Book Club: Some Childhood Faves
TEACHABLE MOMENT: A great story never gets old no matter how many times you read it because each time you notice something new.
Remember the good ol' days of card catalogs and stamping a check out card that goes in the front of the book? Yea... Those days are gone and now card catalogs are expensive furniture pieces at local flea markets and salvage stores.
Heck, kids rarely need to go to the library anymore to do research or check out books... But what I remember most about the library are my childhood faves:
Take a walk down memory lane with me:
Ramona Quimby, Age 8
I always wondered why my age 8 life experience was so different from Ramona's. I concluded that it must be because I did not own such a thick turtleneck sweater and my hair was black instead of blonde-brown.
Where the Sidewalk Ends
Shel Silverstein's illustrations always made my chuckle. For a poetry unit, our 5th grade teacher had us memorize and recite poems and I gravitated toward his because I was a slow reader and the drawings always helped me make sense of it all.
Black Beauty
Never ridden a horse or came near a real horse in my life. After reading this, I felt a sense of compassion for all animals that serve people. As a kid, I felt that all horses should be set free to roam pastures... but then my mom reminded me that some horses might not survive and some humans might not either without relying on each other.
Let's Marry Said the Cherry
I took it upon myself to speak in rhyme after reading this library check-out at my parent's Chinese take-out restaurant over one summer. I thought it was so clever that I rhymed everything I said. "What do you mean?" said the Bean. "I mean that!" said the Hat. Of course, these were all conversations I had with myself (both fortunately and unfortunately) lest strangers hear me and think me odd... But I soon got over that and even to this day, I sometimes talk like that, especially with my toddler!
When I Was Young in the Mountains
This was the first book my mother bought me at FULL PRICE! We rarely bought books because the library was free. We used to buy books at garage sales or when we get those discount Scholastic or Arrow Book catalogs at school. But this book was at the Book Fair on a shelf after report card pick-up. For some reason, I fell in love with the cover and as I flipped through the pages I was entranced by the life these people lived on the mountains. it seemed so magical and so wonderful. My mom decided to buy it for me and asked me to take very, very good care of it because we are paying a good amount of money for it. That was the first time I realized the price printed on the book cover was actually for real! Today, this book sits proudly on my shelf in mint condition and I cannot wait to read it to my little guy!
Dear Mr. Henshaw
This was actually a book my older brother read. He was a book worm and read like a machine. He could read through a few books in one sitting, while I labored with almost every word. Five years my senior, I always thought his books were cooler and way more fun. I stole this book from his desk one day and could not put it down. I never read letters in a book before and that entire book consisted of letters. I thought that was so clever! I started to write letters to random people (mostly people I made up!) I even tried mailing them and they came back to me because I had no stamps.
See How You Grow
This book is the second book my mom bought me at the school book fair. It was a different year than Book #5. I think my mom was trying to help me learn about where babies came from but had trouble explaining to me in words. She picked up the book at the fair and it had flaps to life up and lot of illustrations. I loved it because it was the first time I learned that it makes sense to have features from both my Dad and my Mom! Then I saw the price. It was the most expensive book I have ever held! It was almost $20!! I told my mom that I would sit and read and memorize everything so she would not have to buy it. She said that I was silly because this is a book that will teach me many things and I can read it over and over again. She also made it my responsibility to explain it to her because she claimed that her English was poor. Now that I think about it... if her English were that bad, how did she know to pick this book?...
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Oooh, the drama in this book was crazy. I always felt bad for the poor boy having such a terrible younger brother! I recall thanking the Heavens for not having a younger sibling and soon started to think that all younger siblings were annoying... But then again, my brother reminded me that I was one myself. The irony.
Miss Nelson is Missing!
This was a book I bought myself! I saved up money and was allowed to use $10 at the school book fair. I used it to buy a poster of kittens and puppies (although in real life, I was deathly afraid of them!) and this book! I adored this story. I wondered if Miss Nelson was indeed missing or whether it was a disguise and trick all along! Then I started doubting my own teachers who had substitutes... I would examine their every move and ponder whether they were indeed in disguise!
I found images of the older covers because that is just how I remembered them! I remember the little horsey logo of the Yearling books too. Old school folks, you know exactly what logo I am talking about that runs on the top border of Beverly Cleary books. I am quite fond of the older book covers and editions... they have a sense of vintage to them and something that seems more "real" that the newer editions.
What are your faves? Share them with your kids! Better yet, read them again together!
