Beverly Cleary

I love Beverly Cleary's books. Mostly because they're awesome, of course, but also because Ramona, Beezus, Ellen, Henry Huggins, and all their friends live in the same neighborhood that my late, much-loved godmother Karen lived in, and it was a childhood thrill to pass by Klickitat street every time I went to visit her. Cleary worked as a children's librarian for various libraries along the West Coast, and, like Gertrude Chandler Warner, she aimed her books at children who were struggling to learn to read. Unlike Warner's Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny, though, Cleary's little creations are anything but saintly, which makes her stories even more satisfying. (I'd back little Ramona G. Quimby against the entire Alden family in a fight.)

Aftertaste:
I think Beezus deserves her own space on Cleary's webpage. She always gets the short end of the stick, does Beezus.

Availability:
Everywhere.

Other Recommendations:
The Boxcar Children series, by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Harriet the Spy and Sport, by Louise Fitzhugh

Website:
http://www.beverlycleary.com/ -