Childhood Favourites - Which ones do you remember

[Barcey]

I forgot about this one.

"My Side of the Mountain" it really captured my imagination and I wanted my own hawk. I was sure that I could run away and live on a mountain if I had to. I think it was made into a movie as well.

[GeoffC]

the ones i've forgotten about are those , I think in a series , where the story line is something to do with buffalos , but can't for the life of any remaining brain cell remember much more .

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Both series were "re-written" in the 1950s to update them and make them more "politically correct" - the original books had very negative and stereotypical portrayals of black and chinese characters, for example - but were drastically shortened and the plots simplified in the process, it being apparently felt that, by the mid 1950s, teenagers would be put off by 300-page books. Most "fans" consider the "original" versions of the books to be enormously superior to the re-writes. I suspect that it would have been the re-writes that you would have read.

Interesting... thanks for the info. So... anyway to get the originals? I would be interested in reading one just to compare.

BOb

[DixieGal]

Originally Posted by HappyMartin

Black Beauty was an odd book I thought, I just remember the sad bits.

It was also very controversial in South Africa believe it or not. The draconian censorship board that guarded the morals of the country banned all material deemed to be unsavory or that posed a risk to the countries security. I am not sure which of those 2 categories Black Beauty was deemed to represent but apparently the censor board never read the book and mistakenly believed it to be the tale of a black beauty queen. In apartheid South Africa that was enough to get the book banned until the board were informed of their error. Apparently beautiful black horses were acceptable but beautiful black women were not. Oh yes, You just have to love the "good old days".

I've said it before and I'm saying it again - I'm lucky to live in the U.S.A. I have a problem with censorship and would probably have spent my life in jail if I'd been born somewhere else. Hearing your story makes me realize how much I take "freedom of speech" for granted. I hope things have gotten better in the last decade or so for you.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Interesting... thanks for the info. So... anyway to get the originals? I would be interested in reading one just to compare.

BOb

A company called "Applewood Books" reprinted excellent fascimilies of the original versions of the first dozen or so "Hardy Boys" books a few years ago. I'm not sure if they're still in print, but they're easy to get 2nd hand on Amazon, etc.

[badgoodDeb]

And then there's the child's book about a native girl left alone on an island with dolphins for friends. Don't recall the title, but I think it's still considered a classic.

[vivaldirules]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

And then there's the child's book about a native girl left alone on an island with dolphins for friends. Don't recall the title, but I think it's still considered a classic.

This one? http://www.amazon.com/Music-Dolphins.../dp/0590897985

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by HarryT

A company called "Applewood Books" reprinted excellent fascimilies of the original versions of the first dozen or so "Hardy Boys" books a few years ago. I'm not sure if they're still in print, but they're easy to get 2nd hand on Amazon, etc.

To follow up, I've checked and they're out of print, but easy enough to get. See, for example, here.

[badgoodDeb]

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

And then there's the child's book about a native girl left alone on an island with dolphins for friends. Don't recall the title, but I think it's still considered a classic.

Actually, no, not that one. This one:
http://www.amazon.com/Island-Blue-Do...dp/0440940001/
"Island of the Blue Dolphins" by Scott ODell. Text says it was based on a true story. I don't think I knew that!

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by HarryT

To follow up, I've checked and they're out of print, but easy enough to get. See, for example, here.

Thanks... This is interesting:

by Franklin W Dixon (Author), Leslie McFarlane (Introduction)

BOb

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by HarryT

A company called "Applewood Books" reprinted excellent fascimilies of the original versions of the first dozen or so "Hardy Boys" books a few years ago. I'm not sure if they're still in print, but they're easy to get 2nd hand on Amazon, etc.

Intersting document here that list original authors and re-write authors.

http://www.keeline.com/Hardy_Boys.pdf

BOb

[jmorton]

I was a big fan of The Lemonade Trick, by Scott Corbett, and Space Cat, by Ruthven Todd. Both were illustrated by Paul Galdone, who seems to have illustrated my childhood. During my pre-teen years, I became a big fan of Henry Gregor Felsen, who wrote several books about teenagers, cars, and the dangers of driving badly. They had titles like Hot Rod, Road Rocket, and Crash Club, to name just a few. They were weird mixtures of juvenalia and gore. The other book that comes to mind is Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, which holds up better than the rest of the aforementioned books.

[Taylor514ce]

I have to add "The Mouse and the Motorcyle", by Beverly Cleary.

[montsnmags]

I just remembered one of my first books, given to me for Christmas by Mum & Dad (I only believed in Santa Claus insofar as believing in Santa Claus cheered my parents, which thus cheered me, which thus meant we were all happy and I got more presents). Anyway, the book was Rusty, the Nimble Numbat. Oh, look, ebay has one for sale:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI....m=260211489912

I enjoyed that one. I'm not sure where it is, but probably still somewhere at Mum's place (she never chucks anything out).

Cheers,
Marc

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Intersting document here that list original authors and re-write authors.

http://www.keeline.com/Hardy_Boys.pdf

BOb

That's very interesting - thanks. I hadn't actually realised that so many of the re-writes were completely new stories rather than "edits" of the originals.