Category Archives: YA (grades 7-9)

323R: Teen Girl Loves Horse But Cannot Ride After Accident

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Ya fiction series with a horse, rich girl has an accident and can't ride. Her rich grandmother buys her a brand new Datsun (car), so she's at least 16 or 17, set in the 70s or 80s, published during that period. I think she was nasty to a few girls and tries to make up for it after the accident. I think she may have been in a coma. Her boyfriend might have cheated as well. I think it had a yellow cover with the old style oval centre that contained the image. I think she had a rich sounding name, Courtney or something but I'm not 100% on that. The horse accident was bad and she desperately loved her horse but was too afraid to ride it. I read this series in the late 80s, early 90s, but my sister threw them out before I could finish them. I never forgave my sister, who dares throw out a book? The books were paperback, they had maybe 100 to 150 pages, so not very thick. From the content, I think they were targeted towards ages 16 and up. I think the girl went to college as well. Her grandmother was some type of business woman.

323L: Mermaid short story/book of ironic stories

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I believe there was a YA book of ironic stories that I read between 1979-1983. Story I’m looking for: A teenage boy discovers a mermaid living in a pond at the bottom of a quarry. She never breaks the surface of the water, but looks beautiful underneath it. The quarry will soon be dynamited and caved in, so he decides to save her and move her to another pond. When he does capture her, with much difficulty, she is a hideous monster (the water had distorted her features) that nearly kills him. He lets her stay in the pond. The next day the quarry is dynamited and she is buried under the rubble. Have asked for years on every search site I could find. Please help! Thank you!

323J: Children search for Victorian explorer father

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Looking for a YA book published 2008-2015-ish.  It is a kind of steampunk-y story about some children whose father has disappeared. He’s a Victorian-ish explorer and there are still vast expanses to be explored. The kids follow some clues and find a hidden world…maybe in a cave? I think the father was part of some sort of explorer’s society, too.

323G: Late Bloomer Finally Dates (Solved)

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Young Adult book on library shelves in late ’60’s early ’70’s.  Has an old-fashioned feel.  Girl (first name starts with an M?) is slightly awkward, gets to date a boy she likes.  She overhears girls mocking her for wearing too much face powder.  Her yearbook quote was, “her voice was ever soft, gentle and low, an excellent thing in a woman”.  Good ending.

323F: Cassandra’s Star? Julie’s Star? (Solved)

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Looking for a Young Adult book on library shelves in the late ’60’s or early ’70’s.  Julie wants to go steady, but her mother (Cassandra) does not think that she is ready.  Set in a part of the country where there is snow.  Julie is a cheerleader.  Somebody tightens the fit of the uniform sweater and gets in trouble.  Julie wants to wear her mother’s star-shaped brooch.  At the end, Julie gets to go steady and wears the brooch.

322U: Girl Befriended By Ghost Boy

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Hello, I’m looking for a children’s book, or possibly young adult book, about a male ghost. It is a chapter book. I was born in 1973, and I am guessing I read this book between the ages of 8 and 12. The main character was a girl, and a male ghost befriends her. I *think* this happens after she moves to a new area, and I feel like her family becomes concerned about her. This is all that I remember.

322R: Poor Girl Helps Former Affluent Girl Find Lost Ring (Solved!)

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I’m hoping you can help me find a book.  I remember a wonderful book being in my library at Elementary School, I checked it out so often I wasn’t allowed to check it out anymore – and now I can’t remember its name.  I think it was a children’s or young adult book?  This would have been mid to late 80s.

It was about a poor girl who lived with her father.  They were very, very poor and the book mentioned they couldn’t afford heat so she had to take cold showers but often went dirty.  She didn’t have many friends but then befriended an affluent girl.  This affluent girl’s family then fell on hard times and the affluent friend lost a ring – I think a garnet ring?  The poor girl thought if she could find the ring she could solve her new friend’s family’s money issues.  I think she found the stone of the ring in her friend’s dress belt/sash.  Her friend may have contracted a disease like polio in the book.

I’d love any help you may know about this!