There are two types of book lovers: those that reread, and those that don't. Count me in as an enthusiastic rereader. Rereading to me is comfort food, like buttered biscuits or Motown music or an afternoon nap.
My Kindle has only enhanced my love of rereads. Now I can carry a little portable library with my favorite books. This is a booklover's dream.
Here is a list of books that I have reread a number of times. Vintage children's books are my first reading love, and that is reflected in this list.
Children's Books
Nancy Drew (I grew up with the matte cover books with yellow spines)
the
Ginnie and Geneva series - Catherine Woolley
The Luckiest Girl - Beverly
Cleary
the Betsy-Tacy series - Maud Hart Lovelace (my all-time favorite
series)
the Little House books - Laura Ingalls Wilder
the All of a Kind
Family series - Sydney Taylor
the Keeping Day series - Norma
Johnston
Caddie Woodlawn - Carol Ryrie Brink
The Witch of Blackbird Pond - Elizabeth George Speare
A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett
the Five Little Peppers
books - Margaret Sidney
Gone Away Lake and Return to Gone-Away - Elizabeth
Enright
the Betsy and Billy series - Carolyn Haywood
children's mysteries
by Georgia author Wylly Folk St. John
Beverly Cleary's books - especially Ramona
the Pest and Beezus and Ramona
the Narnia books - C.S. Lewis
the Harry
Potter series - J.K. Rowling
Little Women - Louisa May Alcott
Cheaper by
the Dozen - Frank B. Gilbreth, Jr., and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
Indian
Captive - Lois Lenski
The Witch Family - Eleanor Estes
From the Mixed-Up
Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - E.L. Konigsburg
Jennifer, Hecate,
Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth - E.L.
Konigsburg
The
Borrowers - Mary Norton
Pippi Longstocking - Astrid Lindgren
The Crystal
Tree - Jennie Lindquist
The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
The Velvet Room -
Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Teen Books
the Franzons series by Thyra Ferre Bjorn
Red Sky
at Morning - Richard Bradford
The Cheerleader - Ruth Doan
MacDougall
Seventeenth Summer - Maureen Daly
Meet Me in St. Louis -
Sally Benson
Seventeen - Booth
Tarkington
I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith
Books for Grown-Ups
A Room With a View -
E.M. Forster
Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
Jane Eyre - Charlotte
Bronte
Rebecca - Daphne DuMaurier
Diana - R. F Delderfield
Jubilee Trail
and Calico Palace - Gwen Bristow
The Winthrop Woman - Anya Seton (I love
many of her books)
Portrait of Jennie - Robert Nathan
the Jalna series - Mazo de la Roche (my favorite adult series - highly recommended for anyone who loves family sagas)
Gospel - Wilton Barnhardt
Possession - A.S.
Byatt
Time and Again and From Time to Time - Jack Finney
The Long
Goodbye - Raymond Chandler (probably my most re-read book)
Gone With the
Wind - Margaret Mitchell
The Thorn Birds - Colleen McCullough
The Best
of Everything - Rona Jaffe
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald (my favorite classic novel)
I would love to hear from you. Are you a rereader? What books do you enjoy reading again (and again)?
Presented for your listening enjoyment: "Soul Sauce" by Cal Tjader. This 1964 Latin jazz song was performed by Cal Tjader, and written by Chano Pozo and Dizzy Gillespie. This song always makes me feel like summer ... so I couldn't resist sharing it with you.
Happy Friday! My Friday Fave is the website Tick Tock Toys. This is a great website photo gallery for anyone who loves 1950's - 1970's vintage food packaging or amusement parks.
The photos are arranged into galleries, so you can visit and enjoy. A few of my favorites include: Food Packaging, Funny Face Drink Mix (I loved this as a kid!), Vintage Supermarket Photos, Halloween Make-Up Kits, and more.
There is a great section of photos of the Okefenokee Swamp Dark Ride from Six Flags of Georgia. This ride was designed by Sid and Marty Krofft, and I loved it as a child. My very favorite, though, is the section about Themed Lands. These photos all feature Story Book Lands, Santa's Villages, Parks, Children's Zoos, and more. These were my favorite places to visit when I was growing up, and I still love seeing pictures of them. I have some vintage postcards featuring Story Book Lands and Santa's Villages in my store's Amusement Park department. (The photos above are postcards of Children's Fairyland in Oakland, California.)
I have recommended Tick Tock Toys many times to friends, and wanted to share the link with you as well! Just be prepared to settle in with a tall glass of Funny Face (maybe my favorite, Goofy Grape), and enjoy your visit.
Do you remember Story Book Lands or Santa's Villages from childhood? I would love to hear your memories in the comments section, below.
I heard "Sally, Go Round the Roses" for the first time on XM radio a few years ago. It is such an unusual song, catchy and rather haunting at the same time. This song was performed by the girl group The Jaynetts in 1963. It was written by Lona Stevens, who was inspired by "Ring Around the Rosie."
One of my fantasy jobs would be selecting music for a tv series or movie. If I had that fantasy job, I would certainly use this song for an eerie show like Under the Dome or a movie like The Sixth Sense.
According to music lore, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller were very taken with this song, which led to its release. What do you think of it?
Happy Friday!
My Friday Faves are extra light and fluffy this week. My first fave is Dancing With the Stars. This is my favorite "popcorn show," and it is back. The cast is really interesting this season! There are two dancers who have an exceptional background (ice dancers Meryl White and Charlie Davis), and an eclectic group otherwise, with NeNe Leakes, Drew Carey, Danica McKellar, Diana Nyad, Candace Cameron Bure, Cody Simpson, Paralympic athlete Amy Purdy, hockey player Sean Avery, James Maslow, Cody Simpson, and Billy Dee Williams.
My favorites so far are Charlie Davis (he is adorable, and sure to do well, with his skating background), Drew Carey (so fun and likable), and Danica McKellar. I also was so impressed with Amy Purdy.
On the flip side, Sean Avery does "mean face" well and sort of scares me. Candace Cameron Bure is going to get on my last nerves if she mentions modesty every show. She knew, when she signed up, that she was going on a dance competition with traditional ballroom costumes. Billy Dee Williams is a talented actor, but he is not going to be able to keep up with the demands of this show, and I think he will go home soon.
I miss the Harold Wheeler Band, but am happy to see Erin Andrews as the new cohost with Tom Bergeron (replacing Brooke Burke-Charvet). Erin seems like she will be quicker with quips and off-the-cuff comments and interviews.
My second Friday Fave is Songpop. This game is available for Facebook, Android device, or iTunes (for iPad or iPhone). It is basically "Name That Tune," with snippets of songs (original artists) and multiple choice questions based on song title or artist. You can choose your favorite categories, and the choices are great: Musicals, Vocal Jazz, '60's Collection, '70's AM Pop, etc. You can either play with friends (via Facebook connection) or be matched with players who have similar music tastes. It is a great way to unwind, and fun for anyone who loves music.
How about you? Do you play Songpop? Are you watching Dancing With the Stars? If so, who are your favorites this season? I would love to hear from you in the comments section below.
