#I love you nancy drew I love you hardy boys I love you especially trixie belden

[imissthembutitwasntadisaster]

Love how many kids books have always been about mystery solving because that's literally what it's like growing up. You don't know anything. There appear to be all these secrets. No one will explain them to you. Adults are completely useless. Might as well get an Aztec artifact out of it as well as self-discovery.

[phdmama]

21, 36 and 73 for the weird asks.

oooo anon thank you!! xox

21. obsession from childhood?

Probably my overarching obsession was reading (well, escapism) - when I was young, some really terrible things happened to me in a place where I was meant to be safe (sorry for the bummer), and I turned to reading. I read everything I could get my hands on. I absolutely adored fantasy fiction. I read the Hobbit when I was... about 8 and it just changed my world view (this was also about the time that I saw the original Star Wars). I was in love with all the Dragon Riders of Pern books. I loved things like Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and Trixie Beldon. The Narnia books were essential in my imagination formation.

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

Ok so you have to remember, I am Gen X. And I grew up in rural Vermont so things got there later than other places, pre-internet. I'd say things that were meme-like were early commercials? Especially when Superbowl commercials became a thing. I remember when the original Numa Numa was going around. All your base are belong to us. and of course, perhaps the best one, I HAS A BUCKET, lolcats, all that. Godspeed, Mooncat still makes me laugh.

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

Oooo that's a tricky one for me. You'll find this very difficult to believe, I'm sure, but I have very strong and rigid opinions about food. I know, it's so out of character. I don't think any of the things I like are really that weird? I like salt and vinegar. I like chocolate and mint (though I'm really not much of a chocolate person in general). This may lose me some followers, but I actually... really... do like pineapple on pizza? I'm sorry, I know. I have the palate of a philistine.

weird asks that say a lot

[katiesclassicbooks]

By the Light of the Study Lamp by Carolyn Keene

Synopsis: By the Light of the Study Lamp is the first book in the Dana Girls Mystery Stories. It was published in 1934 and was "written by"  Carolyn Keene which was a pseudonym used by the Stratemeyer Syndicate. The series was written by a few ghostwriters and this particular title was written by Leslie McFarlane. The Dana girls are two sisters in their teens who live with their Uncle Ned and Aunt Harriet because they are orphaned. At the beginning of the novel they receive an antique lamp from their Uncle for them to use for studying while at school. Within ten minutes of opening the gift it is stolen from their home. When they return to the Starrhurst Academy boarding school for girls, they rediscover their lamp in a local secondhand shop. They must find out the mystery behind the lamp and the thieves who want it so badly. Also, they must discover what this mystery has to do with their friend Evelyn Starr and her brother Franklin who were once wealthy and now face potential poverty.

Storyline: I ended up quite liking the story in By the Light of the Study Lamp. I thought it wasn’t going to be too interesting, but it actually was and I was pretty hooked. It felt quite nostalgic to me as I had grown up absolutely loving the Nancy Drew Books. I know this isn’t a Nancy Drew book and was different, but it had a similar feel to it. I felt like this book had a bit more action to it than some of the Nancy Drew books as well. It was interesting because at some point in Nancy Drew publishing history they went back and revised some of the earlier novels. I think they modernized a few things and cut out some bits that no longer seemed appropriate. These versions lasted and were the ones I grew up reading. With the Dana Girls however, this version I read was not revised. This means that it felt very much of it’s time and that there were also some somewhat shocking moments that were definitely not PC by today’s standards.

Setting: By the Light of the Study Lamp is partly set when the Dana girls are at their country home in a town called Oak Falls and partly when they go back to Starrhurst boarding school in a town called Penfield. I liked the settings and they seemed cozy and reminiscent of Nancy Drew settings.

