Heart of a Child Challenge Complete

Well, I had hoped to finish this challenge before we moved, and I made it. Yay for me.

I did kind of cheat though. First, I read Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown. However, I don't own a copy and it turns out my library doesn't own a copy either. So, I improvised and went to Wal Mart and read their copy. I actually felt kind of clever about the whole thing.

As to the book itself, it's short and simple. The pictures are rather ugly, but I remember spending hours reading that book with my dad and finding the mouse in all the pictures with the bedroom. I'm the oldest and my dad still talks about how smart I was as a baby finding the mouse every time :)

Next, I wanted to read Best of Enemies a Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys super mystery. However, my copy is at my parents house (far far away) , and my library didn't have a copy. So, I went to the local used bookstore and bought the only super mystery I could find: Out of Control by Carolyne Keene.

I have a soft spot for Nancy Drew. She was my reading staple for a very long time, and I would read her mysteries when I was too stressed to function in college. They are pretty cheesy, but there is something to relaxing about going back to an old friend and that's what all of her books are to me. Even the ones I haven't read (although not the ones published since like 2000 or something when her focus turns to fashion) all feel so comfortable to me.

So with that huge disclaimer out of the way, I will admit that I really enjoyed this story. I remember reading it before, so the mystery itself wasn't that big of a deal, but I enjoyed re-reading it. I can better understand why my mom thought I should be reading "real" literature in middle school (when I only wanted to read Nancy), but I still love her and will encourage any future female offspring to read her as well.

The Velveteen Rabbit, by Margery Williams

This book was the last one on the list, and it took forever for the library to get it in (someone turned it in 2 weeks late), but it's a nice short story. One of my friends says she was terrified of this book as a child, but I remember being fascinated by it. Particularly the idea that toys could become real. Though, I will admit that every time I got sick I would stress about all my toys getting burned.

Overall, this has been a fun challenge, and I am really glad I gave a challenge a shot. There are tons more out there that I am interested in doing, so hopefully this won't be the last challenge I do.