Seuss. That was how it started.
It’s pretty much a gateway drug. A little Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham, and before you know it, you’re hitting up the library at all hours for the hard stuff. Like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
That was how it happened for me, anyway. I remember being in bed around age five or six, Dr. Seuss’s Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are? propped up on my knees as I willed myself to read it one more time until late into the night. Well, until a reasonable hour as designated by my parents.
I’ve never been big on thwarting authority.
I was really just biding my time until fourth grade. My mom and I were out buying a last minute birthday gift for a friend, and she saw a display of books on an end cap at K-Mart. I remembered my friend talking about the series before, so I picked out a set for her. My mom got a set for me too. Three “Super Specials” from the Baby-sitter’s Club series. AN OBSESSION WAS BORN.
If you didn’t read these books, all you need to know is they focused on a group of seven girls who worked as babysitters. They were 11-13 years old, but they had the autonomy of ADULTS. (Seriously, can you imagine leaving MALLORY alone with your children? Or Claudia? That girl was inSANE.) The books were trite and pretty much defined formulaic, but I ate up the entire 50+ book series.
There’s a rumor going around that I still have one of those Super Specials on my bookshelf. For NOSTALGIA. It’s not like I’ve read it in the past four or five years.
It’s starting to feel suspiciously like list time up in here.
- Anything by Roald Dahl. Specifically Matilda and James and the Giant Peach.
- Everything my 3rd/5th grade teacher read our classes. I wish I’d written about her for the teachers post a few weeks back, because she was brilliant. Her name was Kathy Mullins, and she was always reading to us from a chapter book. That was how I met Beezus and Ramona and The Indian in the Cupboard. She read us Old Yeller, The Pink Motel, and Bunnicula. When I was in middle school (and my brother was in her class), she passed away from leukemia. I still think about her when I get really excited about a book. TISSUES, PLEASE.
- Seriously. I need some tissues.
- The Little House series. One summer my aunt cleaned out my cousins’ old room, and the end result was a very large box of books with my name on it. The Little House books were in there, and I was instantly enamored. I can’t wait to share them with my girls. The box also held
- A whole lotta Judy Blume. I have to admit, I was a little surprised (GRATEFULLY SO) when I found out maxi pads no longer required a BELT.
- The Anastasia Krupnik series, by Lois Lowry. Hilarious. Lowry wrote a ton of books that I loved in childhood (A Summer to Die is probably still the saddest book I have ever read, but it is a beautiful story) and more that I didn’t discover until I was in graduate school writing papers on YA lit. If you haven’t read The Giver, you are really missing out.
- Pippi Longstocking, by Astrid Lindgren. I’m still a little bit bitter my husband wouldn’t let me name our second daughter Annika, so much was my love of this book.
- Bag Shel Silverstein, Jack Prelutsky’s silly poetry was SO much better.
- Sweet Valley ____. Kids, Twins, High. I read them all. They looked exactly alike, but they were so different! GROUND-BREAKING, I tell you.
- Anything by Christopher Pike. He was a little bit horror (Monster), a little bit urban fantasy (The Last Vampire series), and a little bit depressing (The Midnight Club.) These were the books that defined my middle school years.
- Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events. I obviously didn’t read these until I was in college, but what an incredible set of books it is.
Enough from me and my still-checks-out-books-from-the-children’s-section-under-the-guise-of-them-being-for-my-children self. What are some of your favorite children’s books?
So many I forgot about… RL Stine, Christopher Pike, Wait Til Helen Comes (I LOVED that book, so much so that I used to dream that I was the girl in the book). There was another ghost book about two girls named Zoe, one being the ghost but I can’t remember now what it’s called. I did read it multiple times though.
.-= Becky Mochaface´s last blog ..Hump Day Humor: The Drunk Gets Dressed =-.
[Reply]
Issa Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 11:55 am
Wait till Helen comes was one of my favorites too. My best friend and I used to fight over it, because the school library only had one copy. I think one of us had it the entire year of sixth grade. Do you remember one about ghosts in a garden? I can’t remember the name of it.
.-= Issa´s last blog ..Re-definining camping =-.
