December 6, 2011

Top Ten Tuesday: Childhood Favorites


As always, this feature is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Even as a child, I already loved books dearly. (That has a lot to do with my parents, who read to me as often as possible!) For today's posts, I picked the titles I remember reading as a child - and hope that you recognize some of your own favorites in it!

1. Any book by Dr. Seuss - As a child, it was tradition for either my mom or my dad to read to me and my sister before we went to sleep. Some of the earliest memories I have are of tottering towards my parents with a humongous selection of my favorite books from Dr. Seuss. I had a particular affinity for The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham.

2. Any of The Berenstain Bears books by Stan, Jan & Mike Berenstain - This was definitely another big childhood favorite! My sister and I used to argue about which one we wanted to read. My favorite (oddly enough) was about a visit to the dentist.

3. Any of The Magic School Bus books by Joanna Cole - When I got a little older, I loved The Magic School Bus.  I mean, hello, most awesome field trips EVER! I liked all the crazy adventures they got in to and the fun things I learned because of it. For this series, the one I remember best is the one about composting.

4. Any book by Shel Silverstein - I was only just getting into my groove as a reader when I had my parents buy me my first Shel Silverstein book, Where the Sidewalk Ends. I loved reading those poems and perusing the amusing illustrations for hours.

5. The Boxcar Children series by Gertrude Chandler Warner - A series about four siblings who decide to make a home for themselves in an abandoned boxcar? Of course I loved this series. It appealed to my sense of adventure and my family-oriented nature back then.

6. The Saddle Club series - It still saddens me that I never got the opportunity to have formal riding lessons.  But I did get to live vicariously through the characters in this series, and I enjoyed their adventures and all the horse-related activities they did.

7. Sweet Valley Kids/Sweet Valley Twins series by Francine Pascal - I was a huge fan of the Sweet Valley series, and still am.  The world and the characters were very real to me at a young age; I fancied myself to be a lot like Elizabeth and my younger sister to be Jessica.

8. Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder - The strongest memory I have of this particular series is getting threatened about having it taken away from me because I couldn't stop reading while I was eating.  It was just so interesting to me and even now that I'm older, I still go back to it every now and then.

9. The Magic Attic Club series by Sheri Cooper Sinykin - This series is FANTASTIC. I'm not kidding. It was such a great way to fuel my imagination.  Imagine having access to an attic that will allow you to be transported into a different situation in time? Awesome.

10. American Girl series - I was obsessed with the American Girls when I was younger. In fact, I have two of them - Samantha and Josefina (and my sister has Molly).  I loved their stories and thought it was endlessly fascinating to read about all these different girls from different times and cultures.

11. The Babysitters Club series by Ann M. Martin - I loved reading about all the adventures that these girls got up to, especially because it was about a set of best friends.

12. Any book by Roald Dahl - Yes, this definitely defined my childhood. I absolutely adored all of Dahl's stories; they were filmed with whimsy, imaginative scenarios and lovable characters.

13. Fairytales - I love fairy tales. I love all these fantastical magical stories. And I collected fairy tale compilations, most of which I still have. They definitely fueled my active imagination.

I know, I know, I sort of cheated by including 13 instead of 10.  But it's hard to not be enthusiastic about the books I loved when I was a child, most of which had stories or characters that continue to stay with me up until today. 

Tell me, dear blogging friends, what were your favorite childhood books?
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24 Comments:

  1. Apparently I missed out as a child because The Magic Attic Club sounds like something I would have loved! Great list!

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  2. I'm actually on the verge of wanting to buy them and reread them because they were so much fun!

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  3. I haven't yet, but I definitely plan on it! :)

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  4. I love that you read the Magic Attic Club. Each adventure was so different, but equally awesome. :)

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  5. You have a really great list here!
    Boxcar Children, Roald Dahl, Little House on the Prairie, Shel Silverstein, The Magic School Bus!
    Thanks for dropping by my blog as well :)

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  6. Ditto to the Magic Attic Club love!! I don't know anyone else in the blogosphere who has read them, but they were so awesome!!!

    Alice in Arabia was one of my favorites :)

    ~Tiffany from For Those About to Read

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  7. Berenstain Bears and the dentist!! I remember that one too!! Omg i love this trip down memory lane :D

    Thanks for stopping by! :)

    Michele | Top 10

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  8. The Berenstain Bears! Little House on the Prairie! I'd completely forgotten about those! I read most of the books you listed as a kid. Brings back memories! :)

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  9. The Magic School Bus books almost made my list as well. I remember reading them so slowly because I never wanted them to end!

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  10. Oh, the Babysitters Club! I wish I knew how many girls (myself included) were in love with Logan and wanted to start their own club. I just laugh thinking about it.

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  11. Asheley (@BookwormAsheley)February 6, 2012 at 12:11 PM

    we have a lot of the same books and series on our lists. and don't worry, i actually put 12! so if you're a cheater, i'm a cheater too. :)

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  12. I like your selection, but my favorite of all time was Nancy Drew.

    Here's my post.

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  13. Great post! I loved the Sweet Valley series too - did you read the one that came out this year with Elizabeth and Jessica as adults? It's a fun read if you haven't read it.

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  14. Blah! I forgot so many books! I loved Magic School Bus, Berenstein Bears, The Cat in the Hat... Little House, Sweet Valley, American Girls. I can't believe I had a hard time coming up with books! Thanks for visiting my blog today, and for coming up with such a fun list full of memories!

    - Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl

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  15. Michelle FabbityFabBookReviewsFebruary 6, 2012 at 12:11 PM

    What an awesome list! Books by Roald Dahl, and books about the Berenstain Bears- I loved that. Hmm...now I wanted to add more to my list!

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  16. The Magic Attic Club sounds awesome! Thanks for hopping by!

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  17. love all of these so so much! and Laura Ingalls Wilder has my heart.

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  18. shel silverstein is beyond awesome. and i love reading anything dr. seuss to my son, it's so much fun to read aloud.

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  19. Okay, your list is so similar to my list! I loved the Boxcar Children! And Babysitters Club! And Roald Dahl! And Berenstain Bears! Pretty much this whole entire list was my childhood. Alexa, you were an awesome kid!

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  20. Yeah for some Berenstain Bear love! What a great series! Loved BSC (I wanted to start my own---little did I realize that it wouldn't quite work in a rural area when none of us could drive)!

    Great TTT! I want to read all my favs over again!

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  21. Wow! We have so many things in common on our lists! This is awesome! I've seen a couple of lists already today and they all have some Roald Dahl on them, but none are the same. Which just tells me that his books are unilaterally AWESOME. And I LOVE that you included the American Girl books because I seriously toyed with putting them on my list, although I would have featured Felicity. Loved her. Such a great list!

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  22. Loved The Berstein Bears.

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