Books for Children

The other day I was reading a book to The Boy, a book that I used to read when I was nine, called The Mystery of Hidden Springs.

The Boy was eating watermelon as I read, and just as I got to the story behind the ghost my husband walked into the kitchen.

So he heard the whole sad tale, how nobody liked the Hannigan family because they were from the north, but people couldn’t help but love little Kathleen Hannigan because she was so pretty and sweet and kind. And when Kathleen turned sixteen her family threw a big party to celebrate.

But nobody came.

And Kathleen was so distraught that she ran from the house toward the river and then she slipped on a rock and drowned.  And the worst part was that her older sister Amelia, who wasn’t pretty at all and was terribly jealous of Kathleen, was responsible for sending out the party invitations.  But to spite her sister she didn’t send them.  And so really no one came to Kathleen’s party because no one got an invitation.  And then Kathleen slipped on a rock and smacked her head and drowned.  And so Amelia became a crazy recluse and wouldn’t speak to anyone and she stayed in her family’s mansion and kept her sister’s room exactly as it had been the night she died.  She even kept Kathleen’s party dress on the bed, with the water marks on the pretty pink silk.

Books for children! my husband said in his best radio announcer voice when I finished, Brought to you by Prozac.

Copyright © 2011  Jennifer Hritz  hritzontheedge  All Rights Reserved

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