The Lonely Doll
Wright
1957, 1985
Submitter: I guess this could be a really cute concept; photos of a doll and all of her little toy friends. BUT NO! It is really quite creepy. One page (scanned) shows big bear paddling dolly whilst baby bear sits idly by. “I may be a silly, but I know when a naughty little girl needs a spanking.” This was donated to our library and whilst I did copy pages to post in our staff room, there is no way I would add this to our children’s collection!
Holly: I remember this book! I used to look for this book every time I went to the library when I was a kid (late 1970s, early 1980s). It is definitely creepier now that I see it as an adult. I used to think the doll seemed so life-like and I had a sort of morbid fascination with the spanking part. I was a weird kid.
Collection-wise, if you have a copy in good shape, it probably hasn’t circulated much – so weed it. If you have unlimited space, by all means keep it for another 55 years. That teddy bear can terrorize poor Edith the Lonely Doll for three more generations of readers.
Awful Library Books 