Edge-of-Your-Seat Excitement!

These books were on our family bookshelf at home, long before I was born:
They were from my father's childhood. My father was born in 1922, and in the times in which he grew up, there was only One Thing: airplanes. Notice his drawing of "Lindbergh's Plane." The newspaper article, tho' not of interest to you, contains several names that have become part of the history of our town:

On the second page in, we find a...bread sticker? Also, in the corner, we find a Christmas seal with the inscription "Season's Greetings 1934." Don't your kids put stickers all over everything they own? (I m'self covered all the white space on my life-size David Cassidy poster with banana stickers. Charming covered the drawers of his boyhood dresser with same.):

Naturally, more newspaper photos of airplane-related news covers the back pages:

Inside the front cover of Uncle Tom Andy Bill, an inscription, "To Robert on his tenth birthday, from Uncle Bob." This would be 1932. The books are from the first decade of the 1900's, so the books may have been Uncle Bob's first. Both books have evidence of hard usage. I love that.

I always knew those two books were on the bookshelf at home, but never thought to pick them up and read them. My mother gave me the books about twenty years ago, so they sat on *my* bookshelf!

I picked them up recently. They are both set in Indiana in the 1820's, when it was a "baby state." I read Uncle Tom Andy Bill first. It may be the most exciting book I have ever read! I was on the edge of my seat every chapter. First the boys are chased by bears, then almost lost in a cave, robbed and nearly murdered by highwaymen, found Indian treasure. I kept asking myself, "are they going to make it?" followed by a little embarrassment, because the stories are narrated by one of the boys as an old man, so we can assume they survived every adventure. For us girls, there is also a little romance included.

The Bears of Blue River is a collection of bear stories. These are all "legendary" bears: one that glows with fire, one that "cannot be killed," etc. Also extremely exciting. The author points out that it was very necessary to hunt these animals, as their numbers were very high. He is very respectful of nature in general, and the boy characters are good role models. I recommend both of these books highly, for boys or girls of middle elementary age. (or girls who are over 50, as I am!)

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I just wanted to give you a peek of my project which is "almost finished." It is a gift, so I can't do a proper unveiling for a couple of weeks yet. I have been a busy little worker bee here in the late of winter....

p.s. You can probably get the Charles Major books in your library. I do have an extra copy of Uncle Tom Andy Bill, so if you would like to have one for your own, let me know!