Okay, ONE more bookish factoid left.
But first, let me just grebble (a word Brian and I used to apply to our godson Colin when he was a baby and would express his displeasure in a particularly burbly toddler-esque way) a bit about my schedule so you won’t all think I’m a total slacker for this gap between posts.
I work for a VC (Venture Capital, not Viet Cong) firm (one that invests in green/sustainable technology/products and is committed to health and wellness, which is kind of cool) and we have our big bi-annual meeting next week. Or series of meetings. This means overtime in order to get done what has to be done every day, as well as prepare for the meetings. I also have my Ravenous Romance and What Women Really Want in Bed deadlines to keep. So…work work work and write write write. Wheeee!!!!
Okay, done grebbling.
I regularly go to the childrens section in the library and check out books I loved as a child and pre-teen. I have a slowly growing collection of books I’ve found on Ebay, used bookstores and, for those reprinted, Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I used to think I’d pass them on to my kid, but I am at the age where I realize the only children I will ever have are furry, four-legged and would rather watch TV (and attack the moving images) than read.
Maud Hart Lovelace. Betsy, Tacy and Tib. Anyone else read those books? Set at the turn of the century in Minnesota, this series followed the adventures of best friends Betsy and Tacy (and in book 2, Tib) and their friends and family from the age of 7 onward. There was much singing around the piano, making of fudge, amateur theatrics and innocent romance. My mom introduced me to these books and were one of the rather unusual things me and Maureen had in common that led to our best friendship and subsequent partnership in MURDER FOR HIRE.
The Space Cat series. There are four of them. Space Cat, Space Cat Visits Mars, Space Cat Visits Venus and Space Cat and the Kittens. I collected all four of them (not easily – they are highly collectible and I was on a budget) and now have them on display in one of my living room bookcases.
The Chronicles of Narnia. We didn’t have Harry Potter back in the day, but we had C.S. Lewis, Aslan, and lots of cool magical, mystical characters and critters.
Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain Series. Loved them. The Black Cauldren was eventually made into a movie.
Henry Winterfield’s Star Girl. The tale of a girl who falls to earth and is befriended by four German children, who help her journey to the meeting point where her father will pick her up. LOVED that book. It costs a friggin’ fortune, but I found a paperback used for an affordable price.
There are so many more… but time to get going on my current Ravenous Romance. I have a kitten stretched out across my arms (he’s drooling on me, actually) and two hours of writing ahead of me. Here I go!
I still have Fantastic Mr Fox & the Narnia books. I loved the Meg & Mog books, Meg was witch and Mog was her cat, I think they are still available. Of course I still have my Dr Zeuss.
Grebbling. I like that. One of those words that sounds like its own meaning. Man I WISH I could remember this one adventure series I loved as a kid. I really can’t remember but I was soooo transported to other worlds by them. Mostly I was a Marvel Comics nut though. I had ALL the Fantastic Four, The Hulk, Spiderman, Iron Man, Daredevil, never missed an issue and had the whole collection well into my late twenties.
I figured that the hiatus in posts was work related (either job or literary). I hoped you weren’t sick. Glad to hear it was the former. Thanks for sharing your childhood reading with us. I wish the world was as uncomplicated as we thought it was then. Well…we still survived.
I love the Narnia books, and Susan Cooper’s Dark is Rising series. Joyce Ballou Gregorian was another favorite that I still read again when I can find them at the library. Pretty sure I read the Prydain series too, but I haven’t picked it up again yet… Oh, and L’Engle’s books.
I never read the Meg and Mog books, Adele! I’ll have to check those out!
heh, MM, I love words that sound like what they mean!
Jack, I get nostalgic for times past too. I think every generation goes through this. Funny ’cause the Betsy/Tacy books make me nolstagic for times I never lived in!
Sheina, I can’t believe I forgot to mention the Susan Cooper series! I LOVE those books! The L’Engle’s too. My favorite, for some weird reason, was MEET THE AUSTINS.