Characters: The characters were pretty good in By the Light of the Study Lamp. The sisters are pretty good characters and I liked their family and friends etc. None of the characters are too fleshed out, but that’s to be expected. There were a couple characters whose description was not PC, especially that of the cook at Starrhurst Academy whose depiction was quite shocking. An interesting observation I made was that there were lots of sibling relationships depicted in this book. The Dana girls are of course sisters, their Aunt and Uncle are siblings, their friends they help are siblings and the thieves they encounter are siblings. I don’t know why that was, but it was interesting.

Did I Like It?: Yes I did! I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. My brother got me this book and the second one in the series ( which I’m looking forward to reading now!) as a Christmas present for nostalgic reasons because of my love for Nancy Drew growing up and his love for the Hardy Boys. It did feel quite nostalgic and yet I liked the different characters and dynamic. I used to love the juvenile mystery series that were so popular back in the day and still have a special place in my heart for them now as well.

Do I Recommend It?: I do, if it seems like something you would like. If you didn’t grow up reading some of the vintage mystery series such as Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, Bobbsey Twins etc. you might not find this as interesting. If you are a fan of that sort of thing though, I’m sure you would find enjoyment in this book. If you’re looking to read this book, I’m pretty sure they’ve been out of print for awhile so you may have to look for it used.

~Katie 

[agespecific]

Were you a reader as a child? Did you snuggle up in a chair or under the covers at bedtime while an adult read to you? If so, chances are you were impacted by the wisdom found in children’s books.

Reading helps us to understand ourselves, the world around us and other people. Reading also allows us to experience things we could not experience personally.

Some children’s books, especially those written in the 18th and 19th centuries were thinly veiled attempts at imparting morals and manners to children.

Later books were more focused on entertaining children, though lessons seeped through like water in a sieve, impacting us – even if we were not consciously aware of what we were learning.

I still remember my mother reading aloud the novel Heidi, one chapter at a time. My sister and I anxiously perched on the bed, waiting to hear about Heidi, Peter, Grandfather and the goats.

We imagined the far away setting in the Alps, almost breathing in the fresh air as Heidi did. From Heidi, I learned compassion, feeling homesick along with the little orphan girl and her wheelchair bound friend Clara.

Compassion is just one of the many lessons I learned while reading classic children’s novels. Here are six other lessons we may have unconsciously learned as we read and reread the beloved stories of our youth.

We Can Be Independent

Part of the work of childhood is gradually growing into people who are independent from our parents and caregivers. Children’s books are full of stories of children who take the reins and control their own destiny.

Remember Nancy Drew? She was very independent, driving around in her blue roadster with only the slightest supervision from her father. The Boxcar Children successfully lived alone in an abandoned box car, working to get money for food and taking care of each other.

The children of Narnia managed quite well in their adopted fantasy land, conquering foes with little adult help. Pippi Longstocking lived in Villa Villakkulla with nary an adult in sight.

Children’s stories helped us to imagine living independently without actually leaving the safety of our homes. We could escape our everyday lives and live in a tree like Sam, the young boy in My Side of the Mountain, who runs away, adopts a falcon and survives on his own in the Catskill mountains.

These characters and others like them taught us that with resourcefulness and hard work we can take care of ourselves.

Pluck and Grit Will Take You Far

Remember Laura Ingalls Wilder? The child of the Little House on the Prairie series was known for her spirit. Other young pioneers such as tomboy Caddie Woodlawn, Jody in The Yearling, and Travis of Old Yeller were also courageous and not afraid to act.

Creating a home in a new and untamed land is one recipe for developing kids with pluck and grit, but clearly not the only one.

Young Ramona in the Beverly Cleary books is gutsy, audacious and bold. Velvet, of National Velvet, is strong-willed and determined.

Homer Price manages to foil bank robbers and control a situation with a donut machine gone berserk. These are characters who persevere and tenaciously deal with life’s challenges.

Many of us also devoured biographies. The Childhood of Famous Americans series, little blue and orange books, were wildly popular in the 1950s and 1960s.

