There are so many memes going around that I just can’t keep up. Well, I would – if only I could remember who had tagged me when and why and for what… That’s one of the benefits of senility: selective hearing. Wait – my kids practise it all the time… Bang goes that theory!
Anyway, the Country Doctor’s Wife did a great post about her 25 favourite authors. (Make sure you visit this very funny lady – if you haven’t already.) She invited us to join in, and I just couldn’t resist. After all, I do tend to decorate my walls with crap hundreds of books, CDs, a set of bongo drums and a lava lamp!
I got my toes in a twist wondering how I would ever be able to limit myself to just 25 authors. Then I wondered how I would ever remember which 25 I liked. (See above comment about senility.) I then obsessed about which ones to choose – which parameters to use. Then I went to sleep.
To cut a long story short: I don’t think you’ve got the staying power to hear me rabbit on about 25 writers … in one go. Heck – I don’t think I’ve got the staying power! So, I’m going to mention just a few books that have affected me throughout my life. Ready?
Books that affected me/I liked as a child:
1. The Nancy Drew books – by Carolyn Keene (who is a syndicate, not a person). Ah – Nancy, the teenage sleuth! How you enthralled me with your mysteries, your daring, your reckless driving!
2. The Hardy Boys – teen detectives. Written by the same syndicate that produced the Nancy Drew books.
3. The Famous Five and The Secret Seven by Enid Blyton. These books were the staple diet of British kids in the late 1960s. I can remember wolfing down whole platefuls of these adventures when I was sick in bed with one childhool illness or another.
4. The Silver Brumby series by the Australian writer Elyne Mitchell. I was in love with the stallion Thowra and his harem: Boon-boon, Moon and Dawn.
5. And, of course, I must mention The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. My childhood was enriched by these tales of wonder, imagination and the talking lion, Aslan.
Back then – when I was a kid – I loved these books. It is only in much later years that several of these books and their authors have been scrutinized, criticized and re-edited to delete (quite rightly too!) racial stereotyping, as well as racist and sexist remarks.
In my child’s mind, however, they remain the essence of adventure, breaking rules and being free.
Which books set you free as a child?
Lady Fi 
You have a great list there of books every child should have an opportunity to read!
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Wow, I loved The Silver Brumby I read it over and over again. Also Jump for Joy, and Black Beauty. Famous Five yee haa loved em.
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I’m FIRST!!! Second time today and a popular blog. I AM the woman. (Well, I hope I’m not the MAN.)
Loved this, love you, love the wall of crap (with a line through that which I don’t know how to do!).
The first book I was ever given was when I was 9-years-old. It was an abridged version of “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott and remains an absolute favorite to this day. I never realized it was abridged until I bought a leather bound copy for my daughter and read it aloud to her when she was about 10. Imagine my delight! Not to mention I felt like an idiot. I have since collected several of her works and am a bibliophile myself. Kindred spirits Lady Fi!
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I was too WORDY to be first. Ah brevity….it ALWAYS escapes me!
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Good list, but NO! to re-editing of old books to remove “offensive” material. We should instead spend our energy explaining to our children what these stereotypes are, why they existed in books of that time and actually discuss it. And not force our opinions on them by “correcting” art that we all enjoyed in its original form without becoming raving racists!
“Well-meaning” censorship is still censorship!
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1. Alla böckerna om Narnia. 2. Massor av böcker av Irmelin Sandman Lilius, ffa Om Härligas Hus.
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I enjoyed much the same books as you. But there was a series of books about 2 brothers, who colected animals for their father for zoos, “African adventure”, “Pacific adventure” etc. I loved those books so much. They made me want to travel. Ever heard of them?
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I have to go find the Silver Brumbly now! And I need to check out Enid Blyton.
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oh i loved nancy drew so much. I loved how the author always described her clothes while she was on a case!
My dad used to read Tolkiens books to me as a bedtime story, so those books were a staple of my childhood as well
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I also loved the Nancy Drew books and the Hardy Boys… and the Bopsy Twins (I had to pull that out of some dusty old neuron somewhere) and all the Walter Farley books (Black Stallion series) and Marguerite Henry (Mist of Chincoteague series) and of course the Narnia books. and probably zillions of others…
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Oh I loved the Narnia books. I still do. And the Emily of New Moon and Anne series, although I must admit to being disappointed when I re-read them as an adult. I loved Enid Blyton too but, again, can’t read her now. Also Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys (they now have graphic novel versions! Yes. My kids have some). And various and assorted “horsey” novels. And many more that I can’t think of at the moment.
And I totally agree with Paddy K’s comment.
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I liked anything by Willa Cather, and of course Louisa May Alcott.
Look at all your books and CDs! What a collection!
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Little man’s Mum absolutely loved Nancy Drew, the Famous Five and in particular the Chronicles of Narnia. She tried to get Big Sis here to read and appreciate them as well in the last few years but didn’t have quite the same success. However, the Diary of Anne Frank and Animal Farm are two books that Big Sis has taken Mums’ advice on and read and have led to some thought provoking discussions.
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NANCY DREW was one of my faves… I had them all!! Plus Trixie Belden..another teenage girl detective!! Books were my best friends… I can admit that now that I am a GROWN UP!
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Trixie Belden!!! I knew I was forgetting one!
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Your bookshelves look like mine…filled to the brim with books! Growing up I loved Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden, along with some of the newer ones like the Babysitter’s Club.
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I had all The Black Stallion books by Walter Farley. I was a horse crazed child and piles of horse books. Nancy Drew and Judy Blume stand out in my mind too.
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I loved the Famous Five, Heidi and I seem to remember the Chalet Girl series – oh yes, and Anne of Green Gables and then of Avonlea. What a great idea for a post. I love the picture of your book den.
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Good point Paddy – but it makes my children very sad and upset to read such things, which then makes it hard to have a discussion and spoils the reading experience.
Po: Do you mean Swallows and Amazons?
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As a young reader, we did not have much to read..the Bible, an old Veterinary manual and book of Fairy Tales. Later when I was able to buy my own books or bring them home from school, I loved The Black Stallion, Trixie Belden, Tom Sawyer, Little Women, I read old encyclopedias also. My Mother was not and is still not a reader..she thinks it is a waste of time. So I was never encouraged to read as a child:(
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I loved the Chronicles of Narnia as a child … and loved them even more when my dad pointed out the Christianity symbolism — I reread them to appreciate it more. The first time I realized that a book could be about something MORE than just a story — that there might be a different level.
Other books that spoke to me as a child: The Little Prince, The Velveteen Rabbit, Bridge To Terabithia, and Little Women. Looking forward to more of these from you.
And I’m the same way — I love books and reading but freeze up when asked to name favorites.
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Loved this post!!! Anne of Green Gables…the whole Anne series….were my absolute childhood favorite!! They are actually still my adult favorite…u gotta love that girl’s spirit!! 🙂
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I read almost every single Enid Blyton ever written! I loved them, and they took me to a different world – of adventure and mystery. I liked Nancy Drew too, and later, Hitchcock and Agatha Christie.
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The Silver Brumby……must go an find it for the niece and nephew! Thanks
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