No, not fictional books with bad plots and stupid jokes about boobs. I mean actual fiction for younguns.
I ran across a great website dedicated to Louise Fitzhugh, author and illustrator of one of my favorite books as a child, Harriet the Spy. Which of course made me think of other books I loved when I was young. Here are a few. I wish there were such great tribute sites for all these authors.
Higgelty Piggelty Pop or there must be something more to life - One of the lesser-known books by Maurice Sendak (more famous for Where the Wild Things Are) Jenny the terrier is spoiled and bored so she takes off to find something more fun to do. One of my favorite adventures is when she gets a job as a nurse for an angry little baby who shouts "No eat! No grow! SHOUT!"
No Flying in the House - Another book with a little white terrier - except this one is really little, like three inches tall. And the little girl she takes care of, who happens to be the exiled child of a fairy princess and her mortal husband. The bad guy is a cat which is typical but it's an adorable little angry cat. That can turn into a gold wind-up toy!
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankwiler - a girl and her brother run away to live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She then tries to prove that a beautiful angel sculpture was made by Michelangelo.
The Trumpet of the Swan - by E.B. White (who also wrote Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little). A swan that can't talk learns to play the trumpet THEN to write!
The Story about Ping - a young duck gets left behind on the Yangtze River and meets all kinds of new friends.
Certainly not all of my favorites but a few you might not have heard about before.
Comments
how about Moe Q. McGlutch - He Smoked Too Much...?
Posted by: mikey at June 7, 2005 11:06 AM
I have always loved From the Mixed-Up Files. I actually read it again last year -- I bought it at a thrift store to BookCross, and couldn't let it go without reading it again. :)
Posted by: Crankydragon at June 7, 2005 1:33 PM
You mention several of my old favorites. You might enjoy The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel) by Ellen Raskin.
A funny mystery with a lot of wordplay.
Posted by: Bud at June 7, 2005 2:31 PM
Holy cow! I haven't thought of that Ping book in ages! It was one of my favorites when I was little. Thanks for making me remember it!
Posted by: plucky punk at June 7, 2005 5:00 PM
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