Rereading Our Childhood

On this episode, Mary Grace and Deborah read Virginia Hamilton's 1974 novel M.C. Higgins the Great, about a teenaged boy in Appalachia whose life is turned upside down when two strangers come to town. Hamilton won the Newbery Medal for the book; she was the first African American to win the award. 

Mentioned on the episode: 

Also by Virginia Hamilton: 

Zeely (1967) 

The House of Dies Drear (1968) 

The Planet of Junior Brown (1971) 

Other Rereading Our Childhood episodes: 

Rereading Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by E.L. Konigsburg 

Rereading The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder 

Rereading The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum 

Also mentioned: 

Children's Books and their Creators, edited by Anita Silvey 

Goodreads reviews of M.C. Higgins the Great 

Dicey's Song by Cynthia Voigt 

Recommended for fans of M.C. Higgins, the Great: other books by Virginia Hamilton (Deborah), Where the Lilies Bloom by Vera and Bill Cleary (Mary Grace) 

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago. 

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting. 

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

On this episode, Deborah rereads, and Mary Grace reads, a book that needs no introduction: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, also known as The Wizard of Oz. They discuss weird sequels, the history of sunglasses, the monoculture, and, of course, the movie. 

Mentioned on the episode:

Also by L. Frank Baum: 

The Tin Woodman of Oz (1918)

Father Goose, His Book (1899)

Other Rereading Our Childhood episodes:

Rereading Black Hearts in Battersea by Joan Aiken 

Rereading Half Magic by Edward Eager 

Also mentioned:

The Wizard of Oz, the movie. You can see the original trailer, which is fascinating (though blurry), with lots of talk about the book, here. 

The Wiz, the adaptation starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. You can see the trailer here.

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, by Gregory Maguire.

Recommended for fans of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: 

Mary Grace: Half Magic and other books by Edward Eager

Deborah: other books in the Oz series, The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander.

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Mary Grace and Deborah commemorate the 100th anniversary of Joan Aiken’s birth by reading Black Hearts in Battersea, the second in her Wolves Chronicles series, featuring resourceful orphans and sinister plots in an alt-history version of nineteenth-century London.

Mentioned on the episode:

Other books by Aiken:

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

Nightbirds on Nantucket

Jane Fairfax

Also mentioned:

The Shortest History of England by James Hawes

Post on the blog A Son of the Rock questioning King James's Scottish accent

“What’s Your 1918 Girl Job? A Quiz,” Mary Grace’s blog post My Life 100 Years Ago that mentions Jane Fairfax. (Jane Fairfax also comes up on another post, “Jane Austen’s Life 100 Years Ago.”)

“Writing Without Limits: Joan Aiken’s The Wolves of Willoughby Chase Series,” Albion Magazine Online (discusses Aiken taking time to settle on a main character)

The best and worst of April 1918: Magazines, stories, faint praise, and neologisms (Mary Grace’s blog post that mentions Conrad Aiken)

A well-known letter from T.S. Eliot to Conrad Aiken is quoted here.

The Practical Magic of Joan Aiken, the Greatest Children’s Writer You’ve Likely Never Read (The New Yorker)

Blog on Aiken by her daughter Lizza Aiken

Blog post by Lizza Aiken about illustrator Pat Marriot

Suggested reading for fans of Black Hearts in Battersea: Other books in the series (Deborah), The Book of Three and its sequels (Mary Grace) 

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Deborah and Mary Grace discuss Beverly Cleary's 1968 classic Ramona the Pest. This was the first book starring Ramona, who appeared in Cleary's earlier books as Beezus's annoying little sister before going on to become Cleary's most beloved character. 

