Thursday, September 13, 2007

FAW: Maud Hart Lovelace

I suspect that there are several generations of girls out there who remember Maud Hart Lovelace's Betsy-Tacy books with a great deal of fondness and who will lament with me the fact that they are now going out of print. (Seriously, sad day here!) Where else did we learn about eating dinner on a cloud, the Big Hill, pony carts, and the color green? Betsy, Tacy, Tib, Winona, and the whole gang are as much a part of my childhood as Winnie the Pooh (by which I mean the book) and Anne Shirley. They are sweet while avoiding schmaltz.

Incidentally, the more minor books in the series, Carney's House Party, and Emily of Deep Valley are both just as good as the Betsy books, although somewhat different in tone.

In the end, I think that everyone who has read the Betsy-Tacy books will know exactly what I'm talking about and those who haven't won't. Which means they should go read the books, as soon as possible because they're likely to disappear. Seriously, several of them are getting more and more expensive on Amazon, which is sad because I wanted to buy copies.

Interestingly, much of the series is based on the life of the author and most of Betsy's friends are traceable to friends of Maud Lovelace.

Favorite Books
Betsy-Tacy
Betsy-Tacy, and Tib
Betsy and Tacy go Over the Big Hill
Betsy and Joe
Betsy and the Great World
Betsy's Wedding
Carney's House Party
Emily of Deep Valley


Handy Links
Maud Hart Lovelace on Wikipedia
The Betsy-Tacy Society
The Betsy-Tacy Homepage
The Betsy-Tacy Catalog

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