Have you forgotten the title of your favorite children's
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Submit your memory here, and see if anyone else remembers
your book memory, or better yet, knows the title and
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The 2003 Tally
1192 Stumpers posted; 744 (62%) Solved The 2004 Tally
527 Stumpers posted; 395 (75%) Solved The 2005 Tally
902 Stumpers posted; 499 (55%) Solved The 2006 Tally
858 Stumpers posted; 401 (46%) Solved The 2007 Tally
853 Stumpers posted; 409 (48%) Solved The 2008 Tally
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The 2012
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305 Stumpers Posted
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361 Moved to Archives
A477: Acorn plates wash away in big rain My mother, born in 1938,
remembers a chapter book she read to herself about a family of
small people who lived outdoors and crafted needed things from
what they found. she remember plates out of acorn caps washing
away in a 'big rain.' small line drawings at the beg. of each
chapter.
John Petersen, The Littles.I think this is one of The Littles books.I don't know which one, although there is one called The
Littles and the Big Storm, which may be a possiblity, since the
poster is remembering a "big rain." Thanks for the idea.
However, as my mom was born in 1938 and read it to herself as a
older child, this is not the book she remembers. The Littles was
published in 1967. The book my mom remembers is about a family of
tiny people who live in the woods fending for themselves crafting
their needed items out of whatever they find( sort of McGuyver
like my mom says)The chapter about the big rain my mom
specifically remembers because of the line drawing at the head of
the chapter. It was an acorn cap dinner plate washing away. Thanks
again and please keep looking. William
Donahey, Alice and the Teenie
Weenies,1927. Any
chance this is it? Little people making their own stuff out of
discards and natural materials. They used to be a comic in the
Sunday paper, and there were other books, but this seems to be the
only one that was a chapter book. Mostly, they'd have a story and
a big picture. A478: Animal counting book I THINK this children's animal
counting book is from around 1980. It MIGHT be a Hallmark
book and has an orange cover. I remember a few lines:
three sleepy skunks get into their bunks, four giraffes enjoy some
laughs, five crocodiles wear great big smiles. Would
appreciate any help.
Dean
Walley, Animal Antics: a first
counting book,~1977? There are other books with Animal Antics as
the title, so just be aware. But when I did a Google image
search on the keywords "Hallmark book animals counting" [a] book
fitting the description came up! A479: 1960s or 1970s Children's Color Illustrated
Encyclopedias with Glossy Covers A set of children's color
illustrated encyclopedias from the 60s or 70s with colorful,
glossy covers. Had pictures on the front- think 1 was a planet?
Pages were approx 8/12 x 11. Each volume was about 1" thick or so.
The page on "UFOs" or "flying saucers" scared me as a child, &
stuck in my memory!
Golden Press, The Golden
Book Encyclopedia, 1946 to 1988. This sounds like it might be some edition
of the Golden
Book Encyclopedia. They fit the format you
describe and were published in various editions between 1948 and
1988 Childcraft Encyclopedias. You may be looking for the
Childcraft series. Each volume contains short stories,
factual articles and poetry about a topic. Some of the topics are
things like About Me and The World Around Us...although I think the titles
might change with each new revision. There is a Space book though,
which might be what you're looking for. Childcraft has been
around since the 40s or 50s, and are revised every eight years or
so. They publish new supplements every year. A480: Afterlife adventure with caveman
Circa mid-80s to early 90s. Possibly a Scholastic catalog book.
Protagonist a boy who had been in a car (?) accident. While in a
coma, he awakens in a sort of afterlife/limbo. He teams up with a
dead teen girl and a caveman and tries to get back to his life.
A481:
Adventure with evil wolfhound antagonist I read in the early 90's. Young man
sucked into an adventure with an evil wolfhound playing a dominant
role. Athena's owl comes in as a foil for food and evil
occasionally. Young man originally in academic (?) setting.
A482:
Australia; Four orphaned siblings Probably British, pre-
1960. Four orphaned British siblings with the youngest two being
Betty and Sigismund (the eldest might be Alice or Rose) travel to
Australia to join an unknown great-uncle. Due to a mix-up they are
dropped off at a shack at the edge of a vast outback property.
There they discover an elderly invalid whom they assume is their
uncle so start to take care of him. A wealthy grazier and his
teenage grandson, Gene, take an interest in them as do a crew of
????? (anthropologists? geologists?) After many adventures they
earn the admiration of the grazier.
