Newberry
Yesterday on a pit stop to Sam Weller's (amazing new-used-rare bookstore), I did my usual winding through of all the nooks in the basement and feeling overwhelmed that in one lifetime I could never even finish all the books in a section in the store becaue it's so HUGE.
Afterward, I ventured up to the youth novel section, even though I try to fight that I rather read books for a crowd more my age. I've never been to the youth section there.
There was an entire display of Newberry Medal books! I so remembered sixth grade when I place at LEAST a ten-book order every other week from the Scholastic forms, and many were Newberry Medal winners. There were a ton of other medal winning books, too. I just got instantly transported back in time.
Jacob Have I Loved, Number the Stars, The Giver, Maniac Magee, Sarah Plain and Tall, A Wrinkle in Time, Island of the Blue Dolphins....
Goes to show that good books never go out of style, no matter how old you (and they) are. :)
Late Edit: I also saw a Sweet Valley High book on the shelf and about died. I LOVED the Sweet Valley Twins and Sweet Valley High books while I was in middle school. Loved them!!!! I loved too many High books, and my favorite Twins book was Curse of the Golden Heart...See? I loved scary stuff from my youth! :) I read I swear a dozen a week, and received them for Christmas. In elementary school, mom told me about how she read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys at my age, so I checked out as many as possible from the library (mostly Nancy Drew). I remember when the elementary library was merging with the middle school library, the elementary school library threw a ton of books out in the summer and my parents and I (dad works at the school) went dumpster diving and took a ton of books. :)
I ALSO loved R.L. Stine, but who didn't? :) I wasn't as big on the Goosebumps series, because I thought they were too 'elementary' for me...but they were still good. My grandma bought me a few Goosebump movies, but always Shirley Temple movies (that obsession is another post!) My favorite R.L. Stine books, which I got for Christmas one year along with a bunch of Sweet Valley books, were the Fear Street Saga Trilogy books (The Betrayal, The Burning, The Secret). They combined scary stories with history and earlier periods/eras, both things that I love! I still think of the author's books often because I remember that the author always had his lead character driving a Civic, Corolla, or something of the like. Whenever I see those cars, I'm reminded of many opening pages when he has the heroine driving in a thunderstorm in a blue ___insert car here___, rolling across the pavement. :)
I loved those times, when I read far more books. Inspiring. I need to pick up the pace again.
Afterward, I ventured up to the youth novel section, even though I try to fight that I rather read books for a crowd more my age. I've never been to the youth section there.
There was an entire display of Newberry Medal books! I so remembered sixth grade when I place at LEAST a ten-book order every other week from the Scholastic forms, and many were Newberry Medal winners. There were a ton of other medal winning books, too. I just got instantly transported back in time.
Jacob Have I Loved, Number the Stars, The Giver, Maniac Magee, Sarah Plain and Tall, A Wrinkle in Time, Island of the Blue Dolphins....
Goes to show that good books never go out of style, no matter how old you (and they) are. :)
Late Edit: I also saw a Sweet Valley High book on the shelf and about died. I LOVED the Sweet Valley Twins and Sweet Valley High books while I was in middle school. Loved them!!!! I loved too many High books, and my favorite Twins book was Curse of the Golden Heart...See? I loved scary stuff from my youth! :) I read I swear a dozen a week, and received them for Christmas. In elementary school, mom told me about how she read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys at my age, so I checked out as many as possible from the library (mostly Nancy Drew). I remember when the elementary library was merging with the middle school library, the elementary school library threw a ton of books out in the summer and my parents and I (dad works at the school) went dumpster diving and took a ton of books. :)
I ALSO loved R.L. Stine, but who didn't? :) I wasn't as big on the Goosebumps series, because I thought they were too 'elementary' for me...but they were still good. My grandma bought me a few Goosebump movies, but always Shirley Temple movies (that obsession is another post!) My favorite R.L. Stine books, which I got for Christmas one year along with a bunch of Sweet Valley books, were the Fear Street Saga Trilogy books (The Betrayal, The Burning, The Secret). They combined scary stories with history and earlier periods/eras, both things that I love! I still think of the author's books often because I remember that the author always had his lead character driving a Civic, Corolla, or something of the like. Whenever I see those cars, I'm reminded of many opening pages when he has the heroine driving in a thunderstorm in a blue ___insert car here___, rolling across the pavement. :)
I loved those times, when I read far more books. Inspiring. I need to pick up the pace again.