early 1970s while growing up, about a
Japanese doll belonging to a little girl. There were full color
illustrations, including that of a teahouse and a Japanese
calendar on a scroll. The little girl gets sick or they move or
something and the mother throws the doll out. Father goes to the
dump and gets the doll back for the girl. NOT Rumer Godden or Best
Loved Doll.
J70: Jack or John
Solved: Who Fears the
Devil
J71:
John
Scott
WWI
Iowa Ace
When I was a kid – about 10 (1920s-30s) – I read a novel set in
France in WW One with the leading character one John (Jon?)
Scott from Waterloo, IA. He was an aviator. Can’t
remember if he first goes over with the Lafayette Escadrille, or
later with the American Expeditionary Force (AEF).
(Coincidentally, "Falcons of France" by James Norman Hall (of
Mutiny on the Bounty fam) is the same genre and Mr. Hall is one of
our alumni from the class of 1910) Anyway, I have a Grinnell
reason now to figure out the name of this “book for young boys”
(it was in the children’s section) and see how I might locate a
copy. It was an old book when I found and read it, and I
doubt it has ever been republished.
J72:
Jack gets caught
Hello! I am trying to find a book for a friend. This is the
description he gave me--I realize it's a little hazy, but if I
find the book I'd like it to be a surprise, so I can't really ask
for more information. It was probably published before 1990.
It was about a boy's grandfather, who told him bedtime stories in
the manner that stories ought to be told: the central conceit is
that stories never happened the same way twice, and I remember the
book centering around Jack and the Beanstalk (sometimes the
harp screamed a little too early and Jack was caught,
etc.). Thank you so much for any help you can provide!
J73:
Julie
I am looking for a book that I think is called Julie, a teenage
romance that I read when in high school in the mid 60s. I had a
copy of this book that I bought from a library, but it was
severely damaged beyond repair and I had to throw it out.
The main character, Julie is a college student, at Byrn Mawr I
believe, and she meets a young man named Tim who limps from a war
injury. She meets him by jumping up to dance with him when the
first girl he asks refuses him because of his limp. Julie had a
strange roommate whose name I cannot recall, and a good friend
name Cynnie. She also has a friend from her home town, Petey
Orcutt. She had a crush on another guy...Greg? maybe? Tim
lives with one of the professors. He likes Julie and they go out a
few times. At Christmas, he writes in the snow,"Merry
Christmas Julie, my very dearest." There is also a minor
subplot involving another student named Violet Moore who gets in
trouble staying out all night with a boy from the town.
Julie's brother comes to visit her and she tries to set him up
with Cyn, but he falls for her roommate instead. Eventually Julie
comes to realize she wants to be with Tim and leaves him stranded
on the phone as she runs over to his place and tells him, "Merry
Christmas, Tim, my very dearest" even though it is June. Any
ideas about this book, if this is the correct title and
where I can get a copy?
Margaret Maze Craig, Julie, 1952. J73 might be Julie by
Margaret
Maze Craig. She wrote several books with girls' names as
the titles: Marsha, Trish, and she also
wrote Now That I'm Sixteen.
craig, margaret maze, Julie. Just confirming that this is definitely
the right title since I own a copy. The college is Briarton and
her roommate is Fran.If you like that one, try Marsha by the
same author. It's equally wonderful! Julie is pretty expensive
unless you get lucky, so I recommend talking to your library
about an interlibrary loan.
Afraid I don't have a solution for you, just
a suggestion. If all else fails, and you're SURE the book was
set at Bryn Mawr, try e-mailing the college and asking nicely if
they can help. There's a chance the school may have a list of
fictional works set at the college. It's sort of thing a PR,
admissions, alumni, or student life office, or maybe even the
library, might keep for fun - especially at a
tradition-conscious place like Bryn Mawr. Can't
hurt!
J74:
Johnnie Mae
I remember reading this book years
ago. I'm pretty sure it's out of print. I think the
girl is Johnnie Mae. Her friend in the story is a
boy. I distinctly remember this girl blaming her first
menstrual period on eating too many strawberries. It's a
coming of age type story. I'm pretty sure it isn't Rivers,
Cross my Heart.