Margaret Ross, Greentree
Downs, This
was one of the early Puffin Story Books. It's a long time since
I've read it, but it sounds as though it might be the one. A483: Astral projection, teenaged siblings
A book about teenaged
siblings (brother and sister) who are split up through an
adoption agency and use astral projection and other techniques
to keep in touch, protect themselves, and eventually reunite.
The book also described the steps the siblings follow to
project, beginning with grounding.
Barthe DeClements, Double Trouble, 1995. Pretty sure Double Trouble is the book you're looking for. One twin has ESP, the
other can astral project. The girl lives with an aunt who in
very strict and doesn't like boys, the boy ends up with an
extremely religious family who, as it turns out, have some bad
plans for him. (I think they're going to sacrifice him or
something.) They can still talk though, and work together
to save each other.
A484:
Anthology of children's tales
Anthology of children's
tales - Rushcape was in it, as well as a story in the form of a
play about knights (why do I feel like one of them was a
firefighter? or had to put out a fire?), plus a tale about
frogs, illustrated really nicely.
B832: Brown dog costume, girl,
onion sandwiches
SOLVED: E. L. Konigsburg, Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William
McKinley, and me, Elizabeth
B833: Bird in a Cage - Dead I read this picture book in the
late 1970s. Beautiful pen & watercolor illustrations, I think.
Oversize book. At one point, a girl gets a present of a pen. At
another point, her bird in a fancy cage is dead. I can't remember
the story or anything else. Thanks for any help. B834: Boy or boys chased through
forest The book
I'm looking for: - I read
in grade school, in the 80s. - the
book was likely written in the 60s, 70s or early 80s - I
believe this to be a children or juvenile book - rough plot: a boy
or two boys (possibly teen boys; maybe brothers?) are
being chased or followed through the forest...down to the
water. Not sure, but they may have witnessed a crime?
possibly a murder? They end up going down a
river..via canoe. It's a fiction; adventure or mystery. Hopefully
this is enough to go on. thanks for your help.
Margaret
Goff Clark, Danger at the
Heels,1975,
approximate. I'm pretty sure this is the book you're looking
for. I haven't read it for awhile, but there are two
brothers (or maybe stepbrothers) who set out on a river trip.
Somehow, they end up chased by crooks, trying to retrieve a
package they have. The boys know that the money (?) is stolen, and
plan to return it. A later title with a similar plot is River Danger, by Thomas Dygard. And Will Hobbs' Downriver also has some similarities. But
both are more recent. SOLVED: Margaret Goff Clark, Death at their heels. Hi, looks like I've
got a winner! Death at
their heels by Margaret Goff Clark is the name and
author. thanks for your help!
B835: Black cat saves
the day The book is about a black cat who
is seen as bad luck in a town. A witch comes into town and the cat
saves the day. On the cover was cat with the town and tower
in background. It's from, or rather we read it, in around
1998 or 1999.
Barbara
Sleigh, Carbonel, The King of
the Cats, 1955.I'm not sure from the description of the book, but the
description of the cover fits Carbonel,
The King of the Cats.A witch decides to go
out of business and sells her cat and her broom to a girl named
Rosemary.The cat can
be heard talking if you are holding the broom.The cat wants to be
freed from the witch and that is the plot of the book - the search
for the spell and items needed to finally free the cat from the
witch. Barbara
Sleigh, The Kingdom of
Carbonel,1961.
The description of the book does fit the sequel written to Carbonel, The King of the Cats. That is titled The Kingdom of Carbonel and has a similar plot - the girl, Rosemary, and her
friend trying to stop the evil, supposedly former witch, from her
plot to kidnap the royal heir and cause chaos and mayhem in the Kingdom of Carbonel.
B836: Boyfriend drowns in lake I read a book about 10 years ago that
started with a teenage couple who went swimming in a lake. The
boyfriend drowned in the lake that night and the girlfriend
learns to move on after his death. She goes to college and then
the boyfriend comes back as a ghost and interacts with her in
humorous ways.
B837: Boston,
Revolutionary War, girl seamstress I read a children's novel in the
60's about a girl sent to Boston during the Revolutionary War as
an indentured servant. She was also an excellent
seamstress an a lot of the book was about the sewing she did for
the ladies in town. Even though I read it many times, I
can't remember the title!
