23 April is World Book Day. I wanted to post something book related on that day. For various reasons I was not near a computer, but I did get to spend some time reading. Always a good thing, whatever day it is.
I thought I would add to the book celebrations by listing some of my favourite books as a child. This is a fairly random list, and I know I have left off a lot. I suspect the moment I hit the publish button I will think of another one I really should have included.
So this is really just a snapshot of some of the books which got me hooked, turning me into an avid reader.
Rebecca’s World by Terry Nation (science fiction for children, written for the author’s daughter, and one of my favourite books. And yes, this is the same Terry Nation who was a scriptwriter for Dr Who)
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish – Dr Seuss – for the love of words, the rhythm and rhyme, and the wonderful bizarreness of some of the words and images. I loved all of his books, but this was my favourite.
Enid Blyton – How could I just pick one? I worked my way through all the Secret Seven, Famous Five, Adventure series and others. I wasn’t that keen on the boarding school books (by Blyton or any other author) but loved the Magic Faraway Tree and the fairy tales and stories of talking toys.
Hilda Bosman’s Omnibus – a great tome of a book, with beautiful illustrations. It contained nursery rhymes, fairy tales, poems and extracts from classic children’s books. Many happy hours were spent with this book. And the extracts sent me searching for the rest of the story.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – C S Lewis – I read and enjoyed the whole Narnia series, but this was always my favourite.
Bears in the Night – Stan and Jan Berenstain. Naughty bears sneak out of bed, one at a time. Each page showed the progress of all the bears, eg Out of bed. Out the window. Down the tree. This was a book to be read and recited, especially at the end when the bears get a fright and race back to bed. My sister and I used to see who could recited the route back to bed the fastest.
Winnie-the-Pooh by A A Milne – what more needs to be said about the bear of little brain and his friends. I loved (and still love) Pooh but my favourites were the insecure Piglet and melancholic Eeyore. Characters I can still relate to.
The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame The gentle adventures of Mole, Ratty, Mr Badger and the outrageous Mr Toad were a delight.
Heidi – Johanna Spyri – a classic account of an orphan going to live with her grandfather on the Swiss Alps. I can’t think how many times I read this book and the sequels.
The Lion in the Gateway – Mary Renault – historical fiction for children. A simplified tale of the war between ancient Greece and Persia, and the sacrifice of Leonides and his Spartan soldiers, this inspired a love of history, of myth and legend.
So here you have a few of my favourite things. Which books would be on your list?
The Crystal Calligrapher 