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| Favorite books from my childhood. |
That's what I love about having a Kindle and which I'm sure is the same for a Nook, iPad or any other eReader. I love the immediacy of downloading a book which catches my eye. And yes, I do add way too many books to my Kindles (my old Kindle Keyboard and my new Kindle Fire).
I'm writing this post tonight due to my childhood love of books. If I hadn't fallen in love with books all those many years ago, well, I probably wouldn't be in love with books today. I got to thinking about all those wonderful books I read as a child and promptly started making a list of them. For those of you who follow my blog, you know that I love making lists of books. Well, this particular list is one that's dear to my heart.
I have to admit that reading all those extraordinary, magical, exciting, adventurous, heartwarming books are what brought about my dream to someday be an author. So if you want to know what authors influenced me through the years, well, just take a look at my list. Talk about inspiration ...
My Favorite Childhood Reads (in no particular order):
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
Old Yeller by Fred Gipson
Savage Sam by Fred Gipson
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
The Enormous Egg by Oliver Butterworth
Hitty Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field
The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder*
Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne*
Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry*
King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott*
Hans Brinker or The Silver Skates by Mary Mapes Dodge
Silver for General Washington by Enid LaMonte Meadowcroft
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink
The Borrowers by Mary Norton*
Nancy Drew Series by Carolyn Keene*
All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor*
Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace*
Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski
Five Little Peppers by Margaret Sidney*
Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild*
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lundgren*
Mary Poppins by P. L. Travers*
A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes
Polyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
Heidi by Johanna Spyri
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevensen
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin
The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson
Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
Thomasina by Paul Gallico
That Darn Cat by The Gordons
The Friendly Persuasion by Jessamyn West
The Moonspinners by Mary Stewart
Hailstones and Halibut Bones (Poetry) by Mary O'Neill
Greyfriars Bobby by Eleanor Atkinson
Lassie Come-Home by Eric Knight
Lad: A Dog by Albert Payson Terhune
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
My Friend Flicka by Mary O'Hara
*Note - These are books where I read and loved the whole series.
It seems to me that all these books would make wonderful Christmas presents for young and old alike. Many of these are also available in eBook format.
Let it be known that I owe my love of books to my mom who started reading to me when I was just a baby. Through the years we spent countless hours together in the library. Every Christmas and birthday she gave me wonderful books. The three books in the photo above were all given to me by my mom. To this day, my mom and I still share books.
I'll add other books to this list as I remember them. Please feel free to add some of your own childhood favorites in the comments below.
You've listed many of my favorites. Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs tops my list, but all those were great books that I've read many times. High Wind to Jamaica is one I don't often see, but I loved it. Happy reading and happy memories, Teri!
ReplyDeleteEllis, thanks for adding to the list. So many great reads back when we were kids.
DeleteI almost forgot how much I loved My Friend Flicka and Thunderhead. Those were the days!
ReplyDelete'My Friend Flicka' was such a great book. I was crazy about horses back then and still am. Yes, those were the days.
DeleteOh, Teri! Your list brings back such happy memories. One I'd add is "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien. Thank you for making me smile!
ReplyDeleteGae-Lynn, thanks so much for adding to the list. Remembering all those great books makes me smile too. What wonderful memories!
DeleteBack in the mid-sixties, my fifth grade teacher in Augusta, GA read "Swampy and Babs in the Okefenokee" by Zan Heyward to our class, a chapter a day. I adored that story, but I was too young to think of buying my own copy in those days. Decades later I started keeping my eye out for it and would search it on Amazon from time to time. Finally one day it was there and it was even a signed copy. It's one of my prized possessions.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the nice comment. So cool that you were able to get a copy of one of your favorite childhood books.
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