Re: Childhood reading habits
Posted by:
dante (---.internal.omneuk.com)
Date: June 29, 2003 06:14PM
Hmmm...
Topsy and Tim early on. Can't remember much else - The Very Hungry Caterpillar, but that might have been my brother that had that.
Enid Blyton, obviously - Famous Five, Secret Seven, The <blah> of Adventure, The <Blah> Mystery, The Secret of <Blah> books. St Clare's, Malory Towers, Faraway Tree, Wishing Chair, Mr...Penniwhistle? Piggywhistle? Something like that, anyway.
Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Three Investigators, the Lone Pine Five. The Chalet School.
The Hobbit, Diana Wynne Jones, Paula Danziger, Judy Blume. Sweet Valley High, on occasion...
Lots of Agatha Christie. Old books of my mum's - Maid of the Abbey, Harvest at Cowleaze... plus classics like all the Little Women/Little Men ones. I had Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights and Lorna Doone, but never read them. (I've just discovered them in my cupboard - might actually have to read Jane Eyre. Ulp.) Heidi, The Secret Garden and What Katy Did I actually read.
Anne of Green Gables, Emily of New Moon, Little House on the Prairie. My Friend Flicka. Ooh, The Worst Witch.
And lots of Roald Dahl. And George MacDonald stuff - At The Back Of The North Wind, The Princess and Curdie.
Of that lot, I'd still read quite a lot, but most of them it's just nostalgia. The Faraway Tree's great. So's Diana Wynne Jones. I suspect Paula Danziger has merit, too. The Three Investigators were fab. Roald Dahl's pretty good, but seemed to be nasty in real life. What is it with children's writers???
I'm sure I've forgotten major things...I'm trying to visualise the children's department of my local library now.
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