Incognito Mosquito - Private Insective: I gotta check this one out.

I think it might have been a series; I don't remember a lot of details except for one scene where he goes to a bar and orders a milk. And when he gets suspicious looks, he adds, "Put it in a dirty glass!"

Anyone else read the McGirk mysteries and the Ghost Squad books by E.W. Hildick?

Another author I read a lot was Edward Eager. Half Magic, Seven-Day Magic, Knight's Castle...

Lois Duncan was one of my favorites. Especially "Killing Mr. Griffin" cause my math teacher pissed me off.

Yeah, I read several of hers. And Joan Lowery Nixon.

I loved Edward Eager. In the wake of Harry Potter, many of his books are now back in print.

I loved the Origin of Fear Street books. (There were two, weren't there? Or am I just remembering two Sweet Valley Saga books and assuming that all the "historical backstory" books that came out around then had two volumes?)

That one was actually a trilogy. The 2nd one was the best though. Wow. I really do remember all of these. I even remember the cover.

Encycloperdia Brown is still popular at the library. same with Edward Eager.

I want to get the Edward Eager books, especially "Half Magic," but I would like to have them as the sixties vintage hardbacks I used to check out from the library. Today's paperback editions just don't have the cachet of well-handled old paper.

And the "Chronicles of Narnia," too. There are so many editions out there with extremely poor reproduction of the delicate black and white illustrations. It's so sad to see the pictures all muddy.

Anyone else see the Onion's Encyclopedia Brown obituary last fall? I laughed a lot.

I want to get the Edward Eager books, especially "Half Magic," but I would like to have them as the sixties vintage hardbacks I used to check out from the library.

Ooh, yeah, I'm definitely like that about books. I want to collect the Pike books, but with the cover art I grew up with, not these bizarre reissues with generic photos on them.

I still have the original Narnia paperbacks with the Pauline Baynes illustrations. They're getting a little fragile, but I'm never letting them go.

Hmm, I have my original Narnia books, purchased when I was in elementary school (early 80s). I have my dad's original Lord of the Rings books, though, and they are, well, not in mint condition by any stretch, but it's so great to have old versions, not movie-tie in versions.

so great to have old versions, not movie-tie in versions

Movie tie-in versions are verboten.

Unless they were given to you. My Congo and LOTR are so. But I actually passed on buying a used trade of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen because of the "Now a Major Motion Picture" logo.