Happy World Book Day!
Books have been a part of my life for all of my life. I was lucky to be born into a family of book-lovers (book devourers is a more accurate term) and their love of reading and great stories fostered a life-long love of reading and writing in me. As soon as I could read books for myself, I discovered the wonders of Kingswinford Library (my local palace of book dreams) and started an amazing reading journey.
In celebration of World Book Day, here are Ten Books That Changed My Life when I was growing up:
1. A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond
2. The Wombles by Elisabeth Beresford
3. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
4. Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Parker
5. Swallows & Amazons by Arthur Ransome
6. The Great Ghost Rescue by Eva Ibbotson
7. The Famous Five series by Enid Blyton
8.The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein
9. I Capture The Castle by Dodie Smith
10. Emma’s Island by Honor Arundel
What are your favourite books from your childhood and teens? Tell me below and one person will win a £20 Waterstones Gift Card!
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Black Beauty was the main one for me. I read it so, so many times!
Trying to remember that far back here goes…
1. Little Women – Louisa May Alcott
2. The Water Babies – Charles Kingsley
3. Magic Faraway Tree – Enid Blyton
4. Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery
5. What Katy Did – Susan Coolidge
6. Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret – Judy Blume
7. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austin
8. Misery – Stephen King (stolen from parents bookcase!!)
9. The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgeson Burnett
10. Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
I think there were lots more than that I used to read anything I could lay my hands on!! I’d normally read my books and my parents books from the library before I went back with my Mum to chose more!
Happy World Book Day.
Samxx
My favorite books as a child were the Enid Blyton ‘Faraway Tree’ Books, at school the first one I brought in our book club was ‘Born Free’ and the books that changed my life were the ‘Jill’ series about a girl and her two ponies and their adventures it has given me a lifelong love of all things equine.
As a child I loved The Faraway Tree series by Enid Byton – It was so magical and my dad used to sit down and read them with me, we shared a love of books and I enjoyed the time I spent with him. As a child I had to do physiotherapy twice a day and I still do now, but back then once I’d had the physio done on me then my treat was always to read a few chapters of a book with my dad 🙂
I also was a huge fan of Roald Dahl, Matilda was my absolute favourite, I loved Matilda’s love of books and Roald Dahl’s stories were fascinating.
I was also lucky enough to grow up with the world of Harry Potter, I remember the excitement of waiting for the next book to be released, I was so excited I couldn’t sleep at times!
Happy World Book Day 🙂
Megan xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The lion the witch and the wardrobe . I read it again and again , still have my origonal copy a little bit battered now,
When i was little i loved magic stone, elves and shoemaker, snow white rose red , when i was a teen i LOVED fluke , time travellers wife, and recently one of my faves is christine
This is hard! Like you I’ve grown up with books and always asked for books as presents. I remember one Easter asking for a book rather than an Easter egg!
Books that I loved as a child and teenager are:
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott
Matilda – Roald Dahl
The Secret Garden
ALL the Sweet Valley High books
Secret Seven, Famous Five, Mallory Towers, St Clares series by Enid Blyton ( in fact all Blyton books)
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – C S Lewis
The main ones I remember are definitely Enid Blyton (ooh and the Faraway Tree series) and the Sweet Valley High. I devoured these.
Books always been a part of my life 🙂
It was all about The Faraway Treet by Enid Blyton for me! I should really dig it out for a re-read. I loved it so so so much. My poor Mum had to read it out loud to me OVER and OVER again.
Oh my gosh! Just seen how many other people have said The Faraway Tree! Isn’t it funny how sometimes, when you read a book it seems like you have it all to yourself and no-one else could possibly understand how great it is. Evidently, they do.
Little Women
Jane Eyre
Wuthering Heights
Sons and Lovers
Wow…so many to choose from!
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
The White Horse Gang by Nina Bawden
Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret by Judy Blume
But then I remember reading To Kill A Mockingbird at 15 for GCSE’s and have loved it ever since!
Hurray for World Book Day 🙂
I always had my head in a book and drove my mother mad. The Miffy books were a real favourite and have survived the years, my children loved them too.Enid Blyton shaped my pre teen years with the Famous Five featuring heavily.Fly by Night by KM Peyton was treasured as were the Follyfoot books. I Capture the Castle was a happy discovery on my mothers bookshelves and has been reread over the years,, my favourite book of all time. Each reading brought new meaning but it is always poignant and eccentric and magical. I devoured Jane Austen’s books as a teenager and even tried Solzhenitsyn. But it is the formative years books such as a Little Princess and Skating Boots that shaped the dreamer I became and still secretly am.
My lovely, adorable Dad introduced me to books. He took us to the library and got me, my brother and sister to join and told us to go and choose some books. I used to look forward to our weekly visits to the library and I would get really excited about choosing new books. I was addicted from then on. It all started with Judy Blume and Sweet Valley High. Later on in life I went on to to do a degree in English, mistakenly thinking my passion for books would translate into a a career. Unfortunately doing my degree just took my joy away from reading as I wasn’t reading for enjoyment anymore, I was reading because I had to! I have since discovered my joy in reading again and love chick-lit. I do use my degree because I teach English but nothing beats reading for the sheer joy and pleasure.
It’s amazing that so many have the same books. My top ten are…..
1. Duck on Holiday (this was my favourite book as a toddler and my dad read it to me over and over again) I now have a copy for my kids and they love it too.
2. Funny Bones (serious nostalgia over this book)
3. The Famous Five Books (I remember spending.one summer reading all of these books, wishing I.could have all the adventures this gang had)
4. James and The Giant Peach (I remember this was the first Roald Dahl book I ever read, I later went on to read them all but this was definetly the most memorable)
5. Mr Majeeka (I was such a geek over these books, I remember feeling embarassed about loving them so much and hiding them from my friends, even though I was only about 7/8)
6. The Secret Garden (I would have done anything to discover a secret garden when i was a child)
7. Matilda (I remember finding this completely hilarious),
8. When my Naughty Little Sister was Good (I was so smug reading this book as I was such a goody two shoes as a big sis and my sister was always so naughty and never good!)
9. The Babysitters Club (I was beyond obsessed with these, spending hours and hours reading them all)
10. Sweet Valley High (random i know but I absolutely adored these books and read them over and over again)
I think I can probably keep it to a list of ten. Just about.
1. Little Women
2. The Magician’s Nephew (even though everyone else seemed to forget that one and go straight to The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe)
3. The Water Babies (The first ‘proper’ book I read in a single day)
4. Five Fall Into Adventure (but the whole Famous Five Series really, I just have a real soft spot for Jo)
5. The Twits
6. Dance On My Grave (I’ve read it upwards of fifty times so I can’t really miss it off)
7. Fifth Formers Of St Clare’s
8. What Katy Did
9. Sherlock Holmes (all of them)
10. Interview With A Vampire
That was a fun trip down memory lane and all of them are on the bookcase next to my desk. I still haven’t been able to part with them over the years!
Theres a lot of memorable books, but my favourites from my tweenage years were the point horror, goosebumps & sweet valley high collections. I probably read every book from the library 😉
My favourite books from my tweenage years were the point horror, goosebumps & sweet valley high series…. I must have read every book from the library
I loved Hollow Tree House by Enid Blyton about two children who run away from Aunt Margaret. I loved dens so maybe that’s why. Then Swallows and Amazons. Little Women, Good Wives, Little Men, Jo’s Boys by Louisa M Alcott. In my teens I loved the Mazo De La Roche Whiteoaks series, now out of print.