Mary Grace and Deborah celebrate the beginning of a new school year by rereading "B" is for Betsy,, Carolyn Haywood's 1939 novel about a little girl navigating the complicated world of first grade. It was the first in a long series of books about Betsy and her friends.
Mentioned on this episode:
The twelve books in the Betsy series, on Goodreads
Haywood's Eddie series, on Goodreads
Haywood's Penny series, on Goodreads
Mary Grace's blog page where she discusses Dorothy Canfield Fisher's Understood Betsy (it's #7 on the list)
Haywood's New York TImes obituary from January 12, 1990, whicherroneously says that "B" is for Betsy was Haywood's first book
The Free Library of Philadelphia blog post about Haywood's relationship with artist Violet Oakley and the group of women artists in Philadelphia who were known as the Red Rose Girls
The Free Library of Philadelphia blog post "Carolyn Haywood: All Sugar, No Spice"
The Free Library of Philadelphia blog post about an unpublished novel about a boy whose father is in jail for selling heroin that was found in Haywood's papers is here.
Deborah and Mary Grace recommend Beverly Cleary's Ramona books for fans of "B" is for Betsy.
Rereading Your Childhood is is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other podcast platforms.
You can find Deborah’s author interviews on her blog, Books Q&A by Deborah Kalb, and you can find Mary Grace’s adventures in the 1920s on her blog, My Life 100 Years Ago.
#children's books
Podcast website at rereadingourchildhood.com