Robbie Branscum, The Adventures of
Johnny May. Could
possibly be this or the sequel Johnny May Grows Up?
Robbie Branscum, Johnny May, 1976. This is alost certainly Johnny
May. There are two other books by the same author, The
Adventures of Johnny May and Johnny May Grows
Up, which I haven't read but which appear to be
sequels (search reveals that they were published in 1984).
I still have my copy of the original title, if you have any more
questions to narrow it down.
J75:
Just
a
minute
Janet
Solved: Uncle Arthur's
Bedtime Stories
2007
J76:
jewels buried in grave
Solved: Safe as the
Grave
J77: Jewish girl in Pennsylvania Dutch town
Solved: The Closed
Circle
J78: Jenny, neighbor boys, lost puppy
Solved: Jenny
J79: Jack the giant slayer
Jack the giant slayer and other tales, or something like that,
1900-1940 could be slightly earlier.
A.L. Burt, New York, NY (publisher), Jack
the
Giant
Killer
and Other Stories, 1927, copyright. There are
probably lots of old books with this (or similar) title.
The 1927 edition published by A.L. Burt has a blue cover, with
"Jack the Giant Killer" in big green letters at the top, "and
other stories" in smaller black print at the bottom. Left
center of cover shows a black-and-green art deco floral motif
atop a green circle which contains a black line-drawing of the
giant, club on his shoulder, wading knee-deep in a lake or
ocean. To the right of this is a full-color illustration
of the giant, wearing a red coat and holding a spiked club,
leaping over some large boulders in pursuit of Jack, who is in
the foreground, wearing a purple coat, green tights, and a red
hat. 118 pages with many illustrations. I've found other copies
online listed as published in 1905 or 1918, so it may have been
reprinted several times. On some of the older editions, the
cover is brownish instead of blue, though the lettering and
pictures remain the same. Henry Altemus also published an
edition around 1900, but I haven't been able to find a picture
of the cover online.
Richard Doyle, Jack the Giant Killer, 1850, approximate. This version of Jack
the
Giant Killer has been reprinted in an Everyman's
Edition, so shouldn't be difficult to find to check. In
some stories, Jack uses various items to help him overcome the
giants, including Shoes of Swiftness, Cap of Knowledge,
invisibility cloak, etc. He also meets King Arthur towards
the end. I haven't looked at it for a few years, but maybe
this fits...good luck!
J80: Japanese girl wants to be an artist
Solved: One Hundred and Eight Bells
2008
J81: Japanese
WWII
carriers
frozen,
thawed in modern day
I am looking for a novel paperback
I believe about a group of WWII japanese carriers which are frozen
in the arctic and then thaws to attack modern US carriers it might
be called "6th Battle" or at least have the word 6th.
Albano, Peter, Seventh
Carrier, 1983, copyright. This sounds
like The Seventh Carrier, as you thought, about a Japanese
aircraft carrier that is frozen in a glacier for about forty
years. When it thaws out the Japanese airmen are still determined
to carry out their mission against the US. Actually this is the
first of a series, but the subsequent books are very different in
tone, with the Japanese now allied with the Americans against the
Middle East. Hope this helps.
J82: Japanese tea garden, little girl,
name starts w/ a K?
I remember something about a
beautiful garden which was very peaceful. The graphics on
the book were very, very engaging as a child. I read the
book as a little girl in approx 1977, in 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades
(I LOVED IT), and would be so very, very excited if you know what
it is!
Eleanor Lattimore, Happiness for Kimi, 1958, copyright. When Kimi's
parents and brother move to the city temporarily, she has to stay
behind in her Japanese village with her traditional aunt who
insists on teaching her to be a "real Japanese girl." She
learns the "old arts" of properly making and serving tea and also
arranging flowers. Although there's no mention of a tea
garden, among Lattimore's great illustrations is a two-page spread
of Kimi and her friend, in kimonos, walking in what could be such
a garden.
J83: Jewish couple adopt black girl
A jewish couple in late thirties
adopt a 8year old black girl. Parents are Rebecca and sam. The
daughter helps her dad get torah back after they were stolen. Book
spanned from 30's to 60's.
