Childhood Reading

ozpass

Even to this day I can't glance over a Dr. Seuss book without a flood of nostalgic memories. The Cat in the Hat. Green Eggs and Ham. The Lorax. The Sneetches. I still love them one and all!

A little later I fell in love with Alan Garner books (The Weirdstone of Brisingamen), The Children of Green Knowe (by Lucy Boston) and others....

What books did you all read as kids, and which do you secretly still own today for a sneaky hit of nostalgia?

Dr. Seuss stuff here
A tiny review of The Children of Green Knowe
The Alan Garner Homepage
The Shrinking of Treehorn (a little cracker)
Roald Dahl stuff here (beware Flash overload)

Beruthiel

Originally posted by ozpass
Even to this day I can't glance over a Dr. Seuss book without a flood of nostalgic memories. The Cat in the Hat. Green Eggs and Ham. The Lorax. The Sneetches. I still love them one and all!

I bought a set of these for my niece just this Christmas and almost kept them for myself!

Enid Blyton - famous five
Alfred Hitchcock - the three investigators

Borzoi

I must have had eery Roald Dahl childrens book when I was a kid - The Fantastic Mr Fox, being a favourite.

Read though most of The Three Investigators, and the Hardy Boys, thanks to the local library, at a later stage.

What about The Chronicles of Narnia (CS Lewis), more old school excellence. Harry Potter can shove it up his jacksie.

ozpass

Harry Potter can shove it up his jacksie.

Man, I hear you on that. I loved the chronicles of Narnia until the Christian undertones were pointed out to me, then I dropped them like a lead turd. Yes, even at the age of 9 I considered myself to be a 'G'.

Gordon

I read so much as a child, I inhaled books. In fact I think I read sooo much that I have fulfilled my reading quota for life, this must be why I rarely read nowadays.

My favourites were Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl. I absolutely loved the magic faraway tree, wow that was good - in fact that would be a good wee series for Kids TV.

ozpass

I think I may have only ever read one or two Enid Blyton books, I always considered them a little cheesy. One I read was "Mr. Pinkwhistle" or "Mr. Pinkerton"....something like that. At least I think it was an Enid Blyton book. I preferred the "Swallows and Amazons" gear to "The Famous Five" et al. Swallows was a little too upper crust for me to love though: "Cripes mummy, all I did was pass the ball to Jonty!".

I did dig Richmal Crompton's "William" books though and they fell into the same category...."Chapter 1: William plays a prank on a black butler and everyone falls about laughing"

yellum

Originally posted by Beruthiel

Alfred Hitchcock - the three investigators

That series started me reading books in Secondary School, before that I had a crap book collection at home that my folks bought when I was 4. I read loads and loads after that. I read a few more crime authors after that.

I got J Kellermans when the Bough Breaks from a priest of all people. What a nasty horrib book. Pretty shocking for a 15 yr old.

flyz

All Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl books
Chronicles of Narnia.
I had a series of books called "What my naughty little sister did next" too
Plus some of those boarding school books about a set of twins ( not sweet valley high) can't remember what they were called 'something towers' I think

I still have them all at home somehwhere

Gordon

Mallory Towers link

evie

I can't believe there aren't more posts on this! I also used to inhale books. I was a "I can hear my parents coming into my room and it's 12.30 and I'm still reading" type of kid.

My first and most favourite: the very hungry caterpillar. I graduated from here with Roald Dahl being my favourite author and the BFG being my favourite book. The famous Five by Enid Blyton, Anne Fine, what about Judy Blume, ah the joys of teenage angst! Attempted the Hobbit at 10 but gave up - why oh why! Read the Narnia series over and over. I am proud to say, however that I never once read the Babysitters Club

Congoose

I can remember reading tons of Enid Blyton books, the Faraway Tree series was fantastic.
The Famous Five were my favourites though, I was so jealous of them-everywhere they went they just happened to have some exciting adventure. Like that time they went on holiday to Smuggler's Cove and lo and behold, they ran into smugglers!!

daveirl

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Ste-

ah the BFG what a great book
Roald Dahl - read most of the others too

Nevyn

yes i read most of the above

we lived a very short walk from the local library.
One that made a huge impact on me was the first si/fi i ever read
it was called a Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. It was brillantly done. and start me at the age of 9 bugging my dad to get me si/fi books out of the adult section.

^CwAzY^

Oh I used to love reading Roald Dahl books when I was young. I was also a big fan of Enid Blyton and her 'The Mystery of' series of books!

