353E: Kid Adopts A Camel – Humorous Non-Fiction Children’s Book On Cassette!

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I'm looking for a humorous non-fiction children's book, with accompanying cassette, about camels. I read it sometime between 1987 and 1995, likely closer to the earlier range, and it was probably published no later than 1975: it felt "modern" at the time. I recall the book being slightly larger format, softcover, and fully illustrated in a semi-cartoony style - and that it also had an audio cassette version which I believe was just the narrated book, without music. The conceit of the books may have involved a kid secretly adopting a wild animal as a pet: it introduced animal facts to explain how the animal's adaptations could help the child keep it hidden from their parents. One specific detail I recall is a fact that camels can close their nostrils to keep from breathing in sand - "or your dad's cigars!" as they illustrated by showing an unfazed camel in a living room where a man in a green armchair was smoking heavily. I'm fairly sure the book was part of a series, including one about penguins (where the kid tried to fill the bathtub with ice for them,) but I don't recall any other books in the series.

353D: The Adventures of Thistle the Raccoon (Solved!)

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So my book is a children’s book.  It was mostly pictures but also some text and a little story to go along with the photos.  It is from the 70s/80s as the 80s were when I was taking the book out of the library.  It was about a raccoon named Thistle.  I am pretty sure of the name but it followed the story and pictures of a racoon with that name.  I hope that is enough to go on as I haven’t found it anywhere.  They were actual photographs and not drawings.  And I’m pretty sure there was a picture of Thistle on the cover.

353C: 1970s, Younger Female Teen Figure Skater, Moves with Family to Rural Part of State, Practices on Perfect Pond next to Burned-Down Mill (Solved!)

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I read this novel in the 1970s when I was in early-mid elementary school. The main character and her family live in a state in the upper Midwest; she’s wicked into competitive figure skating and has been training/competing for years. Because of her dad’s job (he might be a college professor), they move from a city to a more rural part of the state where there are no indoor skating facilities and no training. She checks out the lake where the other kids skate, but finds it unsatisfactory (perhaps the surface is always bumpy). She finds a perfect pond! Ice is always clear of snow and smooth. But the locals shun it. She’s happy to train there alone. Eventually, she learns the reason why the spot is shunned by locals. It was a tragedy. The family that owned the mill was holding a party there for their daughter (about the same age as the novel’s main character), there was a fire, and the girl was killed.

353A: Painting the Rainbow at the Flour Mill

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I’m looking for a book I had in my early childhood – I was born in 1984.
There is a flour mill with a grumpy Miller, and a group of children who go into the mill. While they’re in there a rainbow comes in through the window and ends up divided into a paint pot for each colour. The children take the paints and try to do good deeds – for example, painting someone’s door? sunshine yellow or someone’s window frames? cornflour blue. They paint something belonging to the Miller purple and it matches his angry face.

352Z: Jazz Musicians Guide Boy Falsely Accused of Theft (Solved!)

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I’m looking for a young adult book which I read in the late 80s/early 90s. It’s about a boy, who gets accused of stealing in school, big  jazz elements as there are some jazz musicians who help him (and references to many jazz greats), it’s about righting wrongs without having to tattle.
So : a bit more detail. He gets accused. He didn’t do it but knows his wealthy classmate did it.
In the early part of the book, he wears a t-shirt that says “Don’t cheer boys, the poor fellows are dying” which is a quote from John Woodward Phillip and his t-shirt is met with disapproval from the principal.
The kid is in deep trouble as everyone thinks he stole and he has to go see a judge in court, I think.
Finally, and most importantly, there are a number of jazz musicians who provide the protagonist kid with help and guidance.
The book is about jazz, doing the right thing and the reality of being a poor kid whom everyone assumes has stolen whereas the rich kid is not even a suspect cos why would he even need to steal?
It’s really well written but I can’t remember the name or author and would love to read it again.

352Y: Fireside Tales (Solved!)

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The book I am looking for is one my mum used to read as a child. It had a collection of books and poems. She had it in the 1950s but I don’t know when it was published.
She thought it was called Fireside Tales, but this could be wrong as the book cover came off. She remembers there being fairies and elves on the inside cover.
One of the stories was called “Fireside concert”.
Fireside concert is a story about a fireplace and the tools. When the fire is just about to fall asleep, one of the tools says let’s have a concert, so one by one they do a little dance or something fun before they go to sleep.
Another was “Little grey mouse”
She said there was a story about a thread-bare Little mouse. I am not sure if that is the same story or the title of another one.
There are 2 poems she remembers. I don’t know the tites but she remembers the words.
First one:

“Closed are the story books on the shelf

The teddy bear’s fast asleep
The sun has gone from a darkening sky
And stars through the window peep
So off we go to the land of Nod
Down winding lullaby lane
With the night light fairies to accompany us
Till morning comes again
And it that wonderful land of Nod
Are things that bring delight
So hurry along or we’ll be too late

Good night little ones, goodnight”

Second one is about a teapot I only have a small part:
“neat and round and brown am I, merry little fellow, patchwork cosy on my head, red green and yellow. Gather round the table now, draw the curtains tight, fireside is the place for me, on a winter’s night.”
I would be so grateful for any help finding this book as it would mean the world to mum to have a copy. We have been looking for about 40 years now!

352X: Puppy Cat

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For years, I’ve searched for this story. It is a children’s short story that came out of an old school reader that I had in first grade. I was in first grade in 1977 in Spruce Pine, NC, USA. I’m sure the readers were pretty old by then. The title of the story was Puppy Cat, I think. It was a dog who thought he was a cat. There are several newer stories that are similar, but I’ve been looking for this particular version. I’ve had no luck over the years!

352W: Late 50’s early 60’s space fiction

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Late 50’s early 60’s space fiction about a boy on a planet (possibly mars) with his pet.  The boy needs to get to different city/friends home.  Walks via an old highway but the temperature dips extremely, causing the boy to find refuge in a giant cabbage like plant that closes at night, saving him.

Read this from the 5th grade 1961/62 Ellis Elementary School library in Sunnyvale California.

352V: Little Bit

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I have been on the search for many years for a book I loved as a child.  I was born in 1959, it’s possible the book was written in the 60’s.
The title is “Little Bit”, about a young mouse and his family, having struggles in life for being so small.
Having Grandchildren I would very much like to find this as my copy has been lost in the shuffle throughout the years.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.