My love of books and reading goes way back. I have previously professed my love for the first book I remember reading as well as my fond memories of library day in elementary school and the fondness I have for my Nook.
Today I thought it would be fun to share some of my favorite children's authors. It would be way hard for me to pick one and I'm just highlighting a few that come to mind at the moment.
My third grader (and baby of the family) recently had to pick a 'realistic fiction' book to read for a book report. She enjoys reading but has a hard time sitting still long to do anything. Her typical reading pose looks like this:
or this:
Right now, she's barreling through lots of Junie B. Jones and American Girl doll novels. She is a good reader, but was a little slow to enjoy it. We find that shorter novels work best for her and her attention span. She ended up picking "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing" by Judy Blume as her choice for the book report. Her selection led me to reminisce about the books of my elementary school days.
Growing up, I can't remember a day when I didn't have a book of some type in my hand. It didn't matter the season, I found a place and time to read.
One of my early favorites was this one:
At a Scholastic Book Fair in Kindergarten, I was introduced to the world of Frances and instantly fell in love! My very first Frances book came with a "45 rpm record" in the back of book so you could listen to the author reading it aloud as you read along. Way cool! I think at one point, I had every Frances book written.
Of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention my love of Dr. Seuss! Horton is one of my favorite fictional characters of all time! I checked "Go, Dog, Go!" out of the library tons of times and actually 'lost' it once so my Mom had to pay an outrageous fortune to the Bel Air Library for this copy. We found it, eventually. I had apparently hidden it for safe keeping. Today it sits on Andrew's bookshelf in his closet.
And then there are these authors: Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, E.B. White, Ronald Dahl, Shel Silverstein. Ah, yes, favorites. And "The Phantom Tollbooth". Never read anything else by Norton Juster; in fact, I have no clue if he wrote anything else, but oh how I loved this book! And, "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe" series, and "The Borrowers", and "A Wrinkle In Time", and don't get me started on classics like books by Louisa May Alcott and Mark Twain, and then there's this book and that book, and...see, it's hard to stop!
I really didn't have a favorite genre as a child. I read anything that I could escape in. Imagination and interesting characters were wonderful transporters for me. I loved my childhood and my family, but was fascinated by the worlds a book could transport me to. This fascination and love have traveled through time with me into adulthood.
I would have to say, though, hands down the series that I went back to, time and time again was this:
My beloved "Little House" books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
I had the entire series at one point growing up. I eagerly anticipated each birthday and Christmas to receive another book. I am not sure what happened to my original copies (and I think most were paperback), but these are the two that I bought for Caroline. We're going to read thema loud. We started the first one a little over a year ago, but then I got sick and she lost focus. We're starting again next month.
I was in love with the pioneer life that Laura faced. The television show and I had a weekly date after I polished off reading the series. Melissa Gilbert was Laura to me...exactly how I had pictureed her in my mind. Laura Ingalls Wilder was the topic of many of my very own book reports and I even looked to her and the time period for my own wardrobe. Here's the proof:
{checkered top, corduroy prairie skirt with eyelet ruffle and brown boots}.
I had prairie bonnets also! When my family would take a drive to Lancaster, PA, I would convince my parents or grandparents to buy me one and I would wear it around just like an Ingalls girl!
"The Little House" series was read over and over by me. I think I had the first few books memorized at one point!
Books have always tranported me to a different place. Time stands still when I turn the pages to see where the characters go and what they feel. The smell of a library is a good thing in my book. The feel of the plastic jacket covers...ah, heaven!
My "to read" book list currently is huge! Pages and pages long. And, since, the weather outside is snowy and cold, I think it's the perfect time to curl up with a good book, hot tea and a blanket: my idea of a perfect hibernation season!
And maybe, just maybe, I'll pretend I am 9 years old again and partake in an adventure by Beverly Cleary or Judy Blume today. Yes, maybe I will.