Most Popular Books by Maud Hart Lovelace

Best Friends Forever There are lots of children on Hill Street, but no little girls Betsy''s age. So when a new family moves into the house across the street, Betsy hopes they will have a little girl she can play with. Sure enough, they do—a little girl named Tacy. And from the moment they meet at Betsy''s fifth birthday party, Betsy and Tacy becoms such good friends that everyone starts to think of them as one person—Betsy-Tacy. Betsy and Tacy have lots of fun together. They make a playhouse from a piano box, have a sand store, and dress up and go calling. And one day, they come home to a wonderful surprise—a new friend named Tib. Ever since their first publication in the 1940''s, the Betsy-Tacy stories have been loved by each generation of young readers.

“I re-read these books every year, marveling at how a world so quaint—shirtwaists! Pompadours! Merry Widow hats!—can feature a heroine who is undeniably modern.” —Laura Lippman “There are three authors whose body of work I have reread more than once over my adult life: Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and Maud Hart Lovelace.” —Anna Quindlen Often considered Maud Hart Lovelace’s best novel, Emily of Deep Valley is now back in print. This gorgeous volume includes a new foreword by acclaimed young adult author Mitali Perkins, and compelling historical material about the real people who inspired Lovelace’s beloved characters. Emily of Deep Valley joins the Harper Perennial Modern Classics library next to other enduring favorites like A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Lovelace’s Betsy-Tacy books.

The adventures of Betsy, now a junior at Deep Valley High School in Minnesota.

Two best friends discover the joy of meeting someone new in the second book in this classic children’s series set in 1910 Minnesota. Betsy and Tacy are best friends. Then Tib moves into the neighborhood and the three of them start to play together. The grown-ups think they will quarrel, but they don’t. Sometimes they quarrel with Betsy’s and Tacy’s bossy big sisters, but they never quarrel among themselves. They are not as good as they might be. They cook up awful messes in the kitchen, throw mud on each other and pretend to be beggars, and cut off each other’s hair. But Betsy, Tacy, and Tib always manage to have a good time. Ever since their first publication in the 1940s, the Betsy-Tacy stories have been loved by each generation of young readers.

Betsy, Tacy, and Tib can''t wait to be ten. After all, getting two numbers in your age is the beginning of growing up—exciting things are bound to happen. And they do! The girls fall in love with the King of Spain, perform in the School Entertainment, and for the first time, go all the way over the Big Hill to Little Syria by themselves. There Betsy, Tacy, and Tib make new friends and learn a thing or two. They learn that new Americans are sometimes the best Americans. And they learn that they themselves wouldn''t want to be anything else. Ever since their first publication in the 1940s, the Betsy-Tacy stories have been loved by each generation of young readers.

A shy little girl learns that friendships can be formed in unsuspected ways.

Betsy, Tacy, and Tib are twelve—old enough to do lots of things...even go downtown on their own. There they see their first horseless carriage, discover the joys of the public library, and see a real play at the Opera House. They even find themselves acting in one! Best of all, they help a lonely new friend feel at home in Deep Valley—the most wonderful place in the world to grow up. Ever since their first publication in the 1940s, the Betsy-Tacy stories have been loved by each generation of young readers.

Heaven to Betsy: Betsy Ray is loving every minute of freshman year at Deep Valley High—with new and old friends all around her . . . not to mention boys! But most intriguing of all is the one she and her best friend, Tacy, dub "the Tall Dark Stranger." Betsy in Spite of Herself: Betsy is at the center of every activity as a Deep Valley High sophomore—and suddenly, thanks to her old friend Tib, she''s offered a golden opportunity for glorious transformation. But will she impress the special boy by becoming dramatic, mysterious Betsye—or would she be better off just being Betsy in spite of herself?

Betsy tours Europe in 1914.

Betsy Was a Junior: It''s the best school year ever, especially now that charming, funny Tib Muller is back in Deep Valley. But when her crowd gets into trouble, Betsy''s best year could turn out to be her worst. Betsy and Joe: Betsy always thought she and Joe Willard were made for each other—and now that summer''s over and senior year''s begun, it seems her dream is coming true! But her friend Tony Markham has come calling as well—and his intentions are definitely romantic.