Rebecca was the mothers name sam was not the fathers
name. couple couldnt adopt the girl but raised her as there
own. The girls name was elvira and she was raised in both
cultures.
Henry
Denker,
Payment in Full,
1991. I found this online, I think this sounds right:
"When it becomes clear to Rebecca and David Rosen, a young
immigrant couple struggling to survive in New York, that they
will not be able to have children of their own, they decide to
open their home to an orphaned black girl. Even though the
eight-year-old Elvira Hitchins is going to be raised in a Jewish
household, the Rosens vow that they will make her aware of her
own culture and heritage."
J84: Jeffy's new hammer
This is a book read to me as
a child in the late 60's/early 70's. A little boy is home
with his Grandma while his Mom is at the hospital having a
baby. He has received a present (maybe from his Dad?)
- a new toy hammer. He proceeds to joyfully hammer
everything in sight. When he begins to hammer his mom's new
coffee table, Grandma asserts a firm, "No." Jeffy responds,
"But my hammer wants to hit the table." Grandma explains
that Jeffy has a will and can choose, while the hammer does not -
Jeffy must choose for the hammer. I think this must have been
published by a Christian publisher, as I remember Grandma talking
about how God is the one who gave Jeffy the ability to
choose. Thanks very much for your help.
J85: Jeanie Wallace, mountain nurse with
psychic gifts
Gothic novel published in the late
60's or 70's about a rural nurse [Jeanie Wallace] who has psychic
gifts that help her solve a mystery which also involves a romance
with a widower whose wife died mysteriously. I think the
villainess was named Kate. The evildoers haunted and gaslighted
the heroine with mechanical devices.
The Gift. Hi, I don't know if the film is
based on a book but this sounds like the plot of the film "The
Gift".
J86: Jerry, rocket, metal from space ship
60's childrens science fiction, boy
finds a metal sheet in junkyard and uses it in building play
rocket in garage. Metal turns out to be from real space
ship, one of two pieces needed by space traveler to make real
rocket work. "Jerry" may be in title.
Eleanor Cameron, The Wonderful Flight to the
Mushroom Planet. This popular children's book is
about two boys who meet an alien who is looking for someone to
build him a spaceship. They find a piece of sheet metal to
make part of the outer skin. The alien (Mr. Bass)
later provides equipment to make the ship functional. You
may have it conflated with another book because the metal isn't
from another rocket, and neither boy is called Jerry.
Evelyn Sibley Lampman, Rusty's Space Ship, 1955,
approximate. Rusty is building a spaceship in his garage,
and uses a piece of metal he found. An alien shows up
looking for the metal, which is the mate to one he carries and
is part of his own ship. Rusty, the alien and the girl
next door use the spaceship to travel to several planets trying
to find the alien's home.
J87: Junkyard, metal pieces lead to other
dimension
Young adult book in 1984 (about). A
brother and a sister that had lost their parents (?). They lived
in a junkyard (dump) and discovered metal pieces (outlines -- e.g.
stars) that they could toss onto the ground and it would open a
portal to another dimension. Different pieces lead to different
places.
J88: Joke, poem, story book all-in-one
I am looking for a children's book
that contained many different kinds of jokes. I cannot remember
the title, but I know it was purchased before 1994. I believe I
had it in the late 80's, early 90's, possibly bought from a school
catalog book (Scholastic?). I'm pretty sure it was a hard cover
book, yellow (my mother says it might have been black and soft
cover, though), and it had at least 100 pages; it was a thick
book. It came with a sleeve jacket possibly also yellow or white
with a drawing of children on it. I'm not sure, but the same
picture may have also been outlined in white on the cover of the
book itself. It was more than just a joke book; it also had
activities like how to make shadow puppets (I remember a swan, a
dove, and a rabbit). There was also a rebus puzzle story and one
of the sentences was "a door was left" and then a picture of a
glass jar so that it was supposed to be read "a door was left
ajar." It contained a section on knock-knock jokes. Some seemed
Halloween related. I think there was a picture of a haunted house
on one of the pages. The only one I can remember is: "Knock, knock / Who's there? / Banana.
