My Favourite Books As A Child and In My Twenties
The first stories that were read to me were fairy tales and those to do with Hindu mythology, more oral than read from actual books.
Once I started reading on my own, my books of choice were fairy tales and, as I grew older, I discovered other genres. From late teens into my 20s, my reading consisted mainly of fantasy with a sprinkling of horror.
I thought it would be fun to list the books I treasured in my younger years, and the ones I particularly enjoyed in my 20s. I’ve decided to limit my choice for each to 5.
My 5 favourite books from my pre-teen years:
A collection of fairy tales. This was a particular favourite for my sister and me. It had a light brown cover and lovely colour illustrations. When we went our separate ways, we decided my sister would keep it. She still has it but, for the life of her, she cannot remember where she’s put it, so I don’t have a picture to share.
‘The Enchanted Wood’ from ‘The Faraway Tree’ series by Enid Blyton.
While I enjoyed all the books in this series, the first one was my favourite. It’s about 3 children who move to the countryside and, while exploring, discover a huge tree, called the Faraway Tree, in a nearby wood. When they climb the tree, they discover magical people living in it and they befriend them. Right at the top of the tree, they find a ladder which leads to different magical lands that stop for a time before moving on to make room for the next land. The children are able to visit the different lands but must always make sure to leave before the land moves away from the tree or they’ll be stuck in that land until it returns to the Faraway Tree.
‘Black Beauty’ by Anna Sewell.
Having already fallen in love with horses, this book became a firm favourite after just one reading. I loved that Sewell had written it in first person with Black Beauty narrating his own story. Over the course of his life, starting on a farm by his mother’s side to the hardships of pulling London cabs in the city, we read of the times he faced cruelty and kindness until finally able to enjoy a happy retirement in the country.
I was so pleased to find this copy to replace my childhood one, especially as it has illustrations by Lucy Kemp-Welch.
‘My Friend Flicka’ by Mary O’Hara.
Another horse story, this time set in Wyoming. It tells the story of a young boy, son of a rancher who’s finally allowed to raise his own colt. To his father’s annoyance, the boy chooses a filly with mustang blood who he names Flicka.
I know I watched the film with Roddy McDowall, but I don’t remember much about it.
Finally, back to Enid Blyton and her ‘Famous Five’ series.
The books feature the adventures of a group of young children, 2 brothers and their sister, their tomboy cousin and her dog. Apart from the fun they had, I loved the settings, which, more often than not, were in the countryside or by the sea. And I especially loved that the dog, Timmy, was counted as a member of the group.
On to my 5 favourite books from my late teens into my 20s:
‘Little Women’ by Louisa May Alcott.
Even though my temperament isn’t like Jo’s, strangely, she’s the one I related to the most. Although some of the themes may come across as dated, I still find plenty to enjoy in this story of 4 sisters growing up during the American Civil War.
‘Dragonlance Chronicles’ by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.
This is based on the Dungeons and Dragons game, which I played for a bit but, most times, I was happy to watch my sister and her friends play whenever I visited her during the holidays.
The trilogy ticks all the boxes for the characters you’d expect to meet in a fantasy – knight and barbarian, warrior and half-elf, dwarf and kender (basically small people) and not just any mage but a dark-souled one.
Only thought of as creatures of legend, dragons have returned, and our heroes must embark on a quest to find the legendary Dragonlance. Typical fantasy fare with great characters and a solid plot.
‘Cannery Row’ by John Steinbeck.
My first experience of a Steinbeck story was the film, ‘Grapes of Wrath’. The reason I watched the film was because of Henry Fonda. It was only afterwards that I discovered it was based on Steinbeck’s novel. I didn’t read the novel until I was in my 20s and that led to reading more of his books. My favourite of the ones I read, which remains my favourite to this day, is ‘Cannery Row’ about the people who lived there during the Depression. Although a work of fiction, Steinbeck based his characters on real-life people he’d met and knew in the area.
‘The Talisman’ by Stephen King and Peter Straub.
Of all the Stephen King books I’ve read, this is my favourite. It’s the story of a young boy ‘searching for the talisman, the one thing that will save his dying mother. His quest takes him into the menacing Territories where violence, surprise and the titanic struggle between good and evil reach across a mythic landscape…’
The Territories are a fantasy land set in a parallel universe, and the people in the Territories have parallel ‘twins’ in our world. I’ve read this numerous times and, each time, I find myself totally immersed in the story. Now I’ve said that, it’s been awhile since I’ve read this, so I shall add it to my reading pile for next year.
‘Elfquest’ by Wendy and Richard Pini.
This series started out in comic form, written and illustrated by husband-wife team, the Pinis. Thanks to my sister who’d already started collecting them, I read the comics avidly when I came to the UK. When the Pinis made the comics available as graphic novels, I bought my own set. First published in 1978, it’s still going strong.
The story is basically about a wolfrider tribe of elves and their quest to find others of their own kind on a world with two moons.
Aside from the story, I love the art of Wendy Pini.
Unlike the first list, it was a little more difficult whittling the second list down to 5. It was a fun exercise, though, and it’s reminded me of books I haven’t picked up recently. As much as I like discovering new stories and authors, there’s nothing quite like revisiting an old friend.