Ramona, Beezus, Henry Huggins and friends

What do you do if you are a librarian who loves children but feels there aren't a lot of books to which they can relate?  You write them of course! 
Now fast forward. You are 95 years old, a widow who spent many years working while raising a family.  What do you now?  You continue to write children's books!
Meet Beverly Cleary, multiple award author of "Ramona and Beezus", "Henry Huggins",  and  "Ralph the Mouse".  Amazingly, at age 95, she is still writing for children.
When I was a little girl we used to spend summers in Belmar NJ. Even though we were summer residents, my mother made sure we had library cards. At least once a week my sister and I would ride our bikes up 10th Avenue to drop off our old books and pick up new ones. Inevitably one or the both of us would have a book by Beverly Cleary. My favorite were anything about Ramona or Henry Huggins and his dog Ribsy.
I don't think there is a person my age today who hasn't read her books at one time or another. Ramona is a little girl we first meet as a preschooler whose older sister Beezus is always doing the right thing, while Ramona seems to always do the wrong thing.  But it isn't always easy to try to explain to the grown ups how you feel when you are so young. Her older sister tries to be understanding, but sometimes it can be very difficult.  Like when Ramona scribbles on a library book that Beezus has to pay for. Luckily the librarian understands difficult little sisters!
Henry Huggins is another person who has trouble understanding Ramona.  Henry is her neighbor and  Beezus' friend. Ramona follows Henry around town, which can be very difficult for a 10 year old boy.  Especially when he is trying to show how responsible he is by being the youngest newspaper boy in town. To prove it he first has to outsmart Ramona, who has taken to stealing the newspaper and placing them at other houses. Henry soon proves he is smarter than a preschooler and is allowed to keep his job.
Besides Ramona, Henry has other difficulties to cope with.  In his first book <written in 1950!>  Henry  finds a dog who is so thin that Henry decides to keep him. But in order to get him home he has to figure out how to sneak him onto the bus. Things like that aren't always easy, but in the end Henry manages to get his dog home and Ribsy becomes an important part of Huggins family.
Besides the children of Klickitat Street, Beverly Cleary writes about others as well.  "Jean and Johnny" is the story of a young teens first experience with a boyfriend in the late 1950s. While it may seem quaint now, it is nice to think back to a time when first kisses were awkward and innocent. She also wrote "Sister of the Bride". A book about just that, being a sister to a bride in the 1960s. Originally written for preteens and young teenage girls, the books can still be enjoyed by the same age group. By reading these stories, girls that age can get an idea of what it was like when their mothers <or even God help us, their Grandmothers!!> were young and starting out.
The best part of Beverly Cleary's books, is how she allows us to see another point of view. And how well she still understand ours. In her 95 years, Beverly Cleary has shown us not only how "once upon a time" was, but how it is now.  Thank you Ramona and Company!