Betsy-Tacy

I think all book lovers have that one book that they accredit with getting them hooked on reading. For me that book, or books, is the Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace that were first published in the 1940s.

Young Betsy lives on Hill Street, but there are no other children her age. She has no one to play with. But then one day a new family moves in across the street and they have a little girl named Tacy who is just Betsy's age. When the two meet at Betsy's fifth birthday party, they instantly became such close friends that people started referring to them as one person: Betsy-Tacy. Betsy and Tacy had the most fun together. They made a playhouse out of a piano box, they would get dressed up and go calling on the neighbors together, and they would make paper doll clothes by cutting them out of their favorite magazines.

It actually wasn't until very recently that I found out that the Betsy-Tacy books were highly autobiographical for author Maud Hart Lovelace. As a young girl, she met her best friend at her fifth birthday party and the two of them shared the same adventures that Lovelace wrote about in her books. "Deep Valley" really exists in the town of Mankato, Minnesota. Lovers of the Betsy-Tacy books can go visit Betsy and Tacy's houses, sit on the famous bench at the top of the big hill, and recreate memories of one of the most beloved childhood stories. You can learn more about the official Betsy-Tacy Society here!

These are great books for any new reader, or for someone just looking for a fun story about the best of friendships with a fantastic historical setting. I look forward to readings these books over and over countless more times.