Mentioned in this episode:

Other books by Beverly Cleary:

Ellen Tebbits (1951)

Henry Huggins (1950)

Henry and Beezus (1952)

Mitch and Amy (1967)

Dear Mr. Henshaw (1983, winner of the 1984 Newbery Medal)

Other Rereading Our Childhood episodes:

Rereading "B" is for Betsy

Rereading A Wrinkle in Time

Rereading Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

Rereading Pippi Longstocking

Rereading Anne of Green Gables

Adaptations of the Ramona books:

Ramona and Beezus, 2010 movie

Ramona, 1988-89 Canadian TV series

Also mentioned:

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton (1939)

"Stereotypes in Beverly Cleary's HENRY HUGGINS" on the blog American Indians in Children's Literature, February 24, 2023

Beverly Cleary's New York Times obituary, March 27, 2021

Madeleine L'Engle's Austin Family series

Deborah Kalb's The President and Me series

Recommended for Ramona fans: Anne of Green Gables (Mary Grace), The Mouse and the Motorcycle and other books by Cleary (Deborah)

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of 

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Mary Grace and Deborah discuss Ellen Raskin’s 1971 mystery romp, The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel), about a woman’s decades-long search for her husband, whom she married as a child. (It’s a long story.) The book is full of word games, puzzles, and creative illustrations by Raskin, who was also a graphic artist.

Other books by Ellen Raskin:

Nothing Ever Happens on My Block (1967). This picture book, a childhood favorite of Mary Grace’s, was the first book Raskin wrote after illustrating many children’s books written by others.

Figgs and Phantoms (1974), a 1975 Newbery Honor Book.

The Westing Game (1978), winner of the 1979 Newbery Medal.

Also mentioned:

Raskin’s obituary in the New York Times (August 10, 1984).

A 2023 article in Allure about whether eating chocolate is bad for your skin.

The 2012 School Library Journal poll about the best children’s novels of all time, with The Westing Game at #9.

The Goodreads reviews of The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel) (highlight: Jeremy’s.)

Other Rereading Our Childhood episodes mentioned on this episode:

Rereading February’s Road by John Verney

Rereading Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh

Rereading Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers

Rereading Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry

Rereading A Wrinkle in TIme by Madeleine L’Engle

Rereading Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective by Donald Sobol

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

 Mary Grace and Deborah discuss Misty of Chincoteague, Marguerite Henry's classic 1947 novel about Misty and her mother Phantom, wild ponies from the island of Assateague, and Paul and Maureen, a brother and sister from the neighboring island of Chincoteague who long to own them. 

Other books by Henry:

Stormy, Misty’s Foal (1963)

Justin Morgan Had a Horse (1945), a Newbery Honor Book

King of the Wind (1948), winner of the 1949 Newbery Medal

Sea Star, Orphan of Chincoteague (1949)

Misty’s Twilight (1992)

Also mentioned on the podcast:

The life of Thomas Downing, the proprietor of the famous 19th-century New York restaurant Downing’s Oyster House, is discussed in “Going Deep into Oyster Country,” New York Times, December 3, 2021. Downing, who was African American, grew up in the Chincoteague community.

Recommended for fans of Misty of Chincoteague:

Mary Grace: Homecoming (1981) and Dicey’s Song (1982) by Cynthia Voight. 

Deborah: Stormy, Misty’s Foal (1963) and Sea Star, Orphan of Chincoteague (1949) by Marguerite Henry (1963).

An obituary of Maureen Beebe, the real-life model for Maureen in the story, appeared in delmarvanow.com in May 2019.

You can learn more about the real-life Misty in “The True Story of Misty of Chincoteague, the Pony Who Stared Down a Devastating Nor’Easter,” Smithsonian Magazine, October 16, 2018. 

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Mary Grace and Deborah discuss The Book of Three (1964) by Lloyd Alexander.

