Category Archives: 1970s

357T: Three Interwoven Rings

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Would you please help me find this book?

The main character (could have been a girl) and a father who traveled to far off places or jungles a lot brought home a wooden crate and inside was a seraph. And it was in the attic or the main character played in the attic. Maybe someone was sick or dying in the hospital throughout the book. At the end something about three interconnected or interwoven rings.

I checked it out from a middle school library in the 1980s. It would’ve been a newer looking book at the time. That’s all I can remember.

357P: Schizophrenic Lady M.D.

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Book written in 1950’s, 60’s I think. But remotely possible published as late as 70’s, 80’s.  Autobiography (?) by woman (maybe named “Diane”, not sure…?) who suffered schizophrenia (I think, or some sort of mental illness) and became an M.D. despite this.

Probably a U.S. book, but not sure.  English language, anyway.

357G: The Little Old Lady (Solved!)

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This might actually be in the title of the book. It may have been published in the 70s or before but definitely not later than the early 80s. I believe it was a book of children's poems about an old lady and one of them was "There was an old lady who wanted to ski, she wouldn't take lessons - it's easy said she! She tried and she tried but she just couldn't go. Nobody told her she had to have snow."

357C: 70s Purple Dragon (Solved!)

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I was in elementary school in the 70s and I remember reading what I think was an early chapter book series with a boy and his purple dragon/dinosaur/monster. The illustrations in my memory were very minimalist and had a Quentin Blake feel to them but I’ve researched Quentin Blake’s work and don’t see it listed. The dragon/dinosaur/monster was very tall, definitely purple, and walked on two legs. I have a vivid memory of the boy riding on its shoulders. I don’t remember anything about the plot except they seemed somewhat surreal (maybe?) so I don’t know if the creature was real or imaginary. It’s possible the series was school literature only (not mass market published).

357A: Teens in a mental (?) hospital, one named Bonnie, one called Zero

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This book was probably published in the 70’s. Story of teens in a mental (?) hospital working with a new (?) young doctor trying to connect with them. One character is named Bonnie and she is mute or doesn’t interact with people but likes when the doctor (?) sings “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” so he starts to change the words and sings things like, “My Bonnie Lies Over the Pizza”, etc. Character called Zero was, I think, male, and I think, dies at the end. It was a small paperback size book with a hardcover that I read in the 80’s from my public library. I believe the cover was white.

356W: 1960/70 children’s book with four dolls on cover

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When I was in grade school late 60’s or early 70’s, I used to adore this pink book.  It was hard cover and had 4 girl names on it and a drawn picture of dolls.  Not illustrated, just a sketch.  It had 4 names of the dolls and I think one was like Rosemary.  The title only had those 4 names as much as I can recall.  Don’t remember the story even.  I just remember the hard cover was a bright pink with the 4 names of the dolls.

356S: Unicorn in Tapestry Comes to Life

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I’m looking to find a book from my childhood, and have now been through hundreds of internet pages. Hoping you might have a lead! All I remember really is:

- illustrated color paperback picture book, probably c. Late ‘60s- late ‘90s

- story about a group of siblings moving into or visiting a castle? Maybe just an old house with a tower

- a unicorn from a tapestry comes to life, and he is white with a beard. The children bring him down out of the tapestry.

Things I’m not sure of but seem familiar:

-something about a yellow bedroom

- maybe an illustration with one of the children looking behind the tapestry

Thank you! The Magic Tree house has a story with some similar elements, but that’s not quite it.

356Q: The House Made of Plants Blends Inside with Outside

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Looking for picture book about a house that was made of plants. The outside world merges surrealy with the inside room (resembles art of Jacek Yerka but it's not him). Book was mostly visual and the color of the art was very green. The story takes place at night. There is an old man with white hair in the house. Likely an older book from the 60s or 70s, or at least has the 60s/70s hippie/spiritual vibe. If you find this with just this info you are unto a god, thank you.

356P: Trying to find a novel set in England during World War II (Solved!)

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I have no idea what the title of the book is. The copy I read was a paperback, probably published in the 1970s; I’m thinking it may have been a gothic romance or something of the sort.
What I can remember of the characters:
-Yseult, no idea what her last name was. She loses her memory after being in a bar? cafe? restaurant? in London that gets hit by the Blitz, wakes up in the hospital, sees herself in a mirror and finds out she’s pretty; she can’t remember her name but tells the nurse her name is “Lake”. She goes back to the place where she was when the bomb hit and starts talking to a man there.
-Nicholas Chammerd (possibly “Chamerd”) is the man she talks to; he was there the night of the bombing and had noticed but not spoken to her . They end up moving in together, and getting married. He is in the RAF? Army? some military thing, and goes off and gets killed.
Then she finds out she’s pregnant. She’s coming back to what was their flat one evening, hears a limping set of footsteps behind her, and faints.
-Lake, no idea what his full name was. And “Lake” turned out to be just a nickname, which she’d given him when they were children (or possibly she was a child and he already an adult). Turns out, he’s her first and legitimate husband, who she ran away from the night of the Blitz attack on whatever place she was in on her first night in London. He sees she’s pregnant and, although he knows he can’t be the father, says he’ll bring up the baby as his and brings her back home.
-Leda, Yseult’s stepmother, lives at Lake’s home. She previously tried to seduce him, but he wasn’t interested, so she decided to ruin his life with Yseult. Earlier in their lives together she’d convinced Yseult, who seems to have been a real dope before she met Nicholas and grew up a bit, that it would be funny to string something across the country lane where Lake was riding his horse. He was injured, hence the limping thereafter; I think the horse had to be destroyed too. And Yseult believed it when Leda tells her that Leda previously had an affair with Lake, which is why Yseult runs away.
Other things I remember:
It’s obvious Leda is the bad guy even before Yseult remembers her earlier life, as when she returns there is rationing going on, but somehow Leda always manages to have an elaborate tea, including real butter and eggs in the food. They’re on a farm, or in the countryside anyhow, but most of what’s produced is supposed to go to feed the troops.
Speaking of the troops, I think Nicholas was in the RAF as there’s an airfield nearby and Leda, who likes to surround herself with young men, wants to invite some to tea, and Yseult is afraid someone will recognize her and call her “Mrs. Chammerd”.
There’s a Blitz attack on their home, which leads to Yseult regaining her memory, and during which Leda is killed. Yseult is full of remorse when she realizes how badly she treated Lake at Leda’s instigation earlier on in their lives, and also realizes that she’s always loved him. She also says something about how good it was that Leda died while she was still relatively young and pretty.
It’s also possible the baby is born somewhere along the way – I vaguely recall a discussion about red hair, and how Lake when he was young was redheaded so everyone believes it’s really his baby. Yseult, when she sees herself in the mirror in the hospital, notes that she’s darkhaired; I’m pretty sure Nicholas had red hair.