Monday, June 2, 2008

I Have No Title, But We're Talking Books Again

I have loved to read for as long as I can remember. When I was little my dad would buy me a new book a couple days a week. I would sit in his lap every night before bed and he would read to me.

We already talked about how my third grade teacher bought me my very first Laura Ingalls Wilder book. Sassy says Miss Tuttle was an alcoholic, but I say that wasn't until I passed into the fourth grade.

Miss Tuttle's nipping at the bottle began a few years later when Sassy arrived at the elementary school. She often turns people to drink. Believe you me.

Anyway, I loves me some books. And instead of chatting about the books we are currently reading, let's take a trip down memory lane.

Here are some of my favorites when I was younger.

I loved the Little House books, but I hated when Laura called Almanzo "Manly". That creeped me out for some reason.

And Paula Danziger! and Judy Blume! So good. So so so very good. I loved Starring Sally J. Friedman as Herself so much that I just reserved at my library.

They happen to have a new edition, but I requested the one with the original cover of the cute girl looking in the mirror.

So they have to order it from another library, which I am certain will make one of the very mean librarians annoyed with me. Which is really nothing new. She is often annoyed with me. I haven't figure out why but that's another blog for another day.

And who didn't read A Cat Ate My Gym Suit? If you didn't, you need to. And should I be underlining the titles to the books instead of italicizing?

And The Pistachio Prescription! Oh, I just might need to place a reserve on that one too.

Judy Blume could get a little racy too. Anyone remember Forever? I do. Because I loaned it to my friend and her dad saw it and proceeded to burn it. Then he called my mom to discuss how I was trying to corrupt his daughter. Good times. Good times.

VC Andrews scared me, but I still read the Flowers in the Attic series. Now those books would have definitely been burned by my friend's dad if he saw them.

I also liked more serious books and The Hiding Place had a huge impact on me when I was thirteen.

So, tell us. What were your favorite books growing up? Did you read any of the ones I have listed here?












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24 comments:

saintseester said...

Oh, Jeez. I remember Flowers in the Attic. I think every girl in my High School was mesmerized by that.

Mostly, I read geek books. Lord of the Rings, and science fiction.

Unknown said...

Hands down, "Are You There God?, It's Me, Margaret."

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

I forgot....Go Ask Alice is my all time second favorite!

Ashlee said...

Ditto to Amyjo! Loved that book! I read Forver too...I think my mom would've killed me if she knew I had read it though. :0)
I read Sweet Valley High as well. Love Comes Softly was on my Jr. High list too.
I love to read and thankfully so do my kids. SO nice to be taken away by a good book!

Emily/Randomability said...

From what I remember, book title's should be italics and underlined when handwritten ~ have you tried writting in italics? The whole is underlined and parts are quotation marks ~ such as chapters and articles.

Anyway... "BLubbery blubber. Blub blub blub blub!" Beverly Clearly books were always my favorite The Mouse and the Motocycle, Socks to name two.

Alison said...

Oh yes, I read all of those! I wanted to BE Laura Ingalls Wilder. Later on I read my friend's copy of Flowers in the Attic and was intrigued and creeped out at the same time.

Besides what you've mentioned, Anne of Green Gables and the Chronicles of Narnia were favorites. The Diary of Anne Frank had a big impact on me, too.

I could go on, but I'll stop...

Laura said...

I loved the Sweet Valley High books and of course Baby Sitter's club. This blog post came at the perfect time. I have been toying with the idea of reading some of my favorite childhood books. I have one that I have thought about off and on for years but can't for the life of me figure out the title of. All I remember is a doll house and maybe it being haunted or the dolls in it moving at night...I think I need to walk over to the library and start searching because now I'm so curious about what book it was!

Emily/Randomability said...

Laura: Maybe When the Dolls Woke?

Laura said...

Oh thank you! I'll have to go look and see if that's it. Funny that I have this strange little book from childhood popping into my head from time to time years later. Guess it shows the impact of the books we read when we were young...

Anonymous said...

I LOVED Sweet Valley High. Now my daughter is enjoying Sweet Valley Twins......

Good times. Thanks for reminding me of those great memories!

Anonymous said...