/ Banana who? / Knock, knock / Who's there? / Banana. / Banana
who? / Knock, knock / Who's there? / Orange. / Orange who? /
Orange you glad I didn't say banana?" and a joke about "What do
you call a horse at night? A night mare." There was also a joke
about soap and knowing a song, I believe with a picture of a
bathtub. The response to the question was something like "I don't
know but hum a few bars." There were also poems in the book.
One was a piece of Lewis Carroll's "Hys Nouryture" (I found this
out later, I don't think it was written in the book), "'Three
little Ghosteses were set on posteses, you know, and ate their
buttered toasteses" with a crosshatch illustration of ghosts
sitting on fence posts, eating buttered toast. Another poem was
"Upon/Oh/On this page of pearly white, it looked so good I took a
bite." There was also a story about a weather forecast in
which it began to rain meatballs (although I don't think it's
"Cloudy with a chance of meatballs"). All of the pictures were
plain line art or crosshatching. There were no color pictures that
I remember.
2009
J89: Jenny is the title
Solved: Rebecca's World: Journey to the Forbidden
Planet
J90: Jonathon Wonathon Higgins McGee
1964, childrens. The book
starts out: Jonathon Wonathon Higgins McGee jumped out of bed in a
1, 2, 3. He put on his coat, his hat and his spate ...
I used to read this to my little girl and almost had it memorized
back then. Now I really would like to find it to read to my
great grandchildren or any other children for that matter.
Wright, Betty Ren, Yellow Cat, 1952, approximate. This is
on the solved mysteries page as Betty Ren Wright's Yellow Cat (Whitman Tell-A-Tale, 1952).
J91: Jonathan
Percival Pinkerton Jr.
A child's book about a boy named
Jonathan Percival Pinkerton Jr who went hop, hop, skip, skip over
the cracks in the sidewalk.
Perhaps this is Five Pennies to Spend by Miriam Young?
Louise Lawrence Devine, A Penny For Candy, 1946,
copyright. I still have my childhood copy of this one!
It was a Junior Elf Book. Jonathan Percival Pinkerton Junior and
his friends keep finding pennies on the sidewalk, but when they
get to the candy store they discover they've all found the same
penny.
J92: jester
Book I got in 1980s, don't know
date of publication. Red canvas cover, approx 8.5" x 11"
dimensions, pale watercolor / simple line drawings illustrations,
mostly pale blues and reds. Story was of a poor jester or
harlequin who traveled across "the land" to make a princess
laugh? His clothing had diamond pattern (typical
jester). He made lots of friends along the way, may have
been animals. In the end I think he married the princess and
was bequeathed the kingdom. The pages were fairly heavy and
glossy and had a distinct smell, like a print shop!
Jules
Feiffer , A Barrel of Laughs, a Vale of Tears 1995, copyright. Despite the
obvious date difference, could this be it? They have
similar-sounding plots (man travels across land to find
princess has to do with laughing). The illustrations
in this book are quite charming but I don'\''t recall a red
canvas cover. Hope this helps!
Brothers Grimm, The Princess Who Never Laughed. I have a very faint memory of having read a
single-story book about a kingdom where the princess would be
given in marriage to the man who could make her laugh -- she may
have been dying or wasting away. I dont know whether the
winner was a jester. Google search says there was a video
version of a similar story which was adapted from Grimm.
Hope this helps.
J93: Jackson Hole
WY, romance novel, time travel
Looking for a romance novel I read
in the 90's. 1993 or 94. Named my son after the hero,
Colton. Contemporary setting. Jackson Hole WY. A
woman who is a travel agent travels back in time to early Jackson
Hole by touching a multi-colored rose under a tree on the
mountainside.
Bonita Clifton, Time of the Rose, 1994, copyright. Maybe -
the summary I found says: "Beautiful Madison Calloway follows an
old man into a violent thunderstorm and travels back in time to
the Old West, where she captures the heart of Colton Chase, a
notorious gunslinger."
J94:
Japanese Submarine in a Lake
Looking for 1960s(?) book about
teenage boys who buy war surplus Japanese submarine and use it to
explore local lake(?); got into it in school library in 1970 last
week of school couldn't finish(we were xferred overseas); bleve it
was Scholastic(?) paperback(?), maybe a series
Bertrand Brinley, The New Adventures of the Mad Scientists' Club, 1968, copyright. It sounds like
the short story The Cool Cavern in this collection. The 7 boys
in the club buy a midget Japanese submarine from WWII at an
auction to explore Strawberry Lake. Check out www.madscientistsclub.com and see if the series looks
familiar.
