Category Archives: Unsolved
331N: Colored Triangles on Page Corners
Looking for a children’s picture book, probably mid- to late-1950s or early 1960s. Size of a Golden book, but not that publisher. There were large-ish colored triangles on top corners of each page (maybe bottoms, too). May have had an illustration of a little child dressed up as a cowboy; I seem to remember something about a lasso. Maybe a lasso acted as the frame of a page or pages as well. Bright, cheerful colors.
331M: Deathwatch meets The Most Dangerous Game
I read this YA book in the mid to late 70’s. It is definitely NOT Deathwatch or The Most Dangerous Game but it has similarities to both. A man is being hunted by another man – I think simply because the hunter enjoys it. I’m not sure if the hunted man has any weapons or vehicle. The setting may be Africa or the southwest US. There are a couple of plot twists. The hunted man meets someone who offers to help him, but then it turns out that person also wants to kill him. And then in another twist, maybe that turns out to be a mistaken impression. Or maybe the first guy ends up helping the hunted man because it turns out the second guy is the real bad guy. The question of who he can trust is a big part of the plot.
331L: War Kids Seek Treasure
The book I am trying to identify was written over 60 years ago, and it features a group of children ages five or so through 14, or thereabouts. They have been sent to the country because of the Second World War, and they become convinced there is lost treasure in the vicinity. The only scene I remember takes place in church. The younger kids are shocked and scandalized during the service as the collection basket enters their pew. The eldest, instead of putting a coin in, pulls one out! This is their first real clue. The coin turns out to be a genuine gold doubloon. The eldest boy may have been named Emil. Do you know which book this is?
331K: Sailor Alligator Finds Pirate Treasure
Looking for a book with black and white line art, pre 1990's. An alligator who is a sailor and wears a pea-coat (and maybe a wool hat?) has an adventure and finds a pirate treasure. There are puffins in the story that eat fish, smoke pipes, and wear wool hats.
331J: Kid Sends Re-Inflated Moon Back To Sky
331H: Young Man Travels To Trappist Monastery
I can’t remember the title of a book about a young man who travels to join a Canadian (Trappist??) monastery that eventually has to close because of finances.
331G: Paranormal Handbook For Kids
I am looking for a book that I read when I was about 7. It was probably published in the late 80s to early 90s and was basically a paranormal handbook geared towards kids. I would check it out from the juvenile section of my local library and it featured directions for basic ghost hunting and how to test ESP. It featured Shel Silverstein-like illustrations of kids doing the experiments (you know, that line art style that was so popular in the 80s). It may have had any (or none! how exciting!) of the following words in the title: paranormal, extrasensory perception, ghosts.
331F: Orphan Boy Escapes Evil Relatives And Joins The Circus
My stumper is a children's book, British, circa 1990s. An orphaned boy and his butler escape his evil uncles Caligula and Nero and Aunt Agrippina. Includes joining the circus and visiting a mattress factory. Illustrated throughout.
331E: Red Wagon, Romani Adventure Novel
When I was a young girl in the 70s, there was a chapter book that my mother used to read to me. This book stayed at my great grandmothers home, and we would read it when we visited. It was probably written for young adults. I think it was written before the 30’s or 40’s. All I can remember is the story was about this gypsy girl’s adventures. I remember a picture of a Romani style wagon, and the color red. I loved it, but can’t recall the title or the plot. Please help. I would love to revisit this book.