Posted on 04/11/2016 10:03:46 AM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) — As she turns 100, the feisty and witty author Beverly Cleary remembers the Oregon childhood that inspired the likes of characters Ramona and Beezus Quimby and Henry Huggins in the children’s books that sold millions and enthralled generations of youngsters.
“I was a well-behaved little girl, not that I wanted to be,” she said. “At the age of Ramona, in those days, children played outside. We played hopscotch and jump rope and I loved them and always had scraped knees.”
Ramona, perhaps her best-known character, made her debut in “Henry Huggins” with only a brief mention. But that changed soon.
(Excerpt) Read more at sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com ...
Remember Ribsy eating horse meat?
Her ability to get into the mind of a kindergartner was fantastic in “Ramona the Pest.”
It was a lifetime ago, but I clearly remember Ramona down in the basement, taking a single bite of an apple from out of the sack, and then chucking it, only to take a single bite of the next apple, and then chucking that one too.
When confronted she said “Silly, everyone knows the first bite is the best”.
That is all I remember, aside from her unemployed dad taking her to the state line so she could straddle two states at once.
PS: Travis, I think children’s books might be your next calling. Something like “Treason, Tyranny, and the Importance of Naps”.
Do you remember when Ribsy wandered off and was found by an old lady and she dressed him up with a floppy hat because she was having a tea party with her friends. That was the first time I ever thought that a dog just may have a wry sense of humor.
At the New York Public Library, Anna Taylor, coordinator of Children’s Educational Programming, is collecting 100 stories from patrons and librarians about why they love Cleary. Taylor has her own reason, too.
“One thing that is great about her books is they are a joy to read aloud. Every time I’ve read a Beverly Cleary aloud, (the youngsters) just don’t want me to stop. I think it’s because Ramona and her friends feel like your sister, or yourself or your friends. You can kind of see yourself in the story really easily,” Taylor said.
I’m sure she’s never heard of anything you’ve produced either. But thanks for commenting.
I loved her books when I was a kid.
My daughter is a children’s book specialist at a Barnes and Noble. I just texted her about promoting Cleary’s birthday.
I was right, she’s already on it. Her actual birthday is tomorrow and my daughter is setting up a table with books and balloons.
“Remember Ribsy eating horse meat?”
___________
Yes! I’m amazed how much I remember from those old books. I remember one where Ramona was sent to try to get Henry Huggins a bike at a police auction, and mistakenly bid (and won) a girl’s bike, and Henry tried to make it look like a boy’s bike by putting a broomstick across from the handlebars to the seat. I remember when they all thought fig newtons had worms in them. As someone else mentioned, I remember the Ribsy one the best, when Henry found him and had to get him home on the bus.
I used to read the Hardy Boys, Tarzan, Doc Savage, all the usual stuff, but the Cleary books were always among my favorites.
Correction: It was Ramona who made the mistake at the bike auction.
Dude, they’re sisters.
They have to wait until 2020. In honor of Hillary’s second term, they’ll add a second “i” to LGBTQIA.
Exactly.
"Henry Higgins and the Paper Route" was my first long book, and I was entranced. She didn't need violence or cliffhangers to spin a great story.
After that, I'd constantly check books out of the library, and my mother would buy me almost the entire list from Scholastic, before that became a commie front organization.
I consider love of reading the most important component in my entrance to the Patriarchal Hegemony, or Hegemonic Patriarchy on Tuesdays.
I just picked this up in the “swap” bin at my local library for my third grader to read.
You reminds about something, the left absolutely hates Beaver Cleaver and Cleary’s books were like reading about the Beav. However, the point of action was just the kids and the dog. “Peanuts” is like the comic version.
Runaway Ralph is also very good. It’s the followup to Mouse and the Motorcycle. My son absolutely devoured those books when he was around 3rd grade age. The movies that are made from these books aren’t half bad either. Back then I probably watched them with him around 20 times each. Good, clean innocent fun was had by all.
My daughters and I enjoyed her books. My daughter reminded me a few months ago how I would read every book I bought for them.
Having read the more than 30 responses to this thread so far, I think we can conclude that there’s a whole lot more normal American parents and their kids out there than the usual raft of demented headlines would have us believe.
Thank God!!
Pretty sure Henry Huggins had a cat named Nosy. I used that name for a kitten that showed up at our house but can’t remember what happened to it. Great books I was sad when I read them all.
When I was 10, Cleary’s book, ‘Fifteen’, was perfect. Such a sweet ‘first love’ story for a preteen to read. Have never forgotten it (can even remember some of the dialogue 50 years later ; )
“Did you grow up in America?’
Sure did. I was (and am) a voracious reader too - and I still don’t recall ever even hearing about her or her books.
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