Elizabeth George Speare,
Calico Captive,1957. Thank you for the
suggestion! I have read Calico Captive, but this is a different book. The girl
wasn't captured by Indians, she was a servant girl who might have
been sent from England. Her sewing was a big part of the story. B838: Book about raccoon who has a party Title is 'the 324th guest,'
or some similar number. a raccoon (?) is lonesome eating cold
mashed potatoes with ketchup, decides to have a party, invites 323
other animals, all have a great time. then when he's cleaning up
he realizes he is the 324th guest and he likes his own company
just fine.
Marjorie Weinman Sharmat, The 329th Friend,1979. When will authors learn that
putting a number in the title is a terrible idea? The book is THE 329th FRIEND by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat. You can see the review of the book when it was
first publishedhttps://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/marjorie-weinman-sharmat-10/the-329th-friend/#review'
B839: Boy and
his mammoth Read in 1970's in UK. Set in cave man times.
Boy may have been called Pete. Hope you can help!!! Best wishes
John
Grant, Littlenose the Hero.And several sequels.
These are books, published in the UK, about a cave-boy and his
mammoth, Two-Eyes but no one is called Pete so far as I
remember. Otherwise, they fit your description.B840:
Billy's Red Car Hard cover picture
book. Loaned from local library 1986 - 1987. Story about a
little boy who was a little naughty - pedal car crashing into a
clothes line. Book may have pictured the car on the
cover. May have a trike somewhere in the story. B841: Boy and teddy bear get ready for bed Childrens book purchased
in 1996-1998, 10-16 illustrated (ver well done) about a boy and
his freind teddy bear getting ready for bed, reflecting on thier
day or looking forward. a circus, fighting pirates. there is an
envelope in the back with a note teling the reader to draw what
they want to dream. B842: Boy,
princess, tower, fireworks
Boy and
Princess sneak into the Kings tower, accidentally ignite his
powders/fireworks. As the flames reach them on top of the
tower, with the King looking on helplessly from below, the boy
grabs a huge length of cloth, catches the wind, and they are
both carried out to sea". possible adult book.
B843:
Bedtime stories from the late 1980s or early 1990s
I was looking for a large, thin book of about 5 or 6 kids bedtime
stories from probably the late '80s, early '90s. There was
a story about a little boy playing baseball, one about fairies,
one with a little girl named Penelope and her cat, and one with a
toucan who dyed her beak so she could be beautiful like the other
tropical birds.
B844: Barefoot little girl lost in woods
Wordless beautifully illustrated picture book about a little
girl lost in the woods. She was barefoot and it seems like the
colors were all neutrals and pastels. Several angels hidden in the
art throughout. Hardback, printed before 1995. Offwhite/beige
cover w/ black filigree, if my memory serves me.
C774: Collection of Children's Stories Green cloth covered book
about 8x11 possibly in the 1950s and possibly by whitman
publishing. Contains a collection of childrens stories, The Old
Woman and Her Pig, Yonie Wondernose, The Velveteen Rabbit, and
more It had black and white illustrations,and I dont remember
pictures or lettering on the cover.
Anne Neigoff, Parade of
Stories,1974. This contains
both stories, although possibly it's too late for your book. C775:
"Calpi" the horse I am looking for a
children's book, published 1965 or (most likely) before, about a
horse named "Calpi," or some derivation thereof. He remembers it
as a green or blue book, with "Calpi" in calligraphy arcing across
the top. The closest I can find is "Calico, the Wonder Horse."
Anita Feagles, Casey the
Utterly Impossible Horse,1960. Casey is a talking
horse that wears striped pajamas, a hat and sunglasses. The cover
is green and "Casey" is written in script at the top. It may or
may not be the book you are looking for, as there wasn't much of a
description to go on. Ursula
Moray Williams, Kelpie the
Gipsies' Pony,
1946, reprint. Found this one which looks like a good
possibility. Description: A homeless boy living with
gypsies tames a wild pony and invents various schemes to be near
his pet. It's a hardback book with a green cover. C776: Coote, Children's picture
book Date: 1950's. Mother
Coote (a Coote bird) dressed with an apron & head scarf,
duster under her wing & has children that get into mischief
Isobel St. Vincent, Helen
Haywood (illus), Clarrie Coot,1947. Published by Hutchinson's Books for Young
People, London. Illustrated with five color plates and black
& white drawing throughout the book. From an online listing:
"A charming story of life on a river bank, featuring Clarrie
Coot the kind hearted little duck, who, no matter how hard she
tried she could never be tidy." Illustration on first page shows
Clarrie wearing old-fashioned shoes, an apron, and a scarf tied
around her head, holding a broom with her wings and sweeping.
