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mdin
02-24-2005, 01:33 AM
Hey, I'm trying to purchase some of my favorite YA novels so I can have a library of all my favorite books throughout the ages. (Yes, my wife thinks I'm crazy, too.) I've picked up all the Choose Your Own Adventures and copies of things like Interstellar Pig and Harriet the Spy, etc., but I need help finding the title of a book I read sometime around 1987. I was really sick and home from school, and I read the whole thing in one day. Here's a rough plot:

It's set around high school age, and the main character is an awkward girl who wants to be popular. She hangs out with some bad people, and they end up kidnapping one of their teachers. The teacher has a heart condition and has to take nitroglycerin pills, and there's one scene where they take the pills and crush them to see if they'd blow up.

Anyone?
TemlynWriting
02-24-2005, 06:17 AM
You're not crazy at all. I love collecting my favorite books, even from my childhood. I'll have to find some and share titles later when I'm more up to it. For now, I believe this may be what you're looking for?

Killing Mr. Griffin, by Lois Duncan

Is that it? :)
lucyishome
02-24-2005, 08:27 AM
I don't think i's crazy either. I am lucky as my oldest daugter has a lot of the books I loved to read throughout my childhood. So whenever I feel the need I just ask to borrow one from her.

Anne
Chacounne
02-24-2005, 09:16 AM
I don't think you're crazy either :) ; one of my fifteen book cases is devoted to my favourite children's books.

Chacounne
mdin
02-24-2005, 12:38 PM
Killing Mr. Griffin, by Lois Duncan



You rock. Thanks.
TemlynWriting
02-24-2005, 09:57 PM
You rock. Thanks.

No problemo! I love this stuff! And btw, I haven't seen it, but I do believe they made a movie based on this book.
Lauri B
02-25-2005, 07:00 PM
I've been collecting The Happy Hollisters for years, and my goal is to get a complete set with nice dust jackets. You'd be amazed at how many people buy and sell them on Ebay. The books are totally dopey but really comforting. It's the reading equivalent of comfort food.
stormie
02-25-2005, 07:32 PM
Happy Holisters! I loved those books. I have the first one, but without the dust jacket. MY favorite was The Happy Holisters and Sea Gull Beach (at least I think that was the title).
Tora
03-07-2005, 07:36 PM
I have been trying to find this book for about ten years now, I was read it by my teacher at school and really want to read it to my niece. It is about a boy who takes his horse and gets stucking a snow drift - his family thinks he has been killed but he is sent into another world where he has 8 worlds to get through to get home, I remember the first was a world of fish and the last and ultimate was the scorpion which he spends the whole journey in fear of. When he finally arrives there he has to reason with the scorpion for his return and is presented with the decision of the scorpion taking the horses life (his best friend on the whole world) or stay together forever in this world. The horse ends up sacrificing itself and the boy makes it home....much the amazment of his family.......

It truly was the most amazing story I have ever heard but I have never been able to remember the author or the title...................does this ring a bell to anyone?
MacAllister
03-07-2005, 07:40 PM
I've been collecting The Happy Hollisters for years, and my goal is to get a complete set with nice dust jackets. You'd be amazed at how many people buy and sell them on Ebay

Oh. My. God. I thought I was the only one in the world who read the Happy Hollisters as a kid. I have most of them, now. Lovingly collected in little used bookstores all over the country.


I adored those books as a kid. Read them over and over. Who didn't love to hate Joey Brill?
Zolah
04-07-2005, 06:10 PM
If anyone else is desperately searching for a book, but cannot remember title or author, they ought to go here:
www.abebooks.com (http://www.abebooks.com)
Go to the US based Booksleuth section and post a query. Try to give as much detail as possible, in both the body of the post and the title of it (and don't title your query 'Looking for book' it drives everyone mad). These guys have an amazing track record and have helped hundreds of people (including me). And it's free!
TemlynWriting
04-07-2005, 09:57 PM
If anyone else is desperately searching for a book, but cannot remember title or author, they ought to go here:
www.abebooks.com (http://www.abebooks.com)
Go to the US based Booksleuth section and post a query. Try to give as much detail as possible, in both the body of the post and the title of it (and don't title your query 'Looking for book' it drives everyone mad). These guys have an amazing track record and have helped hundreds of people (including me). And it's free!

Thanks so much for that link, Zolah!!! And welcome! :)
Zolah
04-08-2005, 12:12 AM
Thank you - and glad to be of service!:Sun:
spacejock2
04-08-2005, 07:02 PM
"Hey, I'm trying to purchase some of my favorite YA novels so I can have a library of all my favorite books throughout the ages. (Yes, my wife thinks I'm crazy, too.)"

Hell, if you're crazy then I'm a complete nutcase. We have about 400 kids books, 90% of which I read as a kid. I spent hours (and dollars) tracking them down, and enjoyed every second of the hunt - and it's still going on now.

The best bit is when you can buy other books by the same authors you loved as a kid. I spent several years tracking down one book (from a 1950's science fiction series), and wrote an article on the chase here:

http://www.spacejock.com.au/Magnus.html

So, keep collecting those books and stuff the guilty feelings. If you want to make life harder you can even look for first editions, although that can get very expensive and with these books it's the stories & memories we care about, not the collection value.