Ramona, Bluing, and Powder People

As part of my reading adventure this year, I'm trying to read 12 books published in the year of my birth.  So far I have been pretty disappointed, as I was with this book.  I guess I just must be too much of a Beezus or something, but I did not enjoy Beverly Cleary books as a child, and I still do not find them enjoyable as an adult.  It seemed like a combination of fighting parents and trouble-making.  Since I remembered my parents fighting before they divorced, when I read Cleary books as a child I found the parental arguing to be distressing.  And as to Ramona's shenanigans, I was and still am a rule stickler, so I never found Ramona's antics humorous.  I imagine some children enjoy it and feel a kinship with Ramona, but all I felt was frustration.

I did find two instances in the book humorous:  the Kleenex incident and the bluing incident.  How many people use bluing anymore?  I have used it before but I haven't used any in my laundry lately.  I need to restock at Vermont Country Store or at a store you can pick up Mrs. Stewart's Bluing.

I can definitely sympathize with Wanda running around the house throwing Kleenexes everywhere.  It reminds me of one of few times I acted up as a child.  It would be the infamous 'Powder People' episode.  When I was about five years old, my three year old sister and I had a brilliant idea.  

The 'brilliance' of 'Powder People' was us running through the house puffing baby powder above our heads.  My mother was just thrilled to find the entire upper floor of our grandparent's home caked in a thick layer of fine, white powder.  Our dance of joy did not last long, for we spent the entire day dusting, vacuuming, and washing the walls.  Both the joy, and the punishment from the 'Powder People' incident, are some of the strongest memories of my childhood.