Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday - Top 10 Books From My Childhood That I Would Love To Revisit

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top 10 Books From My Childhood That I Would Love To Revisit.  I'm going to also include books from my teen years on this list, because a few of my most memorable reads were from that time period.  (Hah... this post is going to be a total giveaway that I'm old.  Just a warning...)

Top 10 Books From My Childhood That I Would Love To Revisit:

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery - I read this book soon after the movie came out in 1985.  I was probably a bit young to be reading it, and I do remember having to write down a lot of words I didn't understand (so I could look them up later).

Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary - I have zero memory of this book, but my mom said that I thought it was hilarious, and that I couldn't stop talking about it when I was reading it.  So I would definitely like to give this one a re-read (it'll be like reading it for the first time!) and see what it was that so tickled my fancy.

The Haunting at Cliff House by Karleen Bradford - This was one of my favourite books when I was a kid.  I loved the suspenseful story and the setting in Wales.

Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present by Charlotte Zolotow - When I was a little kid, I remember that there was a book in the "Z" section of the picture books that I always wanted to check out.  It had something about a little girl and a pear and a cardinal... and years later, I could not for the life of me remember what the book was called.  I believe it's actually this one... though when I see that creepy rabbit on the cover, I have no clue why I wanted to read this book over and over.  I'd like to have another look and see if I can figure it out!

The Olden Days Coat by Margaret Laurence - My parents gave me a beautifully illustrated edition of this book one Christmas.  I think I still have it somewhere, packed away with other old books.

The Sneetches and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss - My mom found a worn copy of this book in the library sale bin, so she picked it up for my sister and I.  I've read many of Dr. Seuss's books, but this one is probably my favourite.  The title story is great... but I actually preferred the one about Mrs. McCave (with her sons named Dave) and of course the one about that sorry pair of pale green pants.

Swept Away by Josepha Sherman - My grandmother gave me this book, the first in a series, for Christmas when I was around eleven or twelve.  I had never heard of it, and I thought it sounded kind of silly (if I'm being honest).  But then I read it, and loved it.  I devoured the next book, and then tried to get my hands on the rest (I never really succeeded... they were hard to find).  I'm not the only one this series struck a chord with; the Goodreads ratings are weirdly high for these books about a group of young people who ride unicorns in a fantasy land!

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn - This ghost story was originally published in 1986, but it's been reprinted over the years (even just a few years ago), so it's obviously got staying power.  I think I must have read it soon after its original publication date, though, because I remember the really cheesy cover with the little girl who looks like she's in a trance.

The Witches by Roald Dahl - I did a book report on this one when I was in Grade 5.  I had a little mouse puppet and everything.  Dahl's books often made me laugh.  The Witches and The Twits were a couple of my favourites (I didn't read Matilda until I was an adult).

Wren to the Rescue by Sherwood Smith - This book was one of the first to introduce me to high fantasy.  I didn't read it until I was a young teenager, but when I did, it really got me excited about the genre... so much so that I wanted to write my own fantasy novels!


What are some of your childhood favourites that you might like to revisit?



2 comments:

  1. Oh wow. You are well read as a child. I... erm... didn't read much back then. I actually...(believe it or not) hated books when I was younger. I had to many other things I wanted to do. But now I love them. lol.

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    1. I was one of those kids who came back from the library with more books than I could carry. That's not to say that I actually read them all... but I was ambitious!

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