[Reply]
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
Was that The Doll in the Garden? I remember it being hella creepy.
http://www.amazon.com/Doll-Garden-Ghost-Story/dp/0618873155/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276186894&sr=8-1
.-= Diane´s last blog ..Girl Talk Thursday – BOOKS! =-.
[Reply]
Chibi Jeebs Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 11:53 pm
Gah! I read that one – it WAS creepy! :-s
.-= Chibi Jeebs´s last blog ..HYC: Week 23 =-.
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:27 pm
Your Zoe book?
http://www.amazon.com/Stonewords-Ghost-Story-Harper-Trophy/dp/0064403548/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276187200&sr=8-1
[Reply]
I don’t know the Anastasia Krupnik series, I’ll have to check it out.
I now feel VERY compelled to list my favorite children’s books for all age ranges (for this post I stuck with Gabriel’s).
.-= Miss Grace´s last blog ..Children’s Books =-.
[Reply]
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:25 pm
Haha, and I’m annoyed that I left off all my favorite picture books. I could go on for yeeears.
.-= Diane´s last blog ..Girl Talk Thursday – BOOKS! =-.
[Reply]
When I mentioned Mark Twain to my 11 year old and her response was, “Is he a singer?” My reply, “Yes, Shania’s brother.” I knew it was time to get her to the library and away from Harry Potter. Library…here we come!!
.-= Lanita´s last blog ..A Hand at the Small of the Back =-.
[Reply]
Laughing. Because I *may* have a few of those BSC books lying around myself. However, my eight year old daughter is a good cover. Just don’t listen when she tells you she finds them boring.
Pretty much all of the above I read and loved. I wasn’t even that picky. Heck, I still read the back of shampoo bottles as I shower. I’ll add: R.L. Stein books. I loved random mysteries. The Lion, The witch and the Wardrobe. Secret Garden. Charlotte’s Web. Matilda. The Witches. The Giver. There was also this weird series of books on like kids who went to a camp for dying kids. What? I was a bit morbid maybe.
I love Harry Potter, although granted the first one came out when I was 19 or something.
Shel Silverstein was my Seuss. I mean, I loved Seuss, but it was Silverstein that created a book worm in me.
.-= Issa´s last blog ..Re-definining camping =-.
[Reply]
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
I have still never read The Secret Garden. That’s definitely one I need to pick up.
.-= Diane´s last blog ..Girl Talk Thursday – BOOKS! =-.
[Reply]
I remember the feeling of relief too when finding out maxi pads don’t require a belt 0_0 .Odd we’d have similar experience. I remember telling my mom that, and that I had read it in “Are you there God? It’s Me, Margaret”. She flipped out and was like what kind of books are you reading?! lol Good ‘Ol Judy Blume books.
[Reply]
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 7:59 pm
I think she’s updated it now to make that part less confusing. Where’s the fun in that?
[Reply]
You know the Babysitter’s club special vacation one when the family goes to the beach and Stacy met Toby? Yeah, that was my favorite one EVER. Who did you most identify with? Me? Kristy. (hangs head in shame)
Has anyone mentioned the Flowers in the Attic books? (shaking head again)
I need to write too! Don’t know if I’ll have time tonight! AHH!
.-= Colleen´s last blog ..A Tiny Tank Cannon. And A Nose. =-.
[Reply]
Diane Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 7:53 pm
Definitely a Dawn. My favorite was the one I linked to above, where Dawn and Claudia get stranded on a desert island for a weekend with two of their babysitting charges. SADLY, it is NOT the one I still have on my shelf! For some reason, I kept the one where they all go to California and Mallory bleaches her hair. DISAPPOINTING.
[Reply]
Oh, man! I think I’m going to have to go through everyone’s post with a pen and paper to make a list for the library!
.-= Chibi Jeebs´s last blog ..HYC: Week 23 =-.
[Reply]
My list is up and complete with pictures.
I can never get the Linky to work on my blog and I suppose it is because I am an idiot and do not understand those things. But I love GTT and sorry I haven’t participated in a while. There have been quite a few topics I wanted to. Also I have thoroughly enjoyed reading everyone else’s favorite children’s books, and have made a list of new ones to add to our collection. 
<3
.-= Kel´s last blog ..Favorites – Past & Present – Children’s Books =-.
[Reply]