What was your favorite book when you were a child? (literature, mysteries)

[Future Trooper]

When I was in grade school I would have to say my favorite book was ( it was part of a series) The Series of Unfortunate Events.

now that I am in HS my favorite book is Ice Trap.

[thechappells]

Originally Posted by thechappells

i absolutely loved "'Stand back,' said the elephant, 'I'm going to Sneeze!'" by patricia thomas and wallace tripp. I can't help but roll over laughing it was such a fun read. I even bought another copy a few years back since my original is at my parents home. Another one that I adore is "Hamilton" by Robert Newton Peck. Its about a pig who loved to eat.

I FOUND IT! I FOUND "HAMILTON"! i ordered it used on amazon this past weekend. i looked for it a year ago and no dice. i almost fell out of my seat when i saw it online. i will have it in my hands next week!! i can't believe how excited i am about this book. hopefully, my son (he's a toddler) will enjoy it as much as i did growing up.

[Bunjee]

The Chronicles of Narnia and The Chronicles of Gor series.

The former affected me moreso into adulthood. After years of atheism starting from adolescence it was probably memories of CS Lewis' work that slowly nudged me back to a gentler, kinder, (I think) wiser form of Christianity.

[manquaman]

Originally Posted by Public_Newsense

The Pokey Little Puppy. As I got older, Where the Wild Things Are, and older still, Island of the Blue Dolphin. Read them all probably dozens of times. LOL

I loved the 'Wild Things' too when I was a kid, but I when I reread it to my son I was blown away. Isn't it a bit weird that a kid was sent to bed without food? I guess I didn't pay attention to that as a kid, but did anyone notice this?

It reminds me of many of my childhood stories; Hanzel and Gretel were left in the forest because their parents couldn't afford to feed them anymore? Am I missing something? These stories are dreadful from a parenting standpoint. Is this childhood catharsis, perhaps?

My son is nine now and I can't keep him interested in books that I loved like Tom Sawyer and the Hardy Boys. He reads on his own before bed and I won't interfere with that, but he reads cotton candy compared to the classics. Any suggestions of modern work with vocabulary and complex characters?

[canibeyou]

Originally Posted by Bunjee

The Chronicles of Narnia and The Chronicles of Gor series.

The former affected me moreso into adulthood. After years of atheism starting from adolescence it was probably memories of CS Lewis' work that slowly nudged me back to a gentler, kinder, (I think) wiser form of Christianity.

Slightly off topic but have you ever read any of his other work? He was an amazing thinker/ writer. I've read the Narnia books and was facinated when I grew older to read some of his "adult" books. To read one of those and to think that the Narnia books came from the same mind is really something.


manquaman, have you tried the Chronicles of Narnia books? I think I was around 9 when I first read them. It seemed a good aghe to read 'em. I just reread them a year ago (I'm WAY past 9 now) and they were as good as I remembered.

[firefightermom]

Originally Posted by manquaman

I loved the 'Wild Things' too when I was a kid, but I when I reread it to my son I was blown away. Isn't it a bit weird that a kid was sent to bed without food? I guess I didn't pay attention to that as a kid, but did anyone notice this?

It reminds me of many of my childhood stories; Hanzel and Gretel were left in the forest because their parents couldn't afford to feed them anymore? Am I missing something? These stories are dreadful from a parenting standpoint. Is this childhood catharsis, perhaps?

My son is nine now and I can't keep him interested in books that I loved like Tom Sawyer and the Hardy Boys. He reads on his own before bed and I won't interfere with that, but he reads cotton candy compared to the classics. Any suggestions of modern work with vocabulary and complex characters?

Have you tried The Hobbit? A lot of people don't realize that Tolkien's books were written for children, also. There is a cartoon movie of The Hobbit that may help get him interested in the book. I loved that movie as a child, and there was also a caroon version of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

From what I recall, those old fairy tales were not originally written for children; they were part of the verbal tradition of many cultures that eventually were written down. The Grimm brothers tales are based on German oral traditions. They just wrote them down and somehow decided to gear them towards children. I guess it's a scary way to teach morals!

[manquaman]

Originally Posted by firefightermom

Have you tried The Hobbit? A lot of people don't realize that Tolkien's books were written for children, also. There is a cartoon movie of The Hobbit that may help get him interested in the book. I loved that movie as a child, and there was also a caroon version of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

From what I recall, those old fairy tales were not originally written for children; they were part of the verbal tradition of many cultures that eventually were written down. The Grimm brothers tales are based on German oral traditions. They just wrote them down and somehow decided to gear them towards children. I guess it's a scary way to teach morals!

I did forget about the Hobbit, that's a great idea. Thank you very much. Those books are so rich in description, narrative, and storylines. The vocabulary is not difficult and the imagery is off the charts.

[Z0har64]

I really liked Donna Jo Napoli's books when I was younger. Her books were usually sappy romances revolving around Fairy tales or mythical stuff.

[Captain Worley]

Ferdinand the Bull
Millions of Cats
Ping
Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, Mary Ann

[lolagranola]

I loved Ping! Would love a hardback copy of it.

I loved Free to be You and Me, which my dad hated cause it was feminist commie crap!