Nostalgic Travel

Powered by a flight of nostalgia I have revisited the remarkable and virtually unknown Mushroom Planet.*

In my youth my bibliophilic tendencies were awakened by two significant influences: 1) my cub-scout den mother who was the one who introduced me to the public library (as an idea, via the actual instance in Kansas City, KS), which I thereafter visited every two weeks;† and 2) the Scholastic Book Club (SBC).

I don't remember exactly which years or grades were involved, but I seem to have memories of SBC events in sixth grade and probably a few years before that. Periodically (once a month? every two weeks?) we'd get a brochure that offered several book titles in special SBC editions that we could own for ourselves! It was a good way to encourage reading and various other good, civic responsibilities (like consumerism), but it also created my addiction for buying books, I'm sure.

Nevertheless, it was great. I loved reading and owning these books. The prices we paid were something like 40, 50, maybe 75 cents or so; maybe I had a budget of $2, but I don't really remember beyond knowing that I couldn't buy more than 2 or 3 at one time. But over the course of time I had probably a couple dozen titles and treasured every one.

This is about the only title I have remembered for all these years, perhaps because the title is kind of silly: The Incredible Flight to the Mushroom Planet. I don't recall at all what happened in the book, but I know I enjoyed reading it. As I could read from the image of the cover, the book was written by Eleanor Cameron.

And now — quite unlike 40 years ago — thanks to the marvels of the internet and Wikipedia, I know more about Eleanor Frances Butler Cameron (1912-1996) than I ever did. For instance, she was Canadian, but lived most of her life in California, where she married Ian Cameron. The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet was published in 1954 (two years before I was born), and it was only the first of a series of six "mushroom planet" books that Cameron wrote. She wrote one other series of five book (about one Julia Redfern), plus at least four other books.

What a lovely flight that was.
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* The trip was made possible by Flickr user jl.incrowd and his "Nostalgia for the Scholastic Book Club, circa '60's & '70's" photo set. Here is the page with this cover.

† After a hiatus of some years, I continue the tradition by visiting our Bowie library virtually every week, on Monday nights. This began as something to do while Isaac was conducting his Monday-night handbell rehearsals. It's also the reason I've gone once a month, on Mondays, to the writer's group meeting, which I've found salubrious. I believe that it was this early exposure to the library, and subsequent experiences with research, that have firmed my notion that librarians are the best people.

Posted on November 15, 2008 at 00.21 by jns · Permalink
In: All, Books, Personal Notebook

2 Responses

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  1. Written by Melanie
    on Saturday, 15 November 2008 at 21.24
    Permalink

    Thanks for this link; I enjoyed looking through those covers and I found one of my own favourites from my Scholastic days, Magic Elizabeth. I have to admit I never did have a copy of the fabulous looking Mushroom Planet, but now I so want one.

    I believe that it was this early exposure to the library, and subsequent experiences with research, that have firmed my notion that librarians are the best people.
    But of course!

  2. Written by Wayne
    on Wednesday, 26 November 2008 at 11.32
    Permalink

    OK, I didn't realize there were *six* Mushroom Planet books. I knew of the Return, and of "Time and Mr Bass."

    I was sure I had posted on this, but it appears not. Still it received a glancing blow here:
    http://sparkleberrysprings.com/v-web/b2/?p=608

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