The first four books in the beloved Betsy-Tacy series are ready to delight a new generation ofreaders—and to bring a grownup generation of readers back to the engrossingstories of their youth. Following the childhoods of Betsy Ray and her friendsin the late 1800s and early 1900s, this handsome anthology collects theoriginal Betsy-Tacy as well as Betsy, Tacy and Tib, Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill, and Betsy and Tacy Go Downtown. Forewords by Judy Blume,Esther Hautzig, and Johanna Hurwitz, andillustrations by Lois Lenski, will make readers ofall ages feel at home in the imaginative life of young Betsy Ray as she awakensto the challenges and triumphs of her home in quaint Mankato, Minnesota.

"Young Deedee DuGay knew everyone at Fort Snelling in the 1830s ... On an island in the Mississippi, near yet remote, lived Jasper Page, the leading fur trader in the territory ... And although he was far above her in social class, Deedee dared to love him. Their story is a rich and romantic re-creation of an important time in Minnesota history ... A new introduction compares the fictional Jasper Page to Henry H. Sibley, fur trader and first governor of Minnesota, upon whom the character was based"--Back cover.

After Betsy''s tour of Europe, she marries her old flame Joe Willard, and learns that marriage is a lot of work.

Betsy and the Great World: Betsy Ray is twenty-one and on the adventure of a lifetime: a solo tour of Europe! There''s even a handsome Italian, Marco, who''s going overboard for her—if only she could stop thinking about her ex-sweetheart Joe Willard. Betsy''s Wedding: When Betsy''s boat docks in New York, Joe is waiting there . . . with a ring! But she''s going to learn that marriage isn''t all candlelight, roses, and kisses. There''s also cooking, ironing, cleaning, and budgeting— and will she be able to find time to forge a writing career?

Maud Hart Lovelace--internationally famed author of the Betsy-Tacy children''s books--joined literary forces with her husband, Delos, to produce Gentlemen from England, first published in 1937. It''s the fictionalized story of a real nineteenth-century English colony near Fairmont, Minnesota, located not far from Maud Lovelace''s hometown of Mankato. Tales of the immigrant British men and women, striving to recreate English country estates on the Minnesota prairie, intrigued the Lovelaces. The authors'' thorough research became the basis for this vivid novel of colorful fox hunts, festive balls, and English family life set on the huge bean farms bought from a land speculator. A new introduction by Borealis Books editor Sarah P. Rubinstein sketches the history of the English colony and tells how the Lovelaces worked together to bring it alive in this delightful book.

Welcome back to Deep Valley! Winona Root is almost eight years old. More than anything in the world, she wants a pony for her birthday. She wishes so hard for a pony that she''s sure to get one--at least, that''s what she tells her friends Betsy, Tacy, and Tib. It''s only when the exciting day grows near that Winona begins to wonder: What if her father meant it when he said she couldn''t have a pony? In addition to her beloved Betsy-Tacy books, Maud Hart Lovelace wrote three more stories set in the fictional town of Deep Valley: Winona''s Pony Cart, Carney''s House Party and Emily of Deep Valley. Longtime fans and new readers alike will be delighted to find the Deep Valley books available again for the first time in many years.

Collection of myths and legends passed down through the centuries by South American Indians before the time of Christopher Columbus.

12 published short stories written by Maud and Delos Lovelace between the years of 1915 - 1928. Original illustrations and magazine covers included.

One Stayed at Welcome opens with the founding of Welcome by two young men, Larry and Dan, who became friends on their trek from the East. Their little town grows rapidly and within two years many new faces are to be found on the shores of Lake Welcome. Among the varied newcomers is an old school teacher and his daughter Lillie. Before a winter has passed both men are in love with her. Soon their hidden jealousy flames up in a youthful quarrel that reaches its climax the night of the great prairie fire, and with it comes a new friendship through mutual self-sacrifice.

Betsy is looking forward to a perfect senior year as Joe''s girlfriend.

After Tacy Kelly moves into the house across the street from Betsy Ray, the five-year-olds become inseparable friends. Includes biographical note.

Eight-year-old best friends, Betsy, Tacy, and Tib, share many adventures while playing together in their neighborhood.