Sister Honey Bunch... I'm right there with you, I LOVE to read and always have. My all time favorite is "Tyler, Wilkin, & Skee" by Robert Burch, I liked "Queenie Peavy" which he wrote too but I LOVED Tyler, Wilkin, & Skee. I liked Bubber and Are you there God... I read all of the Laura Ingalls Wilder and (showing my true geeky nature here) Nancy Drew. All the others I can't really remember except reading "Wifey" when I was way too young to read it (I think that evens out the geeky part LOL). I LOVE reading ya'lls blog, Sassy & Honey Bunch!

Victoria said...

Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, the Bobbesy Twins, etc. Even Encyclopedia Brown. I've ALWAYS loved a good mystery. I've read most of those books you mentioned as well. What about The Witch of Blackbird Pond? Good stuff.

Wade Huntsinger said...

The hiding place is an awesome book about an awesome person. For me though I pretty much read books that I think are interesting like manly books such as cowboy books. I guess I have a hard time growing up.

Liza on Maui said...

I read the book THE HIDING PLACE when I was i college. A few months after I was "born again" - a powerful book!

I love Little House on the Prairie! Unfortunately, it's the TV show I was introduced to, not the books.... one of these days I'd read the books.

Sister Sassy said...

ok, how creepy was V.C. Andrews series? Incest in every book. Yet it was total reading material for middle school girls.

I loved Judy Blume.

Much of what I read was Piers Anthony's Xanth Series, Incanations of Immortality series, I did read some of the Sweet Valley High. I hated those girls for making me think that Size 6 was perfect. They were a perfect size 6 in every freaking book. I wondred recently if Jessica and Elizabeth are now a perfect size 4 or 0.

Anonymous said...

When we were younger, my mom read to my brothers, my sister and I every night from chapter books. That's how I was introduced to the Little House books, and the Chronicles of Narnia.

When I started reading on my own, it was Judy Blume and also From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenweiler. Ever read that? I could read that over and over again.

Jen said...

Okay, so this is how I know I'm so much OLDer than you: ;-) Judy Blume wasn't even writing when I was little! Nor Paula Danziger. I discovered them when I taught, lol. And I do love The Cat Ate My Gymsuit.

Here were my faves:

Laura Ingalls Wilder, especially Little House in the Big Woods and Farmer Boy

Chronicles of Narnia, especially The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Harriet the Spy and the subsequent sequels

From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

The Witch of Blackbird Pond

Johnny Tremain

Anything about Harriet Tubman or Sojourner Truth

When I was older... Go Ask Alice, The Pigman and Love Story

And older still - the Frank Herbert Dune series and Shakespeare and Fitzgerald and Hemingway and Zola and D.H. Lawrence.

Jen said...

Yikes, and I forgot two of my all-time faves:

A Wrinkle in Time, which I think saved my life on some levels

the original Nancy Drew series, which was handed down from my sister.

alwayssomethin said...

I loved The Little house series, Nancy Drew etc., but by far, my most favorite book was, Where the Red Fern Grows. I have read it many times and I am going to read it again with my 4th grader this summer.

Sister Sassy said...

Jen, I'm with you on Wrinkle in Time. And what about Roald Dahl books? Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? james and the Giant Peach- The movie Matilida is great, I need to read the book now.

Ralph S. Mouse, Super Fudge, Romana series

Where the Red Fern Grows made me cry.

Box car children, I want to read that again.

My Side of the Mountain made me sort of feel like living like a hermit in a tree.

Sister Sassy said...

Oh, and thanks Haddock teacher :)

Anonymous said...

oh, I love all of those book. I read the Sally J Freedman one all of the time.

Elise said...

Sister Honey Bunch,
I had to come check you out from The Nester because you always make me laugh in her comment section!!
I too, read VC Andrews. Not a good thing really, because in high school we had to write a story and I wrote a VC Andrews type story and got sent to the guidance counselors office and grilled about my home life. I had to tell them of my "inspiration" but they didn't believe me.
I also loved Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley Twins and High, Love Comes Softly, Anne of Green Gables, Little Women. I also read some of your titles mentioned. I plan to read the Mitford series by Jan Karon this summer.
Can't wait to check out some of your archives.
Elise