Category Archives: MG (grades 2-6)

347U: Girl Sent to Live with Her Father Who Is a Pilot (Solved!)

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I have been trying for years to remember the title of a book I read in the late 1960s or early 1970s when I was somewhere between third and fifth grade, I think.
Details I can remember: A young girl is sent to live with her father despite her not knowing him well. Over time, though, they develop a warm relationship. The father is a pilot and I believe the story takes place on a military base where the father lives. I may be mistaken but the base could be in Hawaii. I also remember that a Japanese man works at the house, maybe as a butler.
If you could possibly tell me what the title of this book is, I would be beyond grateful.
Thank you so much!

347R: Kids hunt for a treasure at a lake only to find it’s confederate money (Solved!)

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I read the book in grade school in the early 80's.

I remember it’s a mystery book where kids visiting a lake look for a treasure.  In the end, the treasure turns out to be worthless confederate money.  One scene I remember vividly:  The boy is tricked by the girl to swim to the bottom of the lake with his snorkel and look up.  She claims it’s a beautiful view.  When he does so, the protective valve on the snorkel opens and water floods into his mouth.

I also seem to recall a dragon on the lake at night, but it’s made of paper and burns up from the candles used to illuminate it.  It is possible, however, that this memory might be from another book…

347K: Chapter book with some illustrations about a possessed plush Easter rabbit, with a human agoraphobic girl as the main character, possibly part of a holiday themed horror series? (Solved!)

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The book is a chapter book, probably about elementary school reading level? Along the lines of goosebumps. I think I remember black and white illustrations scattered throughout the book, but not more than four or five I think. I remember some of the details pretty vividly because it was a very weird book, but I can’t remember the name and google searches for it just sort of turn into word salad.
 The main character is a girl who expresses a fear of almost everything (I remember that alien abduction is specifically mentioned as a reason she doesn’t want to go outside?). Her name was Katie or Emma or some other names that can have a lot of different nicknames. Her family goes to a mall where a mysterious/creepy Easter Bunny mascot gives her younger brother a plush Easter bunny, which he loves and she despises. The girl begins to hear “thumping” in the hallway and finds the plush in odd places, leading her to believe that the plush is alive and malevolent. Unrelated to the rabbit, there is a scene where she participates in a class play about the myth of Hades and Persephone and hallucinates that she sees the myth occurring out the window of the classroom.
The back half of the book is fuzzier for me. On Easter night (or the night before?), her brother goes missing (presumably kidnapped by the plush) and she has to go down a rabbit hole in her backyard(?) to follow the plush rabbit and save her brother. Somewhere along the way she finds a table setting with name cards that are all variations of her name, but none of them are the nickname she prefers and I think it’s probably symbolic of something? At some point in this journey she ends up on the moon. I think she has to make a declaration about how she will be brave and face her fears in order for the bunny/the universe (???) to give her brother back to her? I think the lesson learned was that you shouldn’t be scared of the unknown.
The blurb on the back of the book seemed to give me the impression that it was part of a holiday themed children’s horror series, but I don’t recall ever seeing anything that looked like it was from the same series

347D: Cruel Soot Turns Good

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Hello all. I’ve been racking my brain for years over this one and I need some help. I remember my first grade teacher reading this kids’ chapter book to us in increments during class in the mid-90s, but I can’t recall many of the details. It’s bugged me to death for years.

Here’s what I can remember: The protagonist is female, probably an older kid or teenager. The book is written in third person and in English. The setting was a fantasy pre-modern city or town. Could be Victorian-esque, but maybe earlier or later. The villain is a cruel, miserable guy named (or nicknamed) Soot who wears all black and is feared throughout the area. I think he drives some kind of carriage or wagon but I’m not sure. The story opens with a king taking his last breath and then dying. The story ends with Soot turning good and joining the heroes in some kind of magic they’ve learned, and the protagonist falls asleep listening to their incantations. I think said incantations involve groups of three unrelated words, and the very last one mentioned was “dictionary”. The most frequently suggested titles, Awful Auntie and Keys to the Kingdom, are not the ones. I know this isn’t much to go on, but anyone who manages to put this to rest will have my gratitude.

346N: Old TV’s with many antennae that float!

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I’m looking for a children’s/preteen’s chapter(?) book which was some in a similar black and white, hand drawn art style to Shel Silverstein. It had the same white pages with black words and drawings, but more detailed. And more words. It was not by him though, I checked. I was reminded of this book by a picture I will include below. In the book, however, I believe they were older thick TVs with antennas sticking out in a similar way to the picture. They floated and I believe they were some sort of antagonist or tools used by them. I think I remember little creatures (goblins?) and/or children in the book as well. There was also a lot of junk and trash and piles of books on some pages. Maybe also some strange wildlife scenes like they were in an alien/fantasy planet? I know it definitely did not take place in the real word. Fear was a large element in the book, I believe it was mildly dark/adventure focused, not for very small children. I hope this is enough information, I have a burning desire to know what this book is because it seems so interesting!

346L: NYC girl and cat go to ancient Egypt

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Read in 1973-1978, for elementary school readers, minimal illustrations. A girl from the Upper West Side (i think) has a stepmother who she is in conflict with, and a cat who she loves. Somehow she and the cat are transported to ancient Egypt where cats are venerated, and maybe her cat is even Bastet. Someone in ancient Egypt also represents the present-day stepmother. Girl returns and the resolution with the stepmother is refreshingly NOT fantasy-perfect.

345V: Elementary school reader – Pigs trying to sell their house

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Hi! I'm trying to find a school book from the late '60's or very early 70's. Probably a second grade reader but I'm not certain. It has multiple stories and the one I remember is about a married couple of pigs trying to sell their house. Each animal that comes to look at it suggests something they would like changed about the house. The pigs change each thing and by the end of the story they don't want to sell their house anymore. Does anyone remember this book? It was read with the classic Dick and Jane books for sure.

345J: Young Girl Decries Dangers of Reading When Chased by a Bull

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Read this book when I was around 8, which puts it at 1960.  I am sure it was not new at that time.

Written by someone like Thurber or Ogden Nash, it was a collection of children’s short stories.  The only one that I can remember clearly was about a little girl who couldn’t read. At the end, when she is being chased by a bull, she comes to the conclusion that reading (words?) are dangerous.  The sign she couldn’t read said something  like, ‘beware of  bull.’

Hoping you can help me.

345G: “A place…” book for a Brit (Solved!)

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I am in desperate search of a book for my dear British friend. She grew up in Suffolk, England, born in 1958, and remembers a book she used to pour over as a girl:
Possible title: A Place of Your Own
Contents: pictures and descriptions of homes, rooms, treehouses and places where children (and maybe young adults) escape to be kids
Publication Dates: at least published by 1972
Location: read in Suffolk, England

345D: Search for children’s book vaguely remembered – White Girl Joins African Tribe

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I am looking for a juvenile book I vaguely remember. I can remember the library I borrowed it from and the exact look of that library, but not the book title, author, or clear details!  My only memories of the book are: 
 
I believe it was a story about a white (American? British?) girl who somehow passes through (a mirror? a book?) into the life of an African tribal people. After becoming friends with (another child? the tribe?) she regrettably has to return to her modern life through the same (magic?) process she used getting there. I believe the friend/tribe give her a string of beads to remember them by (?).  The book would have been been appropriate reading for probably pre-puberty ages – 10-14? 
 
That’s all the info I have, and I hope you are NOT stumped! This book has always stayed in my mind, no matter how vague my memory is, and I want to read it again to find out why.