I want to share something with all of you. When I was a child, I loved books. Well, I guess not a lot has changed there. When my parents would read to me, I would always choose the same story to hear. "Who Wants an Old Teddy Bear?"
It's a story about an ungrateful boy who receives a gift from his grandmother. He was hoping for a rocket ship, but instead got what? You guessed it-a teddy bear. He kicked the bear across the room and went to bed. That night he had a dream that he floated through the clouds and touched down in the middle of a town full of giant teddy bears. A very nice grandmotherly teddy bear picks him up, wraps him, stuffs him in a box, and mails him to her grandson teddy bear. When the boy teddy bear unwraps his gift, he's upset. He didn't want a silly boy doll, so he kicks him across the room. The boy "doll" starts to cry, the teddy bear boy picks him up, and they become the best of friends. The boy then wakes up from his dream, finds his teddy bear and loves him from then on.
For whatever reason, this story touched my heart. Maybe it was because I loved teddy bears. Or maybe it was because I secretly wished my toys were "real." Maybe it was the wonderful illustrations, or the idea that dreams can take you anywhere, even a town full of giant teddy bears. For whatever reason, I asked for this story over and over again, and when I finally learned how to read, this was the one I would go back to again and again.
As I grew older, as we all do, those special treasures that meant so much fall by the wayside and drift from our minds. Until one day in college. I was in a children's literature class, and we had an assignment to write about our favorite book as a child. This book immediately came to my mind-but I couldn't remember what it was called. I seemed to remember the name "Andy" but I didn't know if that was just because I married an Andy. I decided the book may be named "Andy's Bear" and wrote my paper on this book that captured my heart as a child.
I asked my mom about the book, but she didn't remember it. My brother and my dad didn't remember it either. I looked through my mom's book shelves, old toy boxes, and came up empty. I could remember the exact story and could picture the illustrations in my mind, but I couldn't find the book. That was 10 years ago. Every once in a while I would search some more. I always had my eyes out for it at my mom's house, at yard sales, antique shops and librarys. I've asked every librarian I've met if they knew the book I was looking for. If only I could remember the title, I could find it on the internet, but after searching and searching through all books on teddy bears, I never could get any leads, and by now I was sure it wasn't called "Andy's Bear" and wasn't even sure if the boys name was Andy at all.
Today, while visiting the library with Ben, I asked all of the librarians here in Harpers Ferry if they knew the book I was looking for. One librarian spent a lot of time with me looking through children's book catalogues and on the internet. Though our search turned up nothing, my desire to find this book was rekindled.
At home, I tried several different google searches, and long-story-not-quite-so-long, I finally found my beloved book. It's called "Who Wants An Old Teddy Bear?" and I can't wait to get it in the mail. I ordered two, one for me and one for my library so I can share this adorable story with others.
So, what's your favorite book from your childhood?
