Book nostalgia: Staffers look back fondly on elementary school favorites

The first book of Beverly Cleary’s eight-book series about Ramona Quimby, Beezus and Ramona, was my first book. My mom and I began the series when I was four, when Ramona was about my age. In Beezus and Ramona, Ramona is introduced as an annoying younger sister who pulls tricks such as taking one bite of every apple in a box, just for fun. Throughout the series, Ramona is portrayed as a mischievous, c...

When I look back on elementary school and all of the books that I read, “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” by Rick Riordan clearly stands out. The series follows protagonist Percy Jackson, who learns that he is a son of the Greek god, Poseidon and therefore a demigod. Percy and his best friends Annabeth Chase, another demigod, nd Grover Underwood, a satyr (a mix between a man and goat), embark...

Most people can name one book series from elementary school that helped shape their childhood forever. For me, that book series was “Magic Tree House” by Mary Pope Osborne, which follows siblings Jack and Annie through their adventures with a time-traveling tree house. In every book, the tree house transports the siblings—and the reader—to a different time and place throughout history with...