Category Archives: 1990s-

362K: Mysterious Buckle Leads to School Bus Crash

I am looking for a YA book about a girl that has a horse with a mysterious silver buckle or medal that she puts on her horse. When she touches the buckle, she can make a wish. One of the wishes she makes causes a school bus crash. The buckle is linked somehow to a dark force that ends up appearing at the end of the book. It’s a pretty dark book. I’m thinking late 1980’s or very early 1990’s.

362H: Friends in College in England Mystery Book

In about 2006 I read and very much enjoyed a book about a group of friends at university in England (Oxford? Cambridge? Not sure). I remember a lot about the book but cannot remember the author or title. I’ve been scouring the internet which is where I found you. Please help!

There are four main characters: Brother, Sister (possibly named Maggie), Sister’s boyfriend (these three are British), and one American girl.

The book starts with the American character planning for a party to which Brother is invited. The American character is pregnant. The other characters are not invited. The rest of the book is the backstory about what happened between these four people at university.

The Sister and American girl meet at university. The American girl thinks the sister is really cool. The Brother really likes the American girl, but it’s unrequited. She has a strained relationship with her family including a family member who calls and reports her so that she gets strip searched by the airport security agents on her way back to the states for Christmas (or something like that). The security agent that searches her makes a comment about her breasts looking like fried eggs.

Somehow the Sister dies. Car accident?

The Brother despises the Sister’s boyfriend. And years later when sister’s boyfriend appears on some type of reality show where the citizens of England can call in and vote for their favorite contestant, he spends his entire lunch break every day calling in to vote for the opponent so he doesn’t win the reality show.

Brother and American girl see each other at the party. He has a terrible new haircut and it’s awkward seeing each other because of all the history between them including sister’s death.

Ok – please help me get this out of my brain! Thank you in advance!

362G: Christmas Board Book with Little Lights and Music

I have been searching for this book for years with no luck. It is a LONG LONG SHOT probably impossible 😫 but hopefully someone may know or may have had it too as a child.

I had a children’s Christmas book around 1993- 1996 that came from the The Book People (or a very similar company) that came to my mums work place. It was a large book between A3 maybe even A2 size, it had little coloured lights that came through tiny holes onto each page that flashed and it played music when you pressed a button. The button was within the page.

It wasn’t an old fashioned looking book. I unfortunately don’t remember the front cover picture (if I saw it I think I would!!) but I do remember one page had a large snowy scene with Father Christmas flying on his sleigh. It was a thick board book. I know this is not a lot to go on but I loved this book so much and would love to find it again for my children 🤞🏼

Summary:

– Large Christmas board book A3/A2 size
– From The Book People or similar book club company (UK)
– Around 1993 – 1996 time
– It had little multicoloured lights that flashed. They were on the back page but came through tiny holes onto each page.
– There was a button which you pressed and it played a tune.

362D: Appalachian Storm (Solved!)

I’m looking for a beautifully illustrated children’s book, I *think* was called ‘Come a Flood’. It was set in I believe, the Appalachian mountains, and was written in that vernacular, about a coming rainstorm, that the grandma was forecasting, from the perspective of the damage it would cause to their farm, and the “holler”. Oddly, it was funny, and very cute, and neither of those qualities would come through, minus the illustrations. I came across the book in the early 2000’s, and feel in love, but couldn’t buy it, then – and haven’t seen it, since. I don’t know if it was a first edition, or a reprint.

I sincerely hope you can help me find it, so I’ll be able to read it to my grandchildren, someday…
Thank you!

361Y: Emily’s Animals Join the Family

Children’s picture book (title unknown) involving a blonde girl who brings home a menagerie of animals to live with her and her family. The animals were the basic variety e.g. dog, cat, bird, horse, etc. . . The illustrations I would describe as whimsical. The little girl’s name might have been Emily (asked a family member what they remembered, and they thought this but obviously could be wrong). The book was read between 2003-2007, it could have been published around or before this time. I’m located in Edmonton, Alberta so the book was at least likely published in North America. So far books that I can confirm aren’t it: Emily’s house, Tierparadies Emily & Co, Thanks for telling me, Emily

 

361Q: Pig Not as Knowledgeable About Human Objects as He Appears (Solved!)

