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322D: Magical Wooden Box (Solved)

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A description of the book, with helpful details:

  • Children’s books, maybe for ages 10 – 13 years old.
  • Red cover (?) with possibly a tree on it
  • Small book, probably less than 200 pages
  • Main character was female (maybe 12ish years old) with a father who gave her a magical wooden box, when she opened it her and her friend were transported to another place (/world.)
  • My foggy memory remembers the two kids standing next to a tree at some point in the other place.
  • The girl finds out her dad has also been to the other place. He may have been a king on the other side or the kids thought he was the bad guy when he jumped through the portal (?)

I’m sorry I can’t recall anything more than this, I’m going off an 11-year-old’s mind over a decade later.

322B: A Sea Princess Riding a Great Dane (Solved)

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Looking for a children’s book we used to get from public library. Dewey number in the 300s/fairy and folk tale section. The story involved a sea king’s daughter and a tea party? The end pages had a black line with color washes drawing of the sea princess (with crown/long wavy hair) riding a Great Dane type dog (with antenna.) Another illustration was an underwater scene with anemone and a glass palace.  We read the book in the mid to late 90s. No idea when it was published. Do not think this was a mermaid tale. The artwork was subtle & lovely, not brash or cartoonish. Do not recall if there were other stories in the book.

322A: Magical Oven Confounds Rude Neighbor Boy (Solved)

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I read this book as a child in the 70’s. A brother and sister’s family moved to a new town. Their obnoxious and rude neighbor boy, I think his name was Jamie, played with them. They didn’t like him but they didn’t know anyone else so the put up with him. They discovered an oven in an old shed on their property. They baked a batch of cookies in it. Jamie selfishly wolfed them down and turned into some king of animal. The oven had magical powers if you ate something that was baked in it. That’s all I remember. I hope someone can help.  Thanks.

321Z: Mother’s Rose Garden?

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I read this book when I was younger and think I had remembered it being this sort of title but considering I haven’t been able to find it I assume I’m wrong. The book is about a boy who is growing up with issues, having incestuous delusions of his mother, and at the same time her dealing with that and also trying to maintain some normalcy in life after her husband dies.
The story jumps with the boy now a young man but finding himself having mental issues and having numerous occasions with women where he becomes very sexually dark and it seems to always end badly. Throughout the story there are dead girls being found and the head of one of the girls is found in his mothers bushes at her house.
I think I remember at the end he accidentally killed the girl he was in love with and then there is a showdown where he falls off a cliff. Some of my memories are a bit blurry. Hope someone can help me figure out the book!

321Y: Vineyard owner outwits the devil (Solved)

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This is a kids’ book in which a boy(?) who lives on an old vineyard (or maybe he is trying to win the vineyard from the devil?) is challenged by the devil to perform several seemingly impossible tasks. One involves trying to untangle grape vines. One involves surrounding something with an egg (the boy uses the yolk to draw around the thing). The boy bests the devil and wins the vineyard (maybe) and the devil is pretty upset.  Also, I am 43 and had this book when I was a kid, so I’d guess that it is at least 35 years old.

 

321V: A Gazing Ball And Balloons (Solved)

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So when I was in 6th grade (1992), I had a wonderful teacher. She pushed us to read and loved books herself. We had a project at the end of the year. I can’t remember if this description I’m about to give you is of 2 books or one. My 11 year old son is an avid reader and I’d love to find this/these books for him.

There was a gazing ball (like a mirrored one) in a garden. It was not scary, maybe some mystery but definitely not scary. Maybe a young girl.

And my other memory is of a hot air balloon. I feel like there were a lot of people on the balloon. It could have been actual balloons and not the hot air version. And I want to say they were on a huge piece of wood not a basket. I’m thinking it may have been an award winning book but I’m not for sure on that either. I have no idea if it is one book or two and this has driven me crazy for years. I’ve looked it up every way I know how.

321U: Boy Finds Christmas Tree

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This story is about a boy who doesn’t have a tree on Christmas Eve. A man is driving around selling them in his truck but mom says they’re too expensive. So he sets out in the woods to cut down his own tree and ends up at a man and woman’s house where people are stealing trees off their property. One the people learn why the boy is out there and they give him a tree and bring him home via sled. I also remember him laying out Christmas lights at the beginning and someone telling him colored lights are not festive.