I loved books for Christmas

I may have been one of the few children that always asked for books for Christmas and it was well known if you didn't know what to get me as a gift, a book would always be appreciated. I loved books, cared for them, re-read them often, even books I'd received as a child were often re-read when I was in my teens.

Crazy Quilt, by Paul Brown was the first book I remember very clearly because it contained two of my favorite things. It was a book about a pony and it was profusely illustrated by a wonderful horse artist. The local library had it and I checked it out repeatedly, from the time I was 5 years old. My mother decided that I wasn't going to get tired of it, so it was a Christmas gift when I was in the 2nd grade. I read it over and over and when I was tired of reading it, I would use it as an "artists guide" and try to draw the pictures myself.

It was well worn and well loved and one of many things lost in the ranch house fire the day after I graduated from high school.

Thanks to the Internet, used book websites and the assistance of a very helpful librarian, I located an affordable copy of this book (the first ones I found were $400!) and it arrived in yesterday's mail. My Christmas present to myself! Not just a book, but memories.


I didn't remember, however, that the pony was a circus pony. I do remember writing a story about a circus pony when I was in the 3rd grade and since I had not been to a circus, this was probably where I got the idea.


What I do remember very clearly after seeing the book again, is where I got the idea to get my dog up behind me when I was riding. My "pony" was not a pony, but a small horse and too tall for my dog to jump up on so my solution was to back the horse up to the tailgate of our pickup. My dog then jumped into the bed of the pickup and from there onto the horse's rump. She never particularly liked the ride and the horse was not impressed, but I did have the satisfaction of getting the job done. I also remember very clearly, my disappointment that we had nowhere with water deep enough to be belly deep on a horse or deep enough for me to dive off the horse and swim. Not that I could swim, you understand, but it looked like so much fun I don't think it ever occurred to me that I would have to learn to swim first.


This is, of course, a used copy, well used, as the cover is a bit frayed at the corners and the pages are soft from much handling. I'm sure it looks very much like my copy did and I can only imagine that this book once belonged to a little girl much like I was, who read and re-read and looked at the pictures and dreamed.