One color picture shows Clarrie (wearing a red scarf w/ white
polka dots tied around her head and what appears to be a pearl
necklace) peeping in through a window. Inside, gathered around a
small table, are what appears to be a muskrat in a top hat and
black coat w/ fur trim, a badger wearing a red neckerchief, and
a rat in red pants. C777:
Children's dreams I read the book when I was in
grade school, early-mid 80’s, and I just loved it. It was
about a brother and sister sent to live with an aging “aunt” whose
own 2 children had disappeared when they were of a similar
age. The siblings soon discovered a secret stairwell into
the attic where there was an old playroom, small beds and
all. They were discovered and sternly told to stay away from
the attic, which of course they didn’t do. Whenever they
slept in the attic, they had dreams that started benign, and
seemed that they were chasing after 2 other children who were
always a step ahead. They had dreams that placed them in the
toy block house, a chambered nautilus, and other places that were
represented in the playroom. Finally, the last dream had
them trapped in bubbles that they had to work very hard to
break. This was where the other 2 children had
disappeared. The new siblings were able to break the
bubbles, which seemed to be globes on the front porch, and the
next day, the now adult missing kids came home. It was a
fascinating story and I wish so badly that I could remember the
name and/or author. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Jane
Langton, The Diamond in the
Window, 1973. This is absolutely
your book, a wonderful dreamy mystery. You can find a very
detailed summary here: http://bellaonbooks.wordpress.com/2010/05/05/old-favorites-the-diamond-in-the-window/ Jane
Langton, The Diamond in the Window.This is definitely The Diamond in the Window.A
marvelous book.Has a number of
sequels - The Swing in the
Summerhouse, The Astonishing Stereoscope, The Fledgling, The
Fragile Flag, The Time Bike, The Mysterious Circus, The Dragon
Tree.I like the first three
best.Fledgling was a Newbery Honor Book. Jane
Langton, The Diamond in the Window, 1962. This is almost certainly The Diamond in the Window. There are several sequels in The Hall Family
Chronicles, so if you really liked the first book, you can keep
going! Langton,
Jane, Diamond in the window. Jane
Langton, The diamond in the
Window,
1969. "Eleanor and Eddy
discover a hidden staircase that leads to a secret room at the top
of their house. The room has toys and books, an elaborate castle
built of blocks, and two small beds. They learn from Aunt Lily
that the room belonged to their aunt and uncle, Ned and Nora, who
disappeared when they were children." Langton,
Jane, Diamond in the Window. Although some of the details don't
match exactly, this sounds a lot like Diamond in the Window. C778: Contrived
environment, two teenagers, secret messages hidden in letters,
future, space travel
I read a book back in my sophomore year of high school (1994). The
book in question focuses on two teenagers and takes place in the
future. Near the beginning of the book they somehow meet and start
communicating through letters. They later determine they are being
held captive. Captive, in the sense, that they are in a contrived
non-futuristic environment designed to fool them into believing it
is their home. They know the letters they write are being read by
their captives, so they devise a way to encrypt messages within
their text. My memory goes fuzzy after that. I know they
eventually meet up and escape. During the escape, their actual
futuristic environment is revealed to them. I can't remember the
author's name, however, I do remember my 10th grade English
teacher had reservations about allowing me to read works from this
particular author due to his adult themed writing style. Also
pretty sure, there was a sequel to this book, which I read as
well, and may be confusing plot points with the first book. Any
help would be great. Thanks.
Nicholas
Fisk, A Rag, a Bone, and
a Hank of Hair,1980. Could this be it? In a dystopian future, the
government has cloned a family from the 1940s who live in a closed
environment completely unaware that WWII is long over. A boy is
sent by the government to live with the family and monitor the
experiment, but gradually grows attached to them as he uncovers
the government's plot. Anthony,
Piers, Race against time, 1973. I think this is your book! SOLVED: Piers Anthony, Race Against Time.
