Childhood favorites

Last night I was talking to a friend about books from our childhood. It was a nice walk down memory lane, and I thought the subject would make a good blog too.

The following is a list of book series I loved as a kid:

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie Collection
(Like Barbie, Care Bears and Little Women, the Little House Series is a staple to any girl’s upbringing. I think they were especially significant to me, as I was raised in the Mid-West, and have connections to the agricultural lifestyle.)

Dear America
(Mom got both Jared and I into these. Written in the form of a diary, each book is about a child growing up during a pivotal time in American History. Topics covered include the Pilgrim’s, Salem Witch Trials, every war, Slavery, Immigration, the Great Depression, the Gold Rush, the Titanic, etc.)

Shel Silverstein Poetry
(Fantastically silly. My favorite of his books, Runny Babbit, was published after his death and was given to me as a gift for my 20^th birthday. You’re never too old for Shel Silverstein)

Aesop’s Fables

All of a Kind Family
(Now this one is really interesting…this book series is about a Jewish Family with five daughters who live in a poor neighborhood in New York City at the turn of the century. I had, and still don’t have, anything in common with the characters, but I LOVED these books. I borrowed them from the Eudora Public Library and learned more about Judaism, sisters and life in the city than I would have anywhere else. They’re fantastic, and definitely something I’ll pass down to my own kids)

Anything by Ronald Dahl
(Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and my personal favorite - George’s Marvelous Medicine)

Chronicles of Narnia

The Boxcar Children
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxcar_children

The Happy Hollisters

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Happy_Hollisters

Nancy Drew
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Drew

The Bobbsey Twins
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bobbsey_Twins

My mother heavily influenced my childhood reading material (and to be fair – as an adult, I’ve influenced hers as well), as is evident by the amount of literature written prior to the 1960s. I laugh at the trend of books written about perfect, mystery-solving, crime-fighting, young people. The last four series on the list above are about that particular demographic. Interesting.

Anyway, despite what I read, it was simply important that I was READING. My parents did a phenomenal job of raising four book fiends. Although my brothers’ literary choices vary greatly from mine, it wasn’t unusual for us to be lined up on the couch on a rainy day, each completely absorbed in a book. My brother Jared likes really dark, weird, bloody novels; Jacob used to read more books, but now prefers motorcycle magazines and Harry Potter; Jesse loves science fiction but grew up on Hank the Cowdog.

Being a good, fast, reader has been a great asset throughout my education. After reading an article on the subject, I suppose I’m actually a speed reader. I can get through material very quickly with a decent comprehension rate. My reading score on the ACT was a 35. Most of my college reading consists of textbooks, essays, analytical articles and newspapers, so I look forward to having an 8-5 job that will leave me hours upon hours for pleasure reading.

That, my dear readers, is the ONLY perk to leaving college and getting a job...bleh!