Category Archives: Unsolved

295T: Too Awake-Too Asleep Picture Book

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I’m trying to find a children’s book, likely from the 1950s, about the size of and with illustrations similar to a Little Golden Book. It includes two complementary stories, each beginning at one of the covers. The first reads toward the middle of the book. Turned over, the book includes a second story that reads to the middle of the book. The stories are small morality tale, one of a boy or girl (I can’t remember which) who refuses to go to sleep and is allowed to discover how boring the house is when its quiet at night. The other story is of a girl (or boy?) who doesn’t want to get up in the morning and is allowed to sleep and find out what goes on while he/she sleeps through the day. In both cases, these tales are part of a strategy to get each child to wake up or to go to sleep. The illustrations are similar in style to those of Little Golden Books.

295S: The Holy Island of Lindisfarne

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I’m looking for a children’s or YA novel about St. Cuthbert, the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, some children, and possibly a selkie (mythological creature). The story, as I remember, was somewhat mystical and had to do with St. Cuthbert. I would have read it in the late1960s— it’s not The Wind Eye by Robert Westell (1977), which was published too late to have been the book I read. I remember the cover being illustrated in shades of gray and white. It may have shown some birds flying around the island, which has a distinctively shaped profile.

295R: Sandy

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This book is titled “Sandy” or “Sandie” I believe.   It’s a story (real-life) written by a doctor about the death from his wife, Sandy (born as Alexandra) from cancer.  I think she must have died in about 1967 or 1968.  She had a 3 year old son called Alexander.     I read the book sometime between 1978-1982 when I was younger.   I’ve always wondered if I could find a copy of it and all my research has come up with nothing.   It’s possible I have some of the details wrong.  I got the book out of the Rochester, NY Public Library at the time.  It was in hard-cover.  I am sure that it was published by a “reputable” publisher.   I have searched for “cancer narratives” to no avail.

295P: Castaway Kid

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I read this children’s book as a boy in 5th grade (1953-54), age 9 or 10. It was dreamy & (to me) “romantic,” an adventure, I think, and involved being marooned on an island or shore. Submarine may have been involved. Cover picture showed view toward the sea through a break in the tropical vegetation, from what seemed like a hiding place.

295O: Camille, nicknamed Millie

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Juvenile historical fiction from the 1980s (probably) about a girl named Camille, nick-named Millie, who moves with her father into a house with her aunt, uncle, and two girl cousins. The book takes place in New York State or New England in 19th century. There are scenes of a fire with a bucket brigade and ice skating on a frozen pond. I feel like the author’s name started with a D. The book was probably less than 100 pages, and almost square in form. I checked it out from the school library.

295L: Don’t trust Girl B

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There was a book that I read in the early 1970s about a girl (A) whose family took in another girl (B), I can’t remember why. Girl B turned out to have powers that she used against Girl A. I remember two scenes. Girl A was going to the prom or a big dance with her boyfriend and was going to make her own dress. Girl B “made” Girl A buy a pattern and color for a dress that was unbecoming to Girl A. Also, Girl B “made” Girl A sick right before the dance so Girl B went with Girl A’s boyfriend. I don’t remember how Girl A got rid of Girl B, but the book ends with Girl A saying whenever she reads a story in the newspaper about a wife dying, or an accident with 3 people where the woman dies, that she wonders if it is Girl B is still out there up to her old tricks.

295K: Adventures in Sweets

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I am desperately seeking some help to find a childhood book.

The book was read by my wife who was born in 1974 and was read before 1990. It was about a travelling salesman who sold sweets and each sweet took you on a different adventure.

Fingers crossed you are able to find this!

295J: He tries to introduce her to the skeleton

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Please help me find a childhood book probably written in the late 50s 60s or early 70s. Similar to The Secret Garden, it was a weird tale of a boy named, I believe, Micah who gets lost in the woods and he’s gone for such a long time he has to learn to survive eventually he finds an old moss covered skeleton that he befriends similar to that movie “Castaway ” where Tom Hanks befriends a basketball. Anyways, the boy is all alone. I think he builds some sort a little hut and learned to survive on his own. I think, he’s about 12 or so and eventually someone finds him like a little girl or something and he tries to introduce her to the skeleton and she freaks out and runs away so the boy’s left alone again in the forest with his skeleton friend and I don’t remember the dénouement but it’s kind of sad. Eerie yet beautifully written and haunting tale. It wasn’t very long but I think I was about 10 when I read it and it transfixed me.