The book is about a family living on a ranch/farm in the American West, sometime between 1970 and 2000. I remember three key details about the book:
A. The families father was killed by a bull during a rodeo. He was gored to death.
B. At one point in the book, a member of the family is in the hospital with a boy who lost his leg to a lawnmower accident. His siblings visit in the hospital and say they are not allowed anywhere near the lawnmower. The boy is in the hospital to get a larger prosthetic leg attached.
C. The children live on a ranch/farm and often play in a pasture near the house. They go there to hide at one point, but I do not remember why.
I’m looking for a YA book about boy in SC during the American Revolution. He blows up a British wagon at one point. Read this in late 60’s- early 70’s. Thanks!
Have little to go on. Believe purchased via Scholastic Book Club or at Scholastic Book Fair between 1977 and 1981; a short-read, 1–2” children’s novel; think it’s published by Scholastic; it might be a supernatural or science fiction thriller; white paperback with cover art, possibly with kids and a Ferris wheel; main characters are kids, with the climactic eventat a carnival with a Ferris wheel with swinging lights?
A children’s book from the 70’s about ‘big cat’ (e. g. , panther, lion) superheroes. They were people, but had cat-like powers or turned into various big cats when needed.
The book I’m looking for was published 1970s-1980s. It takes place in the country, and horses figure prominently. The plot is that a 17-18 year old girl is in love with a slightly older man. They live on farms near each other. His family is wealthy and raises prize horses. Her name is Ellen, his is john Waters or Watson. She keeps coming by to watch him train horses, and eventually they have relations. After she tells him she’s pregnant, he goes away on business. Meanwhile his family’s prize horse is stolen, and vanishes. While Ellen waits for John to return, her pregnancy advances. At the end of the story, she goes for a walk, and by chance discovers the stable where the prize horse is hidden. She goes into labor, and barely makes it into the stable before she passes out. When she comes to, her baby boy is wrapped in a flannel shirt. John is there, and finally admits the baby is his. I know this is a weird plot line, but can you help me remember the title? I’d love to have it if I could find it because it was a coming of age story for me.
Mother is busy, She’s making a pie. But we do the farm work, My dad and I. Together, together, We scatter the seeds, We shear the sheep, We pull the weeds. We milk the cows, We pet the goats, We fix the fence, We cut the oats . . . Hand in hand along with Dad, Around the farm with my dog Lad.
Winter, springtime, summer, fall, Ours is the nicest farm of all. But sometimes I wonder what I will be When I am as old as – twenty-three! I think of this, I think of that, Till there I am in a trim gray hat . . .
I’m a mailman! Tramp tramp tramp I walk for blocks, And I put Something Special in everyone’s box! Woof, woof, say the dogs As I walk through their yards, But on I go, carrying Letters and cards. Then after I’ve brought Everybody some mail, I pick up a hammer And drive in a nail – Wham! And there I am . . .
I’m a carpenter! Bang goes my hammer, I’m nailing down floors And putting in windows And hanging up doors. Zing goes my saw And I never stop Till I’ve built a fine house With a red roof on top. Then I pack up my hammer, I say, “Toodle-oo!” And quick as a wink, There I am . . . at the zoo!
I’m a zoo-keeper, see, With a broom, and a key. I’m walking the camels And feeding the bears, I’m stoking the lions And sweeping their lairs. I’m teaching the monkeys And training the seals. I’m giving the hippos E-NOR-MOUS big meals! Now evening is coming, the zoo has to close . . .
Presto and Change-o! I wear a red nose . . . Now I’m a clown With a painted-up face. I’m tumbling and jumping All over the place. My clown suit is baggy (It’s puffed up with air!). I wave to the children I see everywhere. See my duck in his bib? See my dog in his bow? See my string of balloons, And my nose all aglow? But all of a sudden I catch on a hook, And everyone shouts to me, “Look, mister, look!” Bang goes my clown suit- A Shoosh! Then a pop! . . .
Then I hold up my hand And the traffic must stop! For I’m a policeman At Walnut and Main. Are you looking for Somewhere? I’ll stop to explain. Now, go, Jim and Johnny. Go, Kathy and Joan. Stop, Little Puppy, Out walking alone! Then all of a sudden My day’s work is done, So I find me a horse (With a saddle, of course!) And I strap on my gun. . . .
Now I’m a cowboy, a-riding along, A-jingling my spurs and a-singing my song. Across the Great Prairie I ride far and near To round up the cattle and rope a wild steer. Then I tie up my horse (and I feed him, of course!).
Yippi-yi! Now I’m going. . . . I jump in a boat, And away I go rowing. Now I’m a fisherman Out on the sea, Where there’s nothing but water And fishes – and me! Riding a wave I see something afloat. It’s a whale come to visit- He’s rocking my boat! Then whoosh! comes a wave, And it gives me a smack . . .
And I call to my daddy, “Hello there, Im back!” “Just in time for a snack,” Says my daddy. And then . . . Off we go again! Together, together,
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I have a PDF with some scans of an illustrated children’s poem from my mother’s childhood [see below]. Sadly, the cover and title pages were lost long ago. The scan does not contain all of the pages. I am attaching the scans as well as a transcript of the text. It is an illustrated poem about a boy on a farm who likes to daydream about different jobs, such as a zookeeper, clown, policeman, etc. My mom read this book as a child around the mid-late 1960s / early 1970s. I suspect (but cannot prove) this story may have some link to Western Publishing. (Western publishing was based out of Racine, Wisconsin and my family is from southeast Wisconsin.) We would love to figure out the title, author, and/or illustrator of this book! I have reached out to various forums and the Library of Congress but no luck so far. I really appreciate the opportunity to ask the Stump the Bookseller community! If there is anything I need to do to correct of enhance my submission, please do not hesitate to let me know!
I read this children’s book in the 1970s, but the book could have been older than that. A girl gets a unicorn horn from somewhere (possibly an antique store or a relative), and whenever she holds it, figures of speech become literal. I remember being freaked out by a woman whose tongue literally began flapping at both ends. This may have been only one of several magical things that happened to the girl over the course of the book, but it’s the only one I remember.
Only thing I remember it was a female protagonist, she had a dagger that had to have blood, it would force her to kill someone or cut herself. There were butterflies that were actually demons. I”m pretty sure it was from the early 80’s or late 70’s. Hopefully you’ll be able to help me with this. Thanks.
In fourth grade, in 1970, our teacher read us a chapter book about a girl in a concentration or refugee camp or impoverished village. I remember descriptions of the harsh conditions and an episode where she knit a sweater for a woman in exchange for a cow. The sweater didn’t fit because the woman gained weight from drinking the milk and the girl had to redo the sweater. Would love to know this book!
I am looking for a library book from my childhood. The book is from the 1970s or very early 1980s, and focuses on a little boy named Ben. In the story, Ben’s mom goes on a business trip, leaving Ben and dad at home for a few days. They get off to a rough start with dad being late to pick up Ben from school and some other minor mishaps, but things improve before mom gets home. The entire book is illustrated with black and white photographs of what could be a real family – mom, dad, and son Ben. There are no drawn illustrations, just photographs. I believe there were also one or two more “Ben” books- maybe it was a small series- but the one I remember most centers on Ben’s experience while mom is on work travel.
