Books I Have Loved

While attending the Used Book Sale at church this past weekend, one of the older women who was working it motioned to me. In a hushed voice, she said, "Remember at the last sale, when you asked me what was my favorite book and I didn't answer? I didn't tell you because I thought you'd laugh, but my favorite book has always been Anne of Green Gables." She half smiled and looked at me a bit sheepishly. Her daughter said that the mother had just finished reading the book again.

I wouldn't have laughed, and I told her so, but I don't know if she believed me.

This conversation made me reflect on books that I've loved throughout my life - books I've tried to pass on to my kids, and their friends, with somewhat limited success. Here's my (short) list - I'd love it if you'd add your own. I'm not going to tell you the story of them - some of them you already know, and some of them you'll need to Amazon. (That is too a verb. I just made it up.) I'll share my memories with you instead.

• The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats - I loved the pictures in this book, and the sight of the little dog in the snow to this day makes me laugh. (Wait - I can't find my copy to confirm that, indeed, the dog is in the snow in the book. I'm pretty  sure that's what I remember.) I also loved...
• A Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats - same author, same characters, same pictures. I LOVED the idea of living in the big city.
• Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss - the first book that many of my kids have read to me. I love the rhyming of this, the sheer audacity of the main character and how the rhythm keeps the story fresh.
• Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Patterson - who among us doesn't relate to a main character who is convinced that her parents love the younger, more beautiful sister, more than her?
• Island of the Blue Dophins by Scott O'Dell - the idea of being marooned on an island fascinated me. The reality - I think I would have died.
• Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton Porter - When I was in sixth grade, I had no friends. Zero. It didn't help that I had glasses, braces, acne, a shiny face, long oily hair that was fluffy, and zero fashion sense. As a consequence, I made good friends with my English teacher, and we both discussed our favorite books. She recommended this book to me and after I read it once, I renewed it from the library so many times I was finally forbidden. I bought this book for my girls and they both - the two that have read it - enjoyed it, although probably not to the same level that I did. 
• Homer Price by Robert McCloskey - Seriously, Homer, with his inventions = brilliant. The donut machine is my favorite chapter ever, but all of the stories are super fun and entertaining. I bought this for my kids, and those that have read it loved it as well. 
• Pajama Time by Sandra Boynton - I love all of her books, but this one was my very favorite to read again and again. Ooooh, yes, it's PAJAMA TIME.
• Outlander by Diana Gabaldon - you all know of my love for this series. Like no other. So not a kid book but I had to toss it in there. NO book list of mine would be complete without it.
• The Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder - which girl didn't dream of wearing a bonnet?
• The Elsie Dinsmore Series was two of my girls favorite series.

I'll probably think of more - but I'd love to know what books you remember from your life that you'd recommend again and again.

Comments

[NotAMeanGirl]

The Little House on the Prairie books were some of my most treasured. I read them until they fell apart. I also loved The Giving Tree and The Little Prince. Oh! And the Trixie Belden books! (Nancy Drewish books)

[addy]

Where the Wild Things Are - Curious George and One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish to name just a select few.

[Starr]

I think Anne of Green Gables would be right up there as one of the books I've loved the most throughout my life. And the Little House books, Jane Eyre, Gone With the Wind (not a 'children's book,' but I was eleven the first time I read it), The Secret Garden, and Little Women. I love them all, I couldn't choose one as my favourite.

And Trixie Belden! Yes!! LOVED her!

[Jackie]

My favorites were Anne of Green Gables, The Little House on the Prairie series, White Fang and Call of the Wild, It's Valentine's Day by Jack Prelutsky(I loved his work and thought he was hilarious when I was in the 3rd grade). There are many more, I was a pretty avid reader growing up. Having only 3 t.v. channels will do that(and sometimes only two came in clear)...hmmm maybe I should cut the cable...

[Brandy]

Little Women. To this day I reread it at least once a year. Emily of New Moon, written by L.M. Montgomery. Um , The Diary of Anne Frank. I bought a copy for my children, though it wasn't so much because I loved it, but because I feel it contains a valuable lesson. Ther are more. Lots more. But those are the ones I can think of this minute.

[wookie]

I have to say "A Wrinkle In Time" stands above many of them, as does the Narnia series.

[PamL]

I loved Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm--I only read it a couple of years ago and then read about 1/2 of it to my girls, ages 9 and 7 at the time. They had a hard time understanding some of it, but I think it's very well written and parts of it are hysterical. I think they would like it now, ages 12 and 10, but I can't get them to read it!

I 2nd Trixie Belden- we have the first 8 or 9 of the original series and they're awesome. There are some newer ones written by another author, and my daughters love those too. I think I read somewhere that the first author only wrote 9 or 10. Really awesome series.

Loved A Wrinkle in Time, but it's been a long time since I read it. I'll have to reread it.

Just came across a newer series by Avi-- Crispin and the Cross of Lead, Crispin at the Edge of the World and Crispin at the End of Time. Awesome!

[Vicky]

The Great Brain series, Little House on the Prairie series, Judy Blume books. Oh there were so many....I read everything I could. I was at the library all the time.

[Luckyduck]

The Black Stallion (and all the sequels)...must have read them a million times as a kid. They fostered my love of horses and horse racing.