Bertrand
R. Brinley, The New
Adventures of the Mad Scientists' Club, 1968, copyright. You are
almost certainly thinking of "The Cool Cavern," a short story in
"The New Adventures of the Mad Scientists’ Club," a sequel to
"The Mad Scientists'Club." The stories are rather dated
now, but were way cool back in the 1960s when I read them.
They're about seven junior geniuses and their crazy ideas:
outwitting the grownups by haunting a house, creating a lake
monster, competing in a balloon race, adding a lot of laughs to
the Founders' Day ceremony, and lots more. The grownups
come across as awfully dumb, but no one gets hurt, and you can't
help cheering the little maniacs on. Also see "The Big
Chunk of Ice" and "The Big Kerplop" by the same author.
Not as good, but still worth reading
J95: Japanese Girl Gets Paint Set
Looking
for
childrens
book
about a japanese girl who gets a paint set from her grandfather
and paints the world around her.
Jane Flory, One hundred and eight bells. This was
suggested to me as I searched for something similar on another
site. I remembered different things
but I bet it is the same book.
2011
J96: Juvenile novel
from the 60's
Two little girls become
friendly. One just moved from California. They take
ballet together. They are in school together. They get
in an argument. One little girl pulls a beet plant out of a
vacant yard to bring it into school for show and tell and gets
beet juice all over her dress.
Beverly Cleary, Ellen
Tebbits,
1951. I bet you'll get a lot of responses to this stumper.
Your book is Ellen Tebbits, by Beverly Cleary. I actually just listed to the
audiobook last year - it was a great nostalgia trip!
Cleary,
Beverly, Ellen Tebbits, 1951. Pretty sure this is Ellen Tebbits
by Cleary.
Beverly
Cleary, Ellen Tebbits.
Beverly
Cleary, Ellen Tebbits. This is definitely Ellen Tebbits. Ellen and Austine are the
friends, and Ellen is the one who picks the beet and gets dirty in
the process.
This book is Ellen Tebbits by Beverly Cleary.
Beverly
Cleary, Ellen Tebbits, 1951. Definitely this one! Ellen
and Austine meet in ballet class, where they are both desparate to
conceal the fact that their mothers make then wear long woolen
underwear. When the dance teacher's son is teasing Ellen - and
about to reveal her secret - Austine intervenes. When Ellen ruins
her dress - not only stained, but also muddy, soaked, and torn -
Austine helps her scotch tape the tear and loans her a long
sweater to conceal the damage. The girls fight after they have
their mothers make them dressed out of matching fabric, with
monkeys on it. The idea was to look like twins, only Audine's
mother was not a good seamstress, and her dress didn't look or fit
good, and didn't have a sash. Jealous, Audine pulls Ellen's sash,
untying it, repeatedly - until Ellen has had enough and slaps her.
The girls eventually make up and are friends again.
Beverly
Cleary, Ellen Tebbits, 1951. You'll get lots of responses
to this one, I'm sure. It's a classic and has been reprinted many
times.
Beverly
Cleary,
Ellen Tebbits, 1951. "Ellen Tebbits has a secret
that she'll never share with anyone. That is, until she meets
Austine—and discovers that Austine has the same secret! Soon the
girls are best friends who do everything together—attending dance
class, horseback riding, and dodging pesky Otis Spofford. But then
Ellen does something terrible, and now Austine isn't speaking to
her. Will Ellen be able to prove how sorry she truly is?"
This is definitely the
book you're looking for.
Beverly
Cleary, Ellen Tibbets. Details match exactly.
Cleary,
Beverly, Ellen Tebbits, 1951.This is my favorite of all
Beverly Cleary's books. I reread it many times as a child, and
also as an adult!
J97: Jeweled
clockwork animals talk when no one is around....