Other books in the series:
The Black Cauldron (1965)
The Castle of Llyr (1966)
Taran Wanderer (1967)
The High King (1968)

Other books by Alexander:

Time Cat (1963), discussed by Deborah on a blog post
And Let the Credit Go (1955)
Janine is French (1960)
The Wizard in the Tree (1974)
Park Avenue Vet (1960)
Fifty Years in the Doghouse (1964)
The King's Fountain (1971)

Also mentioned:

A 2012 School Library Journal poll

Sam, Banks, and Moonshine by Evaline Ness

Trailer of the Disney movie The Black Cauldron

2010 Slate article on the movie The Black Cauldron

Also recommended:

Deborah: A Wrinkle in Time, The Phantom Tollbooth

Mary Grace: The Owl Service, The Dark is Rising series

The English Bookshop, a wonderful bookstore in Uppsala, Sweden. 

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Deborah and Mary Grace discuss Anne of Green Gables, L.M. Montgomery's beloved 1908 tale of a strong-willed and imaginative orphan.

Other books in the series:
Anne of Avonlea
Anne of the Island
Anne of Windy Poplars
Anne's House of Dreams
Anne of Ingleside
The Blythes are Quoted  (short stories)

Also mentioned:

Some books and poems that Anne reads:
"Curfew Must Not Ring Tonight" by Rose Hartwick Thorpe
"The Lady of Shallot" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Ben Hur by Lew Wallace
"Marmion" by Sir Walter Scott

The Word Cloud Classics edition of Anne of Green Gables that Mary Grace read in 2018

You can see the illustrations by William and Mary Claus in this copy. 

"Suicide Secret of Anne of Green Gables Author," The Guardian, September 23, 2008

Trailer for Netflix series Anne With an E

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Recommended  for fans of Anne of Green Gables: Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (Mary Grace), Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin, Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (Deborah)

"Bosom Friends: Lesbian Desire in L. M. Montgomery’s Anne Books," Laura Robinson, Canadian Literature, Spring 2004

"A Visual History of Romantic Friendship," The Marginalian

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting. 

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Mary Grace introduces Deborah to John Verney’s 1961 novel February’s Road. 

Other books by Verney:

Friday’s Tunnel (1959)
Ismo (1964)
Seven Sunflower Seeds (1968)
Samson’s Hoard (1973)
Going to the Wars (1955)
A Dinner of Herbs (1966)

Also mentioned:

The Arm of the Starfish (1965) by Madeleine L’Engle,

Verney’s illustrations.

A post on the blog Clothes in Books.

The illustrations of Edward Ardizzone.

An obituary of Verney in The Independent.

A post on the Farnham Trust’s website about Verney. 

Jojo Moyes on Verney in a Daily Mail interview.

Margaret Drabble’s The Millstone (1965).

Edits to the American editions of the Harry Potter books.

Deborah recommends the Madeleine L’Engle. She and Mary Grace discussed L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time on a previous episode.

Mary Grace recommends Nancy Mitford’s The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Climate.

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com     

Deborah and Mary Grace reread Stuart Little, E.B. White's 1945 classic about the adventures of a New York boy who looks exactly like a mouse. They discuss their early memories of reading  Stuart Little (or, in Mary Grace's case, having her mom read it to her), Garth Williams' wonderful illustrations, and pioneering children's librarian Annie Carroll Moore's vehement opposition to the book. 

Mentioned on this episode:

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White

The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White

Essays of E.B. White

Letters of E.B. White

"Death of a Pig," essay by E.B. White, The Atlantic (paywall). (Mary Grace recalled erroneously that this essay was about the birth of a big.) 

"Celebrating Children's Book Week--and a pioneering librarian," Mary Grace's post on her blog, mylife100yearsago.com, about Annie Carroll Moore

The Rabbits' Wedding, the children's book by Stuart Little editor Garth Williams that was banned from Alabama libraries because a black and a white rabbit get married

"The Lion and the Mouse: The Battle that Shaped Children's Literature" by Jill Lapore, The New Yorker, July 14, 2008

Stuart Little, 1999 movie (trailer)

The podcast is hosted by Buzzsprout at rereadingourchildhood.buzzsprout.com and is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other podcast platforms.

You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.

This episode was edited by Adam Linder of Bespoken Podcasting.

#children's books

Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com