Is there a magical website that helps you find books from your childhood?

[NigelWithTheBrie79]

I've tried googling details I remember for different books but no luck as of yet.

Try Booksleuth. But put what you remember on here too; lots of people have been able to find titles from other MNers. In

Ignore random In!

@NigelWithTheBrie79 I hope you find the books you are looking for.

I also have this - there is a book I remember and have tried Googling from time to time to no avail, I'm starting to wonder if I imagined it? A picture story book for children from the 60's or 70's about two French or German families, the children from one family are too thin and the children from the other family are too overweight, and they swap families and all become just right. The families were something like the Brindisis and the Bourgenones? or something like that?

Does anyone else remember a book like that?

@NigelWithTheBrie79 Post the details on here OP 😊 I’m sure someone will be able to help!

Fattypuffs and Thinifers? By Andre Maurois

[quote RobertaTheBuilder]@NigelWithTheBrie79 I hope you find the books you are looking for.

I also have this - there is a book I remember and have tried Googling from time to time to no avail, I'm starting to wonder if I imagined it? A picture story book for children from the 60's or 70's about two French or German families, the children from one family are too thin and the children from the other family are too overweight, and they swap families and all become just right. The families were something like the Brindisis and the Bourgenones? or something like that?

Does anyone else remember a book like that?[/quote]
I’m going for Fattipuffs and Thinifers, Andre Maurois.

OP, do try posting your book details here.

Ah no - but thank you so much for trying!

The families have at least 5 children each, and I think the doctor is concerned about their health, and they swap children. The drawings are very simple line drawings.

I don't know why I can't just forget about this!

Was it “Fattypuffs and Thinnifers”?

X post, sorry

ABE books advanced book search might be able to help.

Yes it's called Mumsnet!

Post what you remember on here or start a new thread chat does anyone know what book is. Likely will know fast!

I have one that stumps me - if anyone could help……?

I picked it up and read half of it on a family holiday, before my Mum saw me reading it and took it away as being too grown up! Always wondered what happened….. I remember the title being ‘Family Secrets’, but there are millions of books called that. This had a young girl (toddler?) picked up and taken by a man and they were driving across the country (America?). Not sure if the man was kidnapping or if he was someone taking her from a bad home life. I remember one scene in a petrol station where she wandered off and a horrible gas station attendant was trying to touch the girl.

The book would have been published 1993 or earlier, I suspect I read it in the 80s.

Any help at all!?! I’ve been through Good Reads for this title and it still eludes me!

There's a dedicated group on Goodreads called What's The Name of That Book where you can enter as many details as you can remember and other group members will try and help with suggestions. May be worth a try. It's quite a big group so a good chance of help there too.

The first one is about a girl called Janie or Jane. She has a best friend called Dottie. They live in lowestoft and run away to London together. They sleep on the circle line (though Dottie can't lie down like Janie.as she is too fat). They are young teens I think. I found this book on the bus and the cover was ripped. (Late 80s/early90s)

Second book. I think the main character is called Anastasia (not that one). It's American. I remember her parents have another baby which she initially resents. She smokes a cigar stub and gets caught. Ooh and she has a crush on a boy whose hair stands straight up. She uses a whole bottle of shampoo to recreat the look for herself. I remember thinking at the time that that wouldn't work.

Bonus book (OK third). An American family. No mother but there is a mother figure who is an employee but lives with them. The kids pool their spending money and go on adventures. There is a character they call the elephant. An old lady They dislike.
Thanks for the help.

@NigelWithTheBrie79 (brilliant name, love that film) is the second book the Anastasia series by Lois Lowry? She wore round glasses and they moved house and her bedroom had a turret. Her new baby brother is called Sam.

Thanks smolcat! I didn't realise there were so many books. I'm definitely going to see if I can get them second hand. Also yes best film ever

NigelWithTheBrie79. Your third book is "The Saturdays" by Elizabeth Enright. It's the first of a quartet. The old lady is called Mrs Oliphant.www.fantasticfiction.com/e/elizabeth-enright/melendy/

Always ask on here, I've had 2 books found with really vague clues to go off 🙂

I'm afraid I can't help with any books described so far, but I wondered if anyone recognised this book? My mum said that she remembered reading it to me and would love to read it to my DS. It's likely that she had it in the late 80s or early 90s

It's a Christmas book where a boy is learning to write. He wants to write a letter to Santa so him mum says she will write it out for him to copy. The boy picks up the wrong thing and accidentally writes out the shopping list instead of the letter to Santa. The boy gets the things on the shopping list and the rest of the book is him having a nice day enjoying them - things like carrots were on the list, so he visits some animals (horses?) to feed them the carrots.

I don’t know that one @xmasBook but it sounds really lovely.

Can I join in please?
My book is about a little poor kid from Liverpool who gets into all manner of scrapes. He gets kidnapped and manages to escape. He is also given £20 which he has to register with the police (!)

Oh I’ve got one, can anyone help me with this?

Short ish chapter book. Main character is a girl called Lucy. From illustrations she has dark curly hair. The story is about dogs, she wants a dog or rescues a dog. It has an orange cover I think with a picture in the middle.

Any ideas?

@xmasBook

I'm afraid I can't help with any books described so far, but I wondered if anyone recognised this book? My mum said that she remembered reading it to me and would love to read it to my DS. It's likely that she had it in the late 80s or early 90s

It's a Christmas book where a boy is learning to write. He wants to write a letter to Santa so him mum says she will write it out for him to copy. The boy picks up the wrong thing and accidentally writes out the shopping list instead of the letter to Santa. The boy gets the things on the shopping list and the rest of the book is him having a nice day enjoying them - things like carrots were on the list, so he visits some animals (horses?) to feed them the carrots.

It is about a girl rather than a boy but it sounds awfully like A Letter to Santa Claus by Rose Impey

I was an avid reader as a child ,I remember a book probably not a children's book as I read anything and everything,
A young women had had a child out of wedlock ( it was probably set in the 60,s or 70,s ) that she named Gaye ,they lived with her parents father not on the scene ,the women's mother took over most of the childcare whilst the young women worked ,
The women decided to take the child on holiday to a caraven for a weekend and for the first time had to do the childcare ( the child was about three ) somehow the child's father turned up and they spent time as a family and got married and lived happily ever after 🤣, I think the book was called ,long weekend ,or rainy weekend or something I have never been able to find it ,I know the story probably sounds dull but it's stayed with me for years!

@Panticus

That does looks very likely to be it - thank you.

I've ordered a second hand copy for my mum.