Lafortezza

Anyone else read the Willard Price books, about 2 brothers Hal and Roger who went all around the world capturing animals for zoos...

loads of info on wildlife and stuff, but looking back now I think they were a bit forumulaic, but it didnt stop me reading them all about 5 times.

Johnny Gomez

Roald Dahl - What a legend, Fantastic Mr.Fox and BFG were my favourites!

gogo

I have read all the Roald Dahl books as well, I used to live for books and still do to be honest.
I did the babysitters, enid blyton and oh my god Judy Blume - I loved her.

My favoutite book from when I was small was Watership Down, I don't think I have cried that much since, i still have it, I gave away a loads of my books last year, and was devasted to part with them- But you do get funny looks when you invite someone to your room and see your collection of sweet valley high!

I love horror also and will never part with my christopher pike books, does anyone remember him, i haven't seen him around since i was young.

Anyway,
gogo:)

krankykitty

great memories! I loved books, Enid Blyton rules! the famous 5, secret 7, mallory towers, st clares, and can anyone remember the ones she wrote about a gang of investigator kids, one was called Fatty?!
Looking back on it now, wasnt it really funny, letting young kids go off to an island, or camping, or off into caves on their own! It sure was a different age!

She wrote another book I had when I was quite young that I loved, it was about Toytown? and all the toys who lived there.. the big nightmare was every year when santy would come to take them away

tman

Originally posted by ozpass
Even to this day I can't glance over a Dr. Seuss book without a flood of nostalgic memories. The Cat in the Hat. Green Eggs and Ham. The Lorax. The Sneetches. I still love them one and all!

i found an old copy of the lorax over crimbo, pure class (glad to see that it's being put to use on my nephew)

i loved all the narnia books up till the age of 8, then i moved onto the hobbit, then the lord of the rings...

can't remember what bridged the gap between tolkein and iain banks. (whit is the first grown up book i can rfemeber reading, i'm sure there were others before that tho)

LoGiE

I think every Irish Child read Roald Dahl books and if you didn't read them yourself they were read to you in Primary school. BFG, The Witches, Boy, The Twits , Charlie and the chocolate Factory:)....Wasn't mad on the Famous 5 etc although I did read a collection of about 3 books in one.

Velvet Vocals

I was a big Roald Dahl fan too and before that I loved the Beatrix Potter books, my mum still has my set of them and I love getting them out and having a look whenI call over. I loved Winnie the Poo too.. Still do.
Does anyone remember reading "What a mess" It was about a dog that was an Afghan hound and was really messy and always getting into trouble. And in the corners of the pages there was another story with different characters going on?? I've said this to many people and they all think I'm making it up!

Velvet Vocals

Just in case anyone's interested I found "what a mess"

And these are the other Characters that had a story in the corner of the pages


He was so cool!They made him into a cartoon but I don't remember every seeing it... the books kicked ass!
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Nebula/4658/muirwam.html

tman

Originally posted by Saint Something
Does anyone remember reading "What a mess" It was about a dog that was an Afghan hound and was really messy and always getting into trouble. And in the corners of the pages there was another story with different characters going on?? I've said this to many people and they all think I'm making it up!

sounds a lot like harry the dirty dog...
that site doesnt seem to like leeching:rolleyes:

anyone remember burgaler bill? you'd think my parents were trying to turn me into a criminal or something

Kalina

I read so many books when I was a kid.
I loved all the typical ones- Enid Blyton, Roald dahl, the Chronicles of Narnia. I also loved the Shamrouges- does anyone remember them? The 5 stone's that came alive in Newgrange on the 21st of December and tried to help the environment.
I read Tom McCaughrens Run With The Wind, Run to Earth etc.
Also Don Conroy's Sky Wings and On Silent Wings.
Marita Conlon McKenna- Wildflower Girl and Under The Hawthorn Tree. I never read the last book in the trilogy but must get around to it.
I love horses and could never get enough horsy books to read- my favourites are the Follyfoot series by Monica Dickens and The Silver Stallion series by Elyne Mitchell. The saddle Club were good too, they kept me going from one weekend horse-riding lesson to the next!!! :rolleyes:

Velvet Vocals

Wind in the Willows... now there's a classic! And I felt like such a grown up because it was so big!

Mewzel

"what a mess" was absolute class! i loved that dog so much!
roald dahl of course was also a genius. kids today just dont realise what they're missing......

Space Coyote

Famous 5, Secret 7, Hardy Boys, Roald Dahl of course and ... hmm can't remember...James Herbert.

evie

I absoloutely adored What a Mess, it was total genius!
The Long shaggy hair, the washing, it was a recipe for disaster!

What a great boook, I had totally forgotten about it!

Think I'll go home and read it!