The Talisman (Stephen King/Peter Straub). Everybody seems to love "The Stand", but I found this one so much better, and hope to see it as a movie some day.

Pillars of the Earth...I'm not into period fiction, but loved this epic story.

The Hunger Games...will probably be a long time before this one is dethroned as my favorite young adult book. The Twilight series can't hold a candle to it (look for the movie in March)

Children's book...Go, Dog, Go!

Too busy to undertake any new books right now (sigh). I have "The Lost Code" waiting for me. Maybe Christmas???

[maggie]

A few books that I'm eternally grateful for reading....Les Miserables/Victor Hugo, My Antonia/Willa Cather, The Bell Jar/Sylvia Plath and I love Little Women! I love watching all movie versions of Little Women at Christmas time.

[Sara]

Little House, Little House, Little House, and everything else Laura wrote! Little Women. Jane Austen everything. Anne of Green Gables---does it count if I only read them as an adult? All the Betsy-Tacy books. A Girl of the Limberlost!! I don't know many people who have read that one---I've even got a a first edition copy of it. Oh, and the whole Outlander series.

[wookie]

Oh, I almost forgot, the Dark is Rising books.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dark_Is_Rising_Sequence

These were awesome.

[Pat]

I loved the Sue Barton series (Sue Barton-Student Nurse, Sue Barton - Head Nurse, etc.), as well as all the Nancy Drew books. I came from an Irish Catholic home, so I read Saints for Girls, Lives of the Saints and assorted books on the Missions.

[Susan]

The Betty Smith books: Joy in the Morning, Tomorrow will be better, Maggie-now, and A tree grows in Brooklyn.
The only ones she ever wrote, and they are wonderful!

[Megan]

Ditto on the Little House on the Prairie series. I've read them many times. I realized as a teen that parts of the series really reflected on prejudices and misconceptions at the time that I hadn't picked up on when I was younger.

Some of my other favorites:
Bridge to Terabithia and The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Patterson. The movie version of BTT is great, but it's no replacement for the book. Both of these books are really beautifully written, heart-wrenching stories.

To Kill A Mockingbird. My favorite book, hands down. I first read it in 8th grade English, and I've re-read it many times and always catch something new.

The Ramona series. What kid can't relate to Ramona? What I love about these books is the first one was written in the 1950's, yet they don't feel dated at all. For that matter, I've never read a book by Beverly Cleary that I didn't love.

Judy Blume books. All of them are great, but I particularly recommend "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" for any adolescent girl.

[Lisa]

yes, yes, yes to Betty Smith books and To Kill A Mockingbird, We will need another whole column for children's books! And then another for illustrators!! :)

[LizP]

I have loved so many books ...
The Anne of Green Gables series
A Wrinkle in Time/A Wind in the Door
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Sword of Shannara series
Anything by James Clavel, Harry Harrison, or Robert Heinlein
The North & South series

That's all I can remember at this moment.

[J from Ireland]

I have read Memoirs of a Geisha loads of times, love it. Harry Potter books, Malary Towers, Judy Blume books are all ones that I got my kids to read and they loved too.

[Lesli]

Little House! Love all of those. Julie of the Wolves...I remember that book really opening my eyes to how different life can be, as did Diary of Anne Frank and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. The Clan of the Cave Bear series. Hmmm....so many. Lots of others that were also mentioned above, such as the Sword of Shannara series and, more recently, The Hunger Games. Also, a book about a kid who got caught out in a rowboat during a hurricane...I loved that, and though I've tried to figure out the title, I've had no luck with so far. Maybe somebody here knows that one? The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon; Stephen King, but not typical Stephen King (which I also like but wouldn't be handing my kids for quite some time.)

[Rick]

In Cold Blood, Truman Capote
The Good Earth, Pearl Buck
The Confessions of Nat Turner, William Styron (author from Newport News who wrote the book that inspired the movie, Sophie's Choice)
All Things Bright and Beautiful, James Herriot
All Creatures Great and Small, James Herriot
All Things Wise and Wonderful, James Herriot
The Lord God Made Them All, James Herriot

Those James Herriot books were absolutely wonderful! I think it might be time to read them again!

[Laura H.]

I still have the full box set of Laura Ingalls Wilder books, and though they've all been read multiple times they are in good condition. I've passed them along to my daughter, but she's not reading them yet. I also loved Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, Little Women, a series called All-of-A-Kind Family, a book called "The Haunted Heart" but I cannot remember who wrote it. I read constantly, then and now, so the list could go on and on... These are the first ones that came to mind, though.

[Lesli]

Yes, how could I forget the Herriot books? Love those.

[Ann Woodruff]

Little House are a real favorite, but my all time favorite book has to be "To Kill a Mockingbird". Story, literary genius, loss of innocence theme, superb characters (especially Atticus - probably my favorite literary character of all time) Ramona books by Beverly Cleary, and I agree with Laura H. The All-of-a-Kind Family I found when I was an adult. GREAT for 9-12 yo girls. Thanks for posting your list, Carmen.

[Lesli]

Has anyone mentioned Harriet the Spy yet? Love those.

[Karen]

Let's hear it for Homer Price