I read my first Betsy-Tacy and Tib book when I was 8 or 9 - I am now 57! I've read the entire series at least 10 times during my life. Every few years, I would need to revisit my dear friends in Deep Valley. The characters in the books seemed more real than the kids at school or in my neighborhood. I loved all of the adventures that we took together. My older sister, Gail, went to Mankato State Teacher's College in the 1960s. At the time we lived in Chicago and traveled to Mankato to spend Thanksgiving with my sister and my brother, who was going to seminary in Minneapolis. Gail was the one who introduced me to Betsy, Tacy, and Tib so she was excited to drive me past their homes (I loved Tib's chocolate colored Victorian). The homes were private residences then (I think) but it thrilled me to see the homes that my "friends" lived in when they were girls. That Thanksgiving the whole downtown was lit with lights, there was a Christmas tree in the town square and snow was falling. It was a magical memory of "Deep Valley" (aka Mankato) that I have carried with me all my life. Later, we moved to Minnesota and I realized that that scene was replayed in nearly every small town in the state. However,in 1963 I hadn't experienced such a charming place as Mankato. It holds a special place in my heart!