Miss Pickerell is a prim older woman whose adventures were written to help teach children scientific concepts. The first books in the series were written in the 1950s, so the scientific information is only current up to that point, but it’s still a fun and nostalgic look back in time. Miss Pickerell and her pet cow travel to various locations around the world and even to outer space.

Miss Pickerell loves her pet cow so much that she brings it everywhere with her, transporting it in a little red trailer attached to her car. Miss Pickerell also likes collecting rocks. She carries a little hammer with her everywhere she goes so that she can chip off samples of rock whenever she sees something interesting that would make a good addition to her collection. She has a brother who has seven children, Miss Pickerell’s nieces and nephews, and she sometimes goes to visit them.

The author of the books, Ellen MacGregor, was a librarian and also wrote other children’s books. She passed away in 1954, and some of her final books were published posthumously. The publishing company McGraw-Hill recruited Dora Pantell, who had a background in writing educational curricula and textbooks, to continue the series after Ellen MacGregor’s death. These later books continued from the 1960s through the 1980s. Some of the books written by Dora Pantell credit her as a co-author with Ellen MacGregor rather than the sole author. Dora Pantell tried to keep the original spirit of the Miss Pickerell books, but she also included new developments in scientific knowledge over the years.

Books in the Series:

Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars (1951)

Miss Pickerell is angry when she finds out that a science team has appropriated her cow pasture for their experiment, but when she gets into their space ship to give them a piece of her mind, she is accidentally launched on their voyage to Mars with them.

Miss Pickerell and the Geiger Counter (1953)

Miss Pickerell Goes Undersea (1953)

Miss Pickerell Goes to the Arctic (1954)

This was the final book written by Ellen MacGregor alone and published after her death.

Miss Pickerell on the Moon (1965)

This is the first book credited to both Ellen MacGregor and Dora Pantell.

Miss Pickerell Goes on a Dig (1966)

Miss Pickerell Harvests the Sea (1968)

Miss Pickerell and the Weather Satellite (1971)

Miss Pickerell Meets Mr. H.U.M. (1971)

Miss Pickerell Takes the Bull by the Horns (1976)

Miss Pickerell to the Earthquake Rescue (1977)

Miss Pickerell and the Supertanker (1978)

Miss Pickerell Tackles the Energy Crisis (1980)

Miss Pickerell on the Trail (1982)

Miss Pickerell and the Blue Whales (1983)

Miss Pickerell and the War of the Computers (1986)

By Dora Pantell.

Miss Pickerell and the Lost World (1986)

By Dora Pantell.