I think I got this book from
Scholastic in the mid seventies. Wind-up animals socialize
at night while their owner sleeps. I think that at least one
of them can fly. A beautiful jeweled dog is the prize of the
collection. I THINK the cover showed this dog perched on
it's owner's shoulder. THANKS
Betty Brock,
No Flying In The House, 1982. Sounds like this is probably
your book. "Most little girls have parents to take care of them,
but not Annabel Tippens.She has Gloria, a tiny white dog who talks
and wears a gold collar. Annabel never thought it was strange that
she had Gloria instead of real parents. Until one day a wicked,
wicked cat named Belinda comes to tell her the truth -- she's not
just a little girl, she's a half-fairy!"
Brock,
Betty, No Flying in the House. I remember the cover, with the
little dog on the girl's shoulder, and it might just be No Flying in
the House. The little
jeweled dog is taking care of a little girl who has lost her
parents, who have been banished. The dog, Gloria, and a golden toy
cat, Belinda, each talk to the girl about family and magic, and
the fact that the girl's mother is a fairy. In the end, Gloria
makes a magical sacrifice to help the girl recover her family.
Hope this helps.
Brock, Betty, No Flying in the
House. Parts of this story sound like jumbled memories of No Flying in the House by
Betty Brock, and the original paperback cover is exactly as
described. So...maybe worth checking out!
J98:
Jocko,
Monkey,
Train,
Chairs, Orange
SOLVED:
Frances Horwich, Suitcase with
a surprise, 1953.
J99: Japanese girl wants to be modern
SOLVED: Thank you so much! The book I was trying to remember is Myeko’s Gift by Kay
Haugaard.
J100: Journey for group of kids
that might involve the Olympics
Set in ancient times, I think.
Two kids are supposed to get married. They find a mirrored shard
and it lights a sacred torch, so instead of getting married they
run away on a journey to take the torch someplace (Olympics?).
Other kids join them, including a really fast runner. Narrator
is a girl. Updated More information about the book: During the journey the
kids come across a storytelling contest, with people from many
different cultures participating. There is an old man there who
is sad because he is the last of his people, no one left speaks
or understands his language. The kids sit down around him and
listen to his storytelling anyway, and the man becomes happy
again. At a couple points during the journey the torch goes out.
One of the kids figures out that doing good and heartfelt things
for others (or maybe spreading happiness) is what makes the
torch re-light itself.
Jill Paton Walsh, Torch, 1987. Book description from
jacket: "The parents of young Cal and Dio have decided the two
will marry. When they visit the Old Man for his blessing, he
reveals a secret: that he was the guardian of the last Olympic
torch, and now Dio must be the guardian in his stead. Cal and
Dio set off on a journey, along with their friends, to take the
torch to its home. As they travel they learn about the past,
when wonderful inventions were obliterated by a catastrophe that
has sent the world back to ancient ways."
2012
J101:
Junge grows in family's house
YA book from the 70s or very early 80s. A little tiny sprout
starts growing in a the family's house. They let it go, the
house turns into a jungle inside. There is an
alligator/crocodile living in the house. The city comes to
tear it down but kudzu pulls cover the plow and machinery.
J102: Jars of pickles, old woman, elephant
SOLVED: Jerry Smath, But No
Elephants, 1979.
J103: Jane rides train alone
My mother (born in 1931)
remembers a book when she was "little" (6? 7?) about a girl
named Jane who goes for a train ride alone. She remembers an
African American "Redcap" helping her on the train. Any
idea what book that might be?
Lawrence, Josephine, Adventures
of Elizabeth Ann, 1923, approximate. It's a long shot, but if
there's a chance the girl's name is Elizabeth Ann instead of
Jane, The Adventures of Elizabeth Ann begins with seven-year-old
Elizabeth Ann taking a long train ride to her aunt's. On
the train, she's befriended by several of the African-American
attendants -- and by the president of the raiload company.
(The opening chapters, which include part of the train ride, are
online at http://readseries.com/joslaw/adv-ea1.html
)
It is NOT Adventures of
Elizabeth Ann - my mother's name is Jane and that was one of the
reasons the book stuck with her - thanks for the try, but this
one is still unsolved!!
Helen Daringer,
Adopted Jane, 1947.