Best $2 I ever spent. Thanks
so much for finding my book, been bugging me for years!C779: Children's book possibly late
50s We have some lines from a
book Mom remembers reading could you help me find it? My ball is
big and red and round. My little car is blue. My train goes choo
choo choo. My chairs for sitting down. My telephones for calling
up. My ponys for my clown. I would appreciate any help! Thanks.
Lillian B. Garfield, See My
Toys, 1947. C780: Children's fairy/folk tale anthology with MANGOES
Large hardcover children's book,
beautiful full page colour illustrations. Includes original
version of Beauty & the Beast (ship merchant father vows to
bring back a rose for his youngest daughter), and Indian??folk
tale of mango seller ("Mangoes, fresh mangoes! Who'll buy my
lovely fresh mangoes?"). C781:
Clown adventures Book published in 1940s? very early
1950s? Clown who has many adventures, including being rolled up in
a carpet. Artistically illustrated with flowing lines. C782: Children's story / poem collection
This children's book has
stories and maybe poems. The cover was red cloth with an illus.
panel (I think). It was a larger-sized book. There was a story
about Neverland (not Peter Pan) and another about dolls having a
party at night (and being sticky the next day). Illus. from 20s?
30s? 40s? Pixies.
The story about dolls being sticky the next day
sounds like a chapter from Raggedy Ann Stories, by Johnny
Gruelle (Raggedy Ann Learns a
Lesson). But I don't know what
other collection it's in.
C783: Cat, tree, birthday cake
This was my favorite
children's book around the mid-90's (I was born in 1990 if that
helps). It was about a cat who lived in a tree whose mother was
sick and died. The cat broke into a house and ate birthday cake
and got sick. A little boy helped him. The cover was of a tree
in black and white.
C784: Cape
Cod, girl, aunt, dentures
Girl who summers in Cape
Cod with family in the summer was a youth book. I read this is
the early '80 but it was probably from the '50s or '60's and I
believe it was a series. Her aunt looks her dentures and the
girl finds them in an apron pocket.
Catherine Woolley, Ginny and the Mystery Doll,
1960.
C785:
Computer "Teacher" short story
A short story where children used a
computer as a Teacher (capitalized), as a substitute for reading,
or somehow reading was augmented or controlled. Perhaps a child
was preparing for a test? Something fundamental had changed about
the nature of teaching. Maybe an elementary anthology book? Updated: I found the short
story that I was thinking of - Isaac Asimov's The Fun They Had. A
brother and sister find an actual book - physical paper and all -
and marvel at the novelty of words that don't automatically move
across a screen.http://users.aber.ac.uk/dgc/funtheyhad.htmlI'd still be interested in knowing what elementary-school
anthology contained it, because there were many stories in that
book that influenced me as a child.
Isaac Asimov, The Fun They
Had, 1951. There's
an article about this on Wikipedia that lists some of the books
it has been reprinted in. "It first appeared in a children's
newspaper in 1951 and was reprinted in the February 1954 issue
of The Magazine of Fantasy
and Science Fiction, as well as the collections Earth Is Room Enough (1957),
50 Short Science Fiction Tales
(1960), and The Best of Isaac
Asimov (1973). It has been modified in a Finnish
English book called KEY
English 8-9... It is the most anthologised of all
Asimov's stories and has appeared in many publications outside
of the science fiction genre."
Incidentally,
the requestor might also enjoy another Asimov story, "The
Feeling of Power," which has a premise somewhat comparable to
"The Fun They Had" but involving the future of mathematics
rather than of reading.
Isaac Asimov, The Fun They Had, 1951.
The ISFDB can perhaps help you figure out where you read the
story: http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?58943 lists lots
of anthologies that it's appeared in, including a few that sound
plausible as elementary-school readers.
C786: Classroom (elementary) took place in
broom/janitors closet
Juvenile fiction set in 50s/60s about
5th or 6th graders. Main characters: Henry, Susan, Linda (tallest
girl in the class). Teacher tall, blonde hair in bun. Classroom
was moved to a large janitors closet. Students able to paint the
classroom yellow. book cover yellow, title written on chalkboard
Muehl, Lois Baker, Worst Room in the School,
1961. There are many
more students in school, and the school district and the public
are arguing whether to build a new school or enlarge the old
one.
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