Category Archives: Anthology

319A: Aeronautical Adventures

2 Replies

1930s or 1940s adventure books (of short stories) for boys featuring airplanes.  I remember a story that featured a crew of men attempting a record breaking non-stop (transcontinental? Transatlantic?) flight, in a 3 engine plane that could be refueled midair.  I remember a scene where one engine was shut down for in flight maintenance. 

One story featured two pilots flying an old biplane in a barnstorming content that was won because the co-pilot dumped itching powder down his partner's back.  Another featured WWII aircrew captured by Germans and they manage to escape and steal a German plane equipped with skis for the snow.  These books had belonged to my father, and were probably given to him by his uncle, who was a pilot.

318Y: He Fell Down In The Mud

Leave a reply

Greetings!  My “bookstumper” originates from a story my grandmother read to my brother and me in the 60s.  I don’t know how old the story is; I think the story might have been in an anthology of short stories.  The operative phrase is “I fell down in the mud.”  It could even be a bit of a poem, as I remember a dialogue between seemingly mother and son, as the mother rages on how could the boy have done this, how could he have gotten his clothes so dirty, etc.  After each of these Mom rages, the boy simply says, “I fell down in the mud.”  My brother and I have not been able to find hide nor hair of this on Google and other search engines.

318T: A Runaway Train and a Human Cannonball, Plus More

Leave a reply
The book is a collection of short stories, documentaries, and possibly some poetry and such.  I remember stories about a runaway train, a human cannonball and possibly some sort of road trip.  I think there was a board game printed in the middle of the book that related to one of the other stories.  There were black and white photographs of the human cannonball performers, and they talked about knowing lots of languages and sometimes switching languages mid sentence.  I remember it having a blue cover but that may not be very applicable.
I know it was published before 1980 and probably before 1970 or possibly even in the 60s.

318A: A Princess on a Hill at Sunset

Leave a reply

In the late 1960’s a friend gave me a fairy tale book that she owned.  I LOVED IT!!!  It was a plastic coated hardcover, perhaps 8×10 (it was a larger book) with various scenes (in color) depicting the stories inside.  One cover picture that I vividly remember was a princess on a glass hill at sunset.  In the body of the book were a lot of drawings (black and white from what I remember).  I think there was a knight in armor on the cover, but I could be mistaken.  I also think there were pictures on the front and back cover.  I LOVED the interior pictures and traced many.  Stories that MAY have been inside were one about “Roland”, definitely princess on the hill story.

I kept the book for years, but thinking that I would not have children to share the book with, I gave it to my stepdaughter, who promptly lost it.  (I love her a ton, but of course she didn’t value the book as much as I did – reading material is a hugely personal preference).

I did read fairy tales to my daughters, but I would love to have this book to share for possible grandchildren.

 

317Z: My First Book of Poetry

Leave a reply

I received a poetry anthology of about 20 children’s poems titled something like “My First Book of Poetry” in the 1960s. It had one poem per page and simple black ink drawings. Some of the poems included: “The Fog” by Robert Frost, “Alexander Beetle,” by A. A. Milne, “The Spider and the Fly,” by Mary Howitt, “The Neighbor” (?) by Edna St. Vincent Millay and “Poor Tired Tim” by Walter de la Mare. I lost the book in moving and have not been able to relocate it for years. Any help would be much appreciated.

316H: The mer-folk take over the island

1 Reply

I am looking for a short story that I read a few years ago about an island that belongs to the mer-folk/ sea beings. The island lies off a coastal town who connect it to the mainland via jetty/pier and build a dance hall on it. The mer-folk throw up a huge storm on a dance night and separate the island from the mainland once again. They claim back their island. There was good description of the storm and its effect on the dancers I think. I read it in a compilation of spooky stories but I have never found it since. I would love to read it again.

314E: She Recalls the Word “Willow”

Leave a reply
I am looking for a children’s book.
This book was published around 1959-1960 give or take a year or two. It had a medium blue hard cover and was approximately 8 x 6 and 100 pages give or take some.
It had many short stories and poems. The illustrations were primarily black ink and the drawings remind me of Irene Haas illustrations. This book may have been part of a Harper and Brothers adult book club selection because I have another book my mother had from this club and it is titled “The Day Christ Was Born” By Jim Bishop. She said the children’s book was offered as a special selection. My sister recalls the word “Willow” she thought maybe that may have been in the title of the book or possibly a title to one of the stories. I have been looking for this book for quite a few years and any help would be appreciated.

314B: Mer-Folk and a Stormy on Dance Night

4 Replies

The short story I am looking for was from a compilation of stories, probably a compilation of spooky stories. Not sure whether it was set in the United States or the United Kingdom. I think it was the UK.  I read it a few years ago; it was about an island that belongs to the mer-folk/ sea beings. The island lies off a coastal town which connect to the mainland via jetty/pier and build a dancehall on it. The mer-folk throw up a huge storm on a dance night and separate the island from the mainland once again. They claim back their island. There was good description of the storm and its effect on the dancers I think. I would love to read it again.

313U: Mer-folk and a Stormy Dance Night

1 Reply

The short story I am looking for was from a compilation of stories, probably a compilation of spooky stories. Not sure whether it was set in the United States or the United Kingdom. I think it was the UK.  I read it a few years ago; it was about an island that belongs to the mer-folk/ sea beings. The island lies off a coastal town which connect to the mainland via jetty/pier and build a dancehall on it. The mer-folk throw up a huge storm on a dance night and separate the island from the mainland once again. They claim back their island. There was good description of the storm and its effect on the dancers I think. I would love to read it again.

313K: Stories From Around the World (Solved!)

3 Replies

The book I’m looking for was stories for older aged kids than the grade school library I found it in (our librarian wanted to encourage us). The book had a red hardcover, about 16″ x 8″ and was about 2″ thick. It had an illustration from the first story, I think, on the cover. The only story I remember the title for is The Twelve Princesses. It had stories from Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and probably more. When us grade schoolers got on the bus with it the older kids tried to borrow it! It was quite a read and some bits of the story lines were, the stairs to heaven with a trapdoor on one of the ends (Japanese), and the man who escaped a pond/water which he had to pass by putting a shell to his ear which had been filled with a love song by his beloved (Malaysia, I think). I wish I had more specifics.