I have finished reading all the Newbery Award books listed in the 1996 yellow pamphlet I picked up at Barnes and Noble. These final titles are some of the ones I had read a long time ago but decided to reread.
These told me about a 14th century waif who learned to try, to risk, and to try and to risk again and again; an elder twin in the 1940's feeling spurned by her "younger," more successful twin; a mail order bride from the blue seas of Maine finds herself in the grassy seas of the midwest; a mysterious game arranged by an eccentric millionaire for 16 residents of an apartment building; and the friendship, imagination, and tragedy experienced by a city girl and a country boy.
Of course, the best are saved until last. A number of years ago I was so fortunate to attend not one but two conferences at which Madeleine L'Engle was the keynote speaker. I did not take any photos, but I do have reams of notes in a box somewhere. Not only did I sit in awe and joy as she spoke, but also I swam a few laps with her in the lake! I do have autographed copies of several of her non-fiction books. They are treasures. "You don't have to understand things for them to be," but "just because you don't understand doesn't mean an explanation doesn't exist." "A straight line is not the shortest distance between two points."
My final treasure is my very own Hitty. Unfortunately, I do not know much of the story of her life, other than she belonged to my Boston grandmother. I'm not even sure of her name. For most of my life, she lived behind glass doors in a monstrous antique secretary, at my Mom's house. I guess "modern" children are considered too wild to play with a china doll! She now lives with me, behind glass doors in a somewhat smaller secretary. I need to give her a pen and paper for her memoirs, but I'm afraid her adventures would be rather dull compared to Hitty's!
There is even a knitting connection: somewhere along the line, she acquired a knitted petticoat!
Now I just have 15 more books to read...and 18 more hats to knit!
1 comment:
Ta-da! I'll miss hearing about the adventures of all these amazing children... Thanks for sharing them here!
I love the knitted petticoat - I don't think I knew she had one! I bet she's had lots of adventures you just don't know about...maybe she'd like you to write them down!
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