Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Books of my childhood - The Mandie series


My oldest sister, Rachel, loved the Mandie series and by the time I was old enough to read them she had a decent start on the entire collection. I believe there are 40 books in the original series and then a college series was started before the author, Lois Gladys Leppard died.
For Christmas, I bought Rachel and Winnie each a copy of the new movie based on the first book in the series. It was hilarious because we were comparing everything to the book, from her relationship with her step-mother to the architectural design and integrity of the house. So much fun. :) After watching the movies, I decided to re-read the series, just for fun. They are such an easy read, since they are intended for young adults. I wondered if re-reading them would make me wonder/question my original love of the series, but I still enjoy them. I am currently reading book 4.
I love the time period that the books are written in (early 1900s) and the fact that the books involve many historical facts, characters, and actual events.
There really is no way to give a full summary of the series because of the fact that it involves so many books but here is the official summary from the Bethany House Publisher website:
At the turn of the nineteenth century, Mandie Shaw is about to become a teenager. Living in the backwoods of North Carolina, she soon finds herself involved in mysteries, adventures...and fun! Joining Mandie are her new friends, including Celia, Joe, Molly, Jonathan, and, of course, her lovable kitten, Snowball. Each Mandie book is a journey into a world of excitement and a peek into the life of a girl very much like you! More than six million MANDIE BOOKS have been sold.


I am considering doing a series of my favorite books from my childhood. So give me some input.
Has anyone else ever read these books? What were your favorite books from your childhood?

4 comments:

Crazy Shenanigans-JMO said...

I've never heard of these! I don't remember them at all from when I was a kid. I use to be all about the Nancy Drew books. The Bearenstein Bears and usually the golden books.

Anonymous said...
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. said...

Yes, I love them too! When Rachel got back here with the movie the kids and I watched it twice! It's so funny...but I think DJ has an old soul as they would call it. He loves movies like that. I wanted to start getting a book here and there to start my very own collection since I have always borrowed books from y'all in the past.( I mean who needs to buy when you can borrow from your cousins that have an awesome collection!) What others are your favorite?

Shoshanah said...

I've never heard of them, although they sound like something I would have loved when I was younger. And probably still would now.

And its not really a surprise, but most of my favorites were historical fiction series, like The Little House Books, Anne of Green Gable Books, and Betsy-Tacy books (they have a similar feel, just slightly less known). And of course, the Baby-Sitters Club books