Blog

I cannot resist. We’re not even to Thanksgiving, but for those who know and love little ones, here are three wonderful Christmas picture books to buy as gifts or check out from the libe: Mr. Willowby’s Christmas tree, by Robert Barry. (Hint: it’s too big, but someone else can use the chopped-off top. But even that is too tall …) Santa’s Favorite Story, by Aoki and Gantschev, in which Santa tells the story of the first Christmas in gorgeous watercolors. [...]

As my five-installment “Favorite Books from Childhood” list wound to a close, I was careful only to list books I read and loved. Probably my all-time favorite, because I identified with it the most, was Up a Road Slowly by Irene Hunt. (A sensitive teenage girl becomes a writer.) Now for two final lists: Books I missed until I was a parent, and a surprise … The Books You Recommended! I’m already requesting some at the libe. I’d hoped to [...]

Below is the fifth and final installment from my “Favorite Books from Childhood” list, and I have two confessions. First, I don’t think I did much serious reading in high school outside of class! I do remember trading romantic suspense classics by Victoria Holt and others. Maybe required reading kept me busy, or I was tired, or playing volleyball or writing college admissions essays. Secondly: though I’m not going past age 18 here, I’ve made an additional list of books [...]

Almost finished with my Favorite Books from Childhood bookshelf! This is the fourth of five installments and I know, I know, I should be posting pix as well.:( Below, the junior high age delineations get squidgy, as I read one or two of these in elementary school. I’m not counting as favorites some school-mandated ones that nevertheless had great impact, like Lord of the Flies, Ethan Frome, and Death Be Not Proud. (My takeaway from the latter: death is horrible, [...]

This third installment of my “Favorite Books from Childhood” bookshelf, below, won’t resemble yours. It confirms I was certifiably horse-crazy. (Thanks to my daughter Liz for the new Black Stallion books at Christmas!) At 16 I finally had my temporary fill, at a tiny camp (17 girls, 12 horses) run by a retired British Cavalry captain. By the end of the summer some of us, including yours truly, were jumping a three-foot fence with no reins or stirrups. (PM me [...]

What fun yesterday was when I posted this on Facebook! Below is the second part of my “Favorite Books from Childhood” bookshelf, a real bookshelf I’m in the process of setting up, in case you missed the first post. I am SO enjoying rereading the books listed below! Little Black is still heartbreaking, and it was a shock to realize how un-P.C. the Bobbsey Twins books were. Haven’t gotten to Ellen Tebbetts yet, or Billy and Blaze. What books did [...]