Recommended Readings
Published on May 22, 2026
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The impossible sister

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Beverly Cleary’s first title in the famous Ramona Quimby series helped me check off two boxes on 2026 book-related quests. Plus, it was my introduction to a writer and title character that I’ve heard about my entire married life!

Why, you may reasonably ask, is a 71-year-old man reading a children’s novel?

The answer is quite simple. I have two book-related quests underway this year, and this short work—which my reading specialist and grade school teacher wife has mentioned for years—gave me a chance to check off a box in each of those efforts.

  • First, Item number eight in the Chapter One Bookstore Reading Challenge 2026 was “to read a book published in the year you were born.” This is one of two books I now have in hand that were published in 1955, but since it was short I tackled this one first.

Two for the price of one! So what, you may ask again, is this marvelous treasure?

Beezus and Ramona (1955) by Beverly Cleary was the first in the famous series of children’s novels featuring Ramona Quimby, the little girl “with a wild imagination, disregard for order, and an appetite for chaos.” Beezus is Ramona’s older sister who is trying to navigate life as a normal child while her world is constantly thrown off balance by her sister’s antics. We learn in the very first chapter that “Beatrice Quimby’s biggest problem was her little sister Ramona.” Beatrice is called Beezus because that’s what Ramona called her as she first began to talk. There are wonderful 1950s scenes in this book, such as the initial setting where Beezus is in the family living room sewing (what nine-year-old does that today) while Ramona is riding circles around her on her tricycle, blowing on a harmonica. To quiet her, Beezus has to read to Ramona—for what seems like the hundredth time—a book about a steam shovel. Cleary’s book is a series of delightful vignettes where Ramona—who always seems to get her own way—finds ever new and creative ways to drive Beezus crazy.

Beezus knows she should be the responsible and loving big sister but Ramona makes that difficult. Ramona writes in a library book, throws a fit in an art class, and invites the entire neighborhood over—unannounced—for a party. The adults in each situation try to help Beezus manage the chaos and also see the good that can come from having a younger sister with an off-the-charts need for attention. Beezus comes across as straightlaced, but the dust-up in the art class helps loosen the older sister’s latent imagination; something that wouldn’t have happened without Ramona’s presence.

The book moves toward a birthday party for Beezus that Ramona seems destined to upend. We’re all reading to see if Beezus can find the patience to deal with her little sister before her big day completely falls apart.

Beverly Cleary’s school librarian—seeing how much she loved books—suggested that she should write for boys and girls when she grew up.

“The idea appealed to her, and she decided that someday she would write the books she longed to read but was unable to find on the library shelves: funny stories about her neighborhood and the sort of children she knew. And so Ramona Quimby, Henry Huggins, Ellen Tebbits, and her other beloved characters were born.”

Cleary was an admired and much-loved author whose books earned her many prestigious awards, including the 1984 John Newbery Medal for Dear Mr. Henshaw. Additionally, Ramona and Her Father and Ramona Quimby, Age 8 were named 1978 and 1982 Newbery Honor Books, respectively. Beverly Cleary lived to be 104, passing away in March of 2021, but by all accounts her books will live on for generations to come.

It may be a surprise that any bookstore would still stock a book first published in 1955, especially one for children. But Politics & Prose is no ordinary bookstore.

POLITICS & PROSE

Politics and Prose Connecticut Avenue Flagship Store (credit: Wikimedia)

We first visited Politics & Prose (P&P) before we moved to Washington. Founded in 1984 by Carla Cohen and Barbara Meade—a year after we moved from Georgia to the Shenandoah Valley—it soon became known throughout the larger region as the premier independent bookstore in the nation’s capital. We would stop on the occasional visit to the big city.

In the summer of 1989, P&P moved across the street to its present location, “assisted by customers who carried books to 5015 Connecticut Avenue NW . . . The bookstore now occupies more than 13,000 square feet of sales space, and almost 18,000 square feet of total business space, including offices and a coffeehouse called The Den. Two branch locations also exist at The Wharf and Union Market. P&P’s staff exceeds 100 employees.”

Once we moved to the DC region in 1998, Politics & Prose became our go-to bookstore. I have been in the store dozens, if not hundreds of times over the years. I can probably count on one hand the times I walked out without a new book under my arm or in my bag. During the twice-yearly member sales Candice and I will go and routinely come out with anywhere between six and twelve books. The store is well known for its author events, and I’ve been to dozens at the main store, the Union Market branch, the Sixth & I Synagogue, Sidwell Friends, and a few other venues. I’ve attended sold-out events for authors such as Doris Kearns Goodwin and Heather Cox Richardson and I’ve been part of smaller, but still enthusiastic and knowledgeable crowds for authors like Janet Hulstrand and Alan Gregerman who are personal friends.

And no, it isn’t a surprise that their children’s section would have a copy of the first book in the Ramona Quimby series. Candice and our twins would spend hours here as they were growing up. When she heard that Beezus and Ramona would fill an important slot in my reading challenge, Candice recently walked into that section and quickly returned with the book in hand.

Here’s the explanation of why children’s literature is such an important part of the P&P experience from the store’s website:

“Before Politics and Prose opened for business, the Cheshire Cat, a prominent children’s bookstore also on Connecticut Avenue NW about eight blocks north, had been selling books for more than two decades. The store had been founded and operated by four women, but one had moved away and two others had retired, leaving Jewell Stoddard as the sole remaining owner. When the lease was up, the landlord presented Jewell a ten-year option to renew but with a large increase in rent. Rather than sign, Jewell decided to close the store in 1999. Reading in the Washington Post about the Cheshire Cat’s closing, Carla and Barbara called Jewell to ask her to come to work at Politics and Prose as manager of the children’s department. Jewell accepted, and she and two of her employees immediately started at Politics and Prose, which soon led to a doubling of sales in the children’s department.”

The store was sold after a careful search following Carla’s passing in 2010. The “new” owners, Bradley Graham and Lissa Muscatine, have kept the original spirit while adding many features, updating the in-store cafe, and generally taking this national treasure to new heights.

And yes, for the record, I also found a copy of the second book published in 1955 on the shelves at P&P. That’s how good a selection the booksellers at P&P have for the serious reader. But my review of The Quiet American will have to wait for another post.

And . . . just for an update on the larger quest . . .

BOOKSTORES I HAVE VISITED

I just love this picture from the 2026 DC Independent Bookstore Crawl of the staff at Bold Fork Books!

BOOKSHOPS THAT REMAIN ON MY TO-BE-VISITED LIST

For those keeping score, I’ve highlighted six of the fourteen bookshops I’ve visited in the pages of MORE TO COME. Fifteen bookstores remain on the “still to be visited” list. Almost halfway home!

More to come . . .

DJB

Map of Ramona Quimby’s neighborhood from beverlycleary.com.

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I am David J. Brown (hence the DJB) and I originally created this personal newsletter more than fifteen years ago as a way to capture photos and memories from a family vacation. Afterwards I simply continued writing. Over the years the newsletter has changed to have a more definite focus aligned with my interest in places that matter, reading well, roots music, heritage travel, and more. My professional background is as a national nonprofit leader with a four-decade record of growing and strengthening organizations at local, state, and national levels. This work has been driven by my passion for connecting people in thriving, sustainable, and vibrant communities.

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