The books, which were later deemed to be more fictional than reality, focused on the lives of courageous children who grew up to be heroes. These and other biographies inspired us to do worthy things.

Be Open to Adventure

Children’s stories are full of characters who have adventures. What would The Adventures of Tom Sawyer have been like if Tom, Huck and Becky had stayed home and played board games all day?

Think of Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys and the Tollivers solving mysteries. Young Jim Hawkins has his map of Treasure Island and goes out to sea. The children of the Melendy family have a new adventure every Saturday.

Travel appeared in children’s books before it became mainstream for many people. Donna Parker goes to Hollywood, making us long for the world of glamour and movie stars.

Nancy Drew travels to France, Nairobi and Austria. The Bobbsey Twins visited Plymouth Rock and Colonial Williamsburg, imparting history lessons along the way.

Children in books also traveled across time and place. Tolly in the Greene Knowe series meets children from the past. Charlotte in Charlotte Sometimes travels via magical bed to an English boarding school in 1918. In children’s books, time travel – with all of its adventurous possibilities – is an option.

You Need Friends

We all need a sidekick or two. Friends help us out of sticky situations and encourage us to be our best. They provide laughter and help us to find insight just when we need it.

Charlotte had Wilbur. Betsy had Tacy. Nancy Drew had Bess and George. Donna Parker had Ricky West, and Trixie Beldon had Honey Wheeler. The two sets of Bobbsey twins had each other.

Anne of Green Gables had her bosom buddy, Diana. Like Anne, many of us had or longed for a friend who was our steadfast companion and kindred spirit. If we lacked such a friend in our lives, characters from the novels we read often became our friends.

It’s Fun to Stretch Your Imagination

The fun and fantasy of children’s books enriched us by stretching our imaginations. We love to suspend willing disbelief in order to accept the magical.

Remember Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle? She was a little old lady whose husband was a pirate. She lived in an upside-down house and imparted ‘cures’ to children who misbehaved. What fun it was to imagine playing in an upside-down house or digging up treasure in the back yard.

Fantasy could take us on adventures. We could step through a wardrobe in England and walk into Narnia, where we could meet witches and battle evil. We traveled to Oz with Dorothy and had fun believing that lands like Oz, with all of its magical creatures, exist.

Mythology and folklore also gave us fantastic tales. We imagined what it would be like to be a giant like Paul Bunyan and have a big blue ox for a pet. We could also have dragons for pets or ride one conquering the air. We soured across the skies and into the oceans with Greek gods and goddesses.

Some fantasies were closer to home. The adventures of a lowly house painter, Mr. Popper and his twelve penguins, kept us laughing. We imagined what fun it would be to have such amazing creatures in our own homes.

Believing in the impossible opened us up to creativity, which feeds our souls and helps us to solve problems.

Kindness Matters

Children’s books often bring out the simple theme that kindness matters. In the beginning of Charlotte’s Web, Fern saves a runt pig, Wilbur, from her father’s ax. Saving Wilbur’s life allows friendship in the barnyard to blossom.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, we learn the hard way from the story of Wanda, a young girl who is ridiculed for wearing the same dress every day.

When she proclaims that she has a hundred dresses, the other girls laugh. Her bullies eventually learn the truth, too late for Wanda but in time to teach them – and us – a lesson about kindness.

In children’s books we also learn to love and care for animals. Books such as Bambi, Lassie and the horse stories of Marguerite Henry gave us insight into the lives of animals. Many children experienced the love of animals they met through books.

The books we read as children often shape us. What books did you love as a child? What do you think you learned from them? We would love to hear your experiences and memories in the comments below.

Michele Meier Vosberg, Ph.D. is a writer and freelance educator. She left her career of over thirty years in order to create the life of her dreams. She is passionate about helping others understand their unique personality and gifts and design their best lives. Michele is married, has two grown daughters and lives in Madison, Wisconsin. Connect with Michele at liferedesign101.com

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