#loretta mason potts

[phoebenpiperx]

9 favourite most reread books

Thanks to @retrieve-the-kraken for the tag. It's hard for me to list my fave books, so instead I'm listing my most reread books. Here's the list (which is a really eclectic collection); my comments on each book are below the cut:

1. INTO THE DREAM by William Sleator

2. LORETTA MASON POTTS by Mary Chase

3. THE ALL-OF-A-KIND FAMILY series by Sydney Taylor

4. ABOUT THE B'NAI BAGELS by E.L. Konigsberg

5. GAUDY NIGHT by Dorothy L. Sayers

6. DIED ON A RAINY SUNDAY by Joan Aiken

7. LONESOME DOVE by Larry McMurtry

8. MAURICE by E.M Forster

9. All 4 DRAMA! books by Paul Ruditis

1. INTO THE DREAM by William Sleator = It involves prescient dreams, telekinesis, UFOs, and the most terrifying of all things: ferris wheels! (Yes, I've had weird nightmares about ferris wheels my whole life, which is probably why I was first attracted to this book!) I got this book in 5th or 6th grade, and I reread it every few years when I need some shivers down my spine!

2. LORETTA MASON POTTS by Mary Chase = This creepy book, once again with a smart, quiet boy as viewpoint character, involves a long-lost unremembered sister, a secret passage in a closet, a palace, and an enchanted bridge (and has great illustrations like the one on this cover.) I loved this book and reread the library's copy over and over as a kid (and finally got my own copy!)

3. THE ALL-OF-A-KIND FAMILY series by Sydney Taylor = The series is about a Jewish family of 5 girls (thus all-of-a-kind, though at the end of the first book a baby boy is born) living in NYC in the 1910s. Although my personality is probably more like Ella or Sarah, my fave was always Henny, who was rambunctious and got in lots of trouble. I loved all the details of old-time New York AND all the Jewish holidays that were celebrated.

4. ABOUT THE B'NAI BAGELS by E.L. Konigsberg = It’s a fun book about a boy studying for his Bar Mitzvah while dealing with his mom managing his Little League baseball team, but at its core it’s about the heartbreak of losing a best friend. “Great pains make great heroes, but toothaches just make lousy batting averages.”

5. GAUDY NIGHT by Dorothy L. Sayers = This is a mystery novel set in Oxford in the 1930s; it's the 3rd in a series of 4 novels involving the romance between detective Lord Peter Wimsey and author Harriet Vane (though this one is primarily from Harriet's pov). I just reread this last week, having just got back from Oxford so I wanted to read it while the city layout was still fresh in my mind.

6. DIED ON A RAINY SUNDAY by Joan Aiken is a British thriller about a young mother dealing with creepy household help and lots of chilling rain. After checking it out from my school library, I left it lying around the house and came back to find my mom reading it and unwilling to put it down! We ended up sitting side by side on our floor heater, reading the page-turning finale together, and I’ve reread it many times since.

7. LONESOME DOVE by Larry McMurtry = My mom tried to get me to watch this Western miniseries but I simply couldn’t get into it. A few years later I stumbled upon the middle of the series and got totally addicted. I got the book and ended up reading its 945 pages three times back to back...while living in London! I remember riding the tube home, sobbing as I read the final pages, and then flipping to the front and starting it again, something I’ve never done with any other book.

8. MAURICE by E.M Forster = This story about homosexual love during Edwardian times wasn’t published until after Forster’s death, and the book demonstrates the pain of having to hide one’s true self from the world. “For during the long struggle he had forgotten what Love is, and sought not happiness...but repose.”

9. All 4 DRAMA! books by Paul Ruditis = The high school narrator in this series is gay, “But don’t worry. This isn’t one of those angst-filled books where I’m struggling to come to terms with what it all means. I’ve long since accepted it. I’m gay. I’m over it.” These books are a fun, snarky take on musical theatre, with a play as the title for every chapter and lots of musical references. These are the books I read when I’m doing a show and need a reminder that there’s always chaos backstage in every theatrical production (though I've never done a quadruple-cast show where the leads keep getting taken out!) A large portion of the 4th book takes place at the Ren Faire (and the narrator spends most of his time in the stocks because he keeps using anachronistic devices like a cell phone!) Just a warning, though--the end of the 4th book sets it up for an awesome 5th book, but the series was canceled, so don't go looking for it! But there's closure for the important stuff so you're fine! 😁

And I'll tag @kaysonthejackal, @prettyinsoulpunk, and anyone else who may want to make their own list of faves, etc.

[nyrbclassics]

NYRB Fall Preview 2020: NYRB Kids

Last up in our fall preview are two classics from our Children’s Collection, newly reissued as paperbacks in our NYRB Kids series.

Mary Chase, Loretta Mason Potts (September)

Ten-year-old Colin Mason is convinced he’s the smartest, best, and oldest kid in his family. Then, much to his horror, he discovers he’s not the eldest at all: he has a glum and gangly older sister, Loretta Mason Potts. Soon, Colin is secretly following Loretta down a hidden tunnel that leads from a bedroom closet to a whole other world—where she is mysteriously beloved by all, no matter how rude she is.

Eleanor Farjeon, The Little Bookroom (October)

This selection of twenty-seven favorite stories selected by Eleanor Farjeon herself are heartwarming and delightful. Inside you’ll find powerful—and sometimes exceedingly silly—monarchs, and commoners who are every bit their match; musicians and dancers who live for art rather than earthly reward; and a goldfish who wants to marry the moon.

[universitybookstore]

The late Mary Chase is having a revival! First, the Roundabout Theatre Company brought her play Harvey back to Broadway (starring Jim Parsons) and now NYRB has reissued her novel Loretta Mason Potts as one of their handsome, hardcover Children's Collection editions.