Could the book your mom remembers be Helen Daringer's classic "Adopted Jane"? Jane has been in an orphanage for many
years and finally one summer she is chosen to visit two
prospective homes whose inhabitants might adopt her. I remember that she goes on a train by
herself to visit one of the homes and is befriended by a redcap.
This book is an all-time favorite.
Date: 1936-37, approximate. Oh, I
wish it were "Adopted Jane"!
It was definitely 1936-37 and it was a large picture book with a
title something like "Jane Rides A Train". She had her dog with
her on the train slept in an upper berth and the Redcap
helped her onto the train and closed the curtains for her so she
could go to sleep... ANY other ideas?!?!
Clara Ingram Judson, Mary
Jane--Her Visit. This is a really old book about a train trip, not a
picture book, but if it could be a "Mary" Jane, there definitely
is a porter in the story. Here's an excerpt:
Mary Jane put on the rest of
her clothes then she took her little bag, just as her
mother had told her to, and went into the dressing room and
washed her face and made herself neat and tidy. She got back in
time to see the porter make up her bed and she was glad of that
because bed-unmaking on a train by daylight seemed even more
wonderful and interesting than bed-making the night before.She
sat down on the seat across the aisle while he worked, so she
could see everything he did.
"My
mother and I don't make beds that way at home," she announced
suddenly.
"Sure not," agreed the
porter, and then by way of keeping up the conversation, he
added, "Like to ride on a train?"
"Deed I do," said Mary Jane
happily, "and I like to go see my grandmother—it's my
Great-grandmother Hodges I'm going to see, you know. And my
mother isn't going and my daddah isn't going because he works
and my sister Alice isn't going because she's in school and
anybody isn't going but just my Dr. Smith and me 'cause I'm five
and that's a big girl.""Well!" exclaimed the porter, and he
actually stopped making beds to look at such a big little girl.
Mary Jane liked him and started to tell him about Doris and the
birthday party and the pretty things in her trunk, but Dr. Smith
came back just then and there was no more time for talk.
"Got your coat?" he asked,
"and your hat and your—everything?"
"He
put 'em there," said Mary Jane, pointing to the next seat
where she had seen the porter put her things, "and my gloves
are in my pocket and my bag's all shut." "That's good." said
Dr. Smith. "You'd better put your things on now. Here, I'll
hold your...
J104: Jeff, a dog
A Tip-Top-Elf or Tell-a-Tale type
book (not Little Golden) from the mid-late 1960s. Realistic
color illustrations. A boy and his dog named Jeff.
J105:
Janie, Hugo, Maine, shoes
SOLVED: Dorothy Simpson, A Matter of Pride, 1959.
J106:
Jewish family in late 1800s, young girl
Searching for a book possibly set in late 1800's about a Jewish
family particulary a little girl maybe named Hannah or Sarah also
had siblings. May have been set in San Francisco as they
travelled to the seaside by trolley car with extended family.
Featured Jewish celebrations - Passover etc.
This must be Sydney
Taylor's All of a Kind Family, the first in
her wonderful 5-book series about the Jewish sisters Ella, Sara,
Henny, Charlotte and Gertie who live on the Lower East Side of
New York. Throughout the series, the girls celebrate many
Jewish holidays with their loving parents and extended
family. Near the end of All of a Kind
Family, the girls are taken by trolley to Coney Island to
escape the summer heat.
This may be All of a Kind Family by Sidney
Taylor. Though definitely not set in San Francisco,
there were plenty of siblings (including Henny and Sarah) -
and a trip to the seashore on a trolley.
I tried to send this
solution to you via an e-mail last week but It doesn't
appear to have reached you or you haven't had time yet to
update your solutions. In case it never arrived, I'm
sending it to you again. The solution is Sydney
Taylor's All of a Kind Family, the first in
the 5-book series about Jewish sisters Ella, Henny, Sarah,
Charlotte and Gertie. They live on the Lower East Side
of New York. They celebrate many Jewish holidays with
their extended family who live nearby. And near the
end of the book, their mother takes them by trolley car to
Coney Island to escape the city's heat.
J107:
Jolly Baker, beggar
Solved: Mr. Snitzel's Cookies
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3/14/13