February 12, 2005

• Yoh. Describe them here for starters, you never know. Of course, i'm really drunk at the moment, and have failed miserably at everything in life, but, hey, you never know!
• I'll pay attention to this thread, because I've found several childhood books in unexpected ways which served to release large chunks of memory. Describe away!
• Um... You know that they have these institutions, often run civicly or by academics, that house large repositories of books... And that often their employees are relatively knowledgable about said books... They're called, wait, lie-berries, or something like that. I've heard that you can even call them and describe a book, or go in person, and they'll try to find it for you. I mean, I wouldn't be caught dead in one myself, but maybe you don't have the same qualms....
• Yeah, librarians must LOVE "there's this book, I think it was green" questions. That's precisely why they went into the field.
• You want Loganberry Books' Stump the Bookseller, which is specifically for children's books. I have three librarian friends and they hate the 'There's this book, I think it was bluuuuue,' questions. They don't show it, but they do.
• They don't show it, but they do. Yes.
• I absolutely hate soap operas.
• Unfortunately the books I'd like to rediscover are largely unknown and by NZ authors, so I doubt I'll ever find them except by accident. I did, however, use google and basic plot ideas that I remembered to find a book I read as a kid called "Amy's Eyes" about a girl who turned into a doll while pining for the toy soldier she'd had who turned into a man and went to sea.
• Thanks for the incredibly non-snarky advice js, it's especially helpful because I work in a library. And yes, as others have noted, most librarians can't magically find a book based on descriptions such as, "uh, i think it had dragons in it?" Unfortunately, a lot of people, yourself seemingly included js, are under the impression that librarians must know EVERY single book in the library. Sorry to burst your bubble, but this is just not so. Perhaps you should actually visit a library before lecturing others on the proper use of said institutions. cobaltnine, that is exactly what I was looking for! thank you so much! I knew that such a place had to exist. And to stray and fatoudust, if I can't find a book any other way, i'll definitely post about it here, i just don't want to overrun mofi with book questions. thanks!
• murgatroid: please tell us about the books.
• Murgatroid, you might consider asking the proprietors of a good children's book store or a used book store with a large children's section. They might be able to help, and if the books are there, they know you'll probably buy them (providing them with the financial incentive to help you).
• Thanks for that Loganberry link, Colbaltnine! I've got my own mystery kid book I need to find!
• Some of the books people are looking for on that website are curious, to say the least.
• If those books are published in New Zealand too, it might actually be easier than you think. You might want to start at this list.. I don´t know how many years back your memories of those books lie, but if those are some time back, a guess at the publication date may be invaluable. Try the national library of New Zealand and trz the subject index.
• Hey, thanks Elrick. I'd never really thought I'd have any luck, so never tried to find out.
• Yeah, librarians must LOVE "there's this book, I think it was green" I'm a cataloging librarian, and I *swear* this comes up. "Should we include a tag for book colors?" It gets silly after that. Puce? Ecru? Teal? Used book stores are your friends here. When my nephew was born, I found all the classics at a good second-hand book store. Most with a general collection will have a children's section, and a good one will have good clean second-hand copies. Since so many children's books are also ones with illustrations booksellers value, they're worth the resale. When you get into young adult books, not so much, but that's a few years in the future.