Monday Memories: The Suitcases by Anne Hall Whitt

This meme is brought to you via http://missprint.wordpress.com/ and http://thebookbandit.wordpress.com/. My choice for this week is The Suitcases. Does anyone remember those Reader's Digest Condensed Books? Well my Mom used to have a huge collection of them. I remember wanting to read The Suitcases because it had a picture of little girls. I thought it was a kid's book. It dealt with some very adult subjects (child neglect, foster parent abuse, parental death) and it was a true story. I loved the story. I was intrigued by what would happen to the sisters. I will never forget Bennie, the hot cross buns, and the mean foster mother. I didn't know who Sonja Henie was, but I wanted that doll so bad. Of course the story is old by today's standards and I had never read the full version, only the condensed one. I searched for several years to find an original copy of the book. A few years back I was able to locate a first edition on Ebay. The book has been out of print for years. I still have that condensed version, which has been read more times than I can count. Ms. Whitt made me become a reader and have a great interest in children and made me want to become a teacher. The book is most likely difficult to find, but so worth a look at your library or used book store. Sadly Ms. Whitt passed away in 1996, I will never forget her story.

Sonja Henie