I’m looking for a book that I can’t remember the title, author, or illustrator of. I believe it was a collection of children’s stories with different contributors. I know for sure that one of the stories involved a group of animals finding a pencil. They’re all very confused by the pencil, so they take it to their friend the pig, who they believe is very knowledgeable about human matters because he wears a suit jacket and maybe a hat. But he puts the pencil on his snout, and is eventually corrected about the true use of the pencil by another animal who writes with it instead.
This collection or another in the series may have also involved two animal friends meeting for lunch, and one of the animals having a robot that serves them lunch. The robot malfunctions and keeps saying “More lunch!” and serving food that they can’t eat.
If I had to guess, I’d say it was published probably somewhere between 1980-2000.

361O: Underwater explorers meet advanced dolphin society (Solved!)

This was a children’s fantasy book from the 1990s for older children about a group of human explorers on a submarine or other exploring vehicle who become wrecked in underwater caverns with lush vegetation and waterfalls which are inhabited by an advanced society of intelligent dolphin people with three fingered hands instead of flippers. In one memorable scene, a dolphin doctor works with octopi on his hands to perform a delicate medical procedure. It had a bit of a “Journey to the Center of the Earth” vibe and plotline. The cover of the book had an image of people and dolphins against a lush jungle and water backdrop, maybe with a submarine on it too.

This was a wide format, 30-50 page hardcover children’s fantasy book illustrated with full-page and full-color realistic style acrylic or oil paintings. The book was in the exact same dimensions, thickness, and rectangular format as the original hardcover Dinotopia books, and purchased around the same time in the 1990s. However, it does not appear to be by Dinotopia author James Gurney – instead someone else creating a book in the same style and perhaps for the original publisher, Turner Publishing?

Edit: Oh gosh, with a bit more sleuthing I actually solved this one myself! In case anyone else ever asks, the solution was The Secret Oceans by Betty Ballantine, as noted in the description “in the tradition of Dinotopia”

361K: Four Girls at the Beach

Looking for a book about 4 girls spending summer at beach, they each have different color tote bags, one swims in the sound and I think almost drowns, one bakes muffins with granulated sugar on top. I think it was published between 2000-2010, it’s a middle school/YA book with chapters.
 
I have tried to find it everywhere. It’s not a Sarah Dessen novel, but I’m pretty sure the author is a woman. I want to say it’s between 150-200 pages, but I could be off. It’s been a while since I read it. I really appreciate your all’s help!

361I: Colorful Girl Spooks Monsters in Haunted House

I wonder if you can help me find a book!

Here’s what I can recall:
– A children’s book with a cover that, I believe, featured a pretty girl in a bright pink dress, cool 60’s cat-eye sunglasses, and perhaps a head scarf to cover her blond hair, driving a convertible into what looks like a dark tunnel in a mountain.
– I want to say the main character’s name is Lydia but I’m not certain
– She ends up in a dark, spooky house and freaks out the people? monsters? living there because of all of her bright colors
– She doesn’t seem scared of any of the spooky details, and she tries to turn their house into a nicer place with bright colors
– It’s not a spooky book, it’s silly and light, probably designed for readers in the 6-10 years age range?
– Based on the way she was dressed I’d say it was set in the late-60s but can’t be sure that that’s when it was written. The colors felt more 80s or 90s to me (lots of hot pinks and neon greens).

361E: Boy lives in lighthouse, has AI companion, fights elemental monsters (Solved!)

This is a children’s series
Boy lives in lighthouse with an AI companion who designs all-terrain ships/vehicles. Boy uses advanced technology mods to fight elemental monsters. There was a secret base underneath, and the main character fights elemental monsters that occur beyond the borders of human habitation. the areas are separated into the prime elements such as water, earth, air and fire along with mixed elements such as mud and lava.
My son was reading this at school in 2010/2011 and waiting for new publications at this time. He has confirmed that it is not ’The Edge’ series or ‘Monsters of the Earth’.