Wednesday, 29 June 2011
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My 5 Favorite Book Series From My Childhood
I don't know about you, but I was a total bookworm when I was younger. I still read for fun now that I'm older, but since school, work, and life have started taking up more time, my leisure reading is basically a summer pursuit.
But back in elementary and middle school, I always had my nose in a book. I would read for hours and hours on end during weekends, and accumulated a massive collection of books. Seriously, I have two bookshelves crammed to bursting with young adult literature that I haven't touched in years. But there were several series that hold a special place in my heart (and sizable chunks of my bookshelves).
Animal Ark, by Ben M. Baglio
Dog at the Door (Animal Ark #25), $4.99 from AmazonI think it's the secret dream of every kid to have a million different exotic pets. These books allowed my kid self to live vicariously through Mandy, the main character and veterinarian's daughter, as she found animals in trouble and helped save them. Even back then, I remember thinking that these books were an extremely easy read, but I kept reading them to see more animals being saved. It was always a feel-good ending!
Silver Blades, by Melissa Lowell
Chance of a Lifetime (Silver Blades), $3.99 from Amazon
If I was a fan of one thing when I was younger, it was figure skating. Silver Blades followed four friends -- Nikki, Danielle, Tori, and Jill -- as they worked towards becoming figure skaters. I took lessons for a number of years, but never got anywhere close to being as good as these girls were. So instead of waking up at 4 am for practice, I read about them doing it. These books described skating moves and coaching in detail, and also focused on the girls' friendships. I loved this little glimpse into what it takes to be a competitive skater.
Pen Pals, by Sharon Dennis Wyeth
BOYS WANTED (Pen Pals, No 1), $2.95 from AmazonThese books were about four girls at an all-girls prep school who run an ad in a newspaper for boy pen pals. Four boys from a nearby all-boys prep school answer and, of course, adventures and some romance ensue. I was so jealous of them! I mean, who wouldn't want a cute boy as a pen pal? And I think this was my first look at how catty girls can be; in one book, Palmer decides she doesn't like her pen pal, and steals Amy's from her. Scandalous!
Dear America, by various authorsVoyage on the Great Titanic: The Diary of Margaret Ann Brady, R.M.S. Titanic 1912 (Dear America Series), $10.95 from Amazon
This is the series that proves to me that I've always been a nerd. Each book in this series is in the form of a diary written by a girl, each at a different point in history. There's a girl on the Mayflower, a girl kidnapped by Native Americans, a girl traveling west on the Oregon trail, a Jewish immigrant girl, a girl on the Titanic, and a girl in Hawaii during Pearl Harbor... and those are just the ones I have! I wish I'd gotten to read more, because I found them absolutely fascinating. They humanized history and made it feel so much more real.
The Babysitter's Club, by Ann M. Martin
The Babysitter's Club #1 Kristy's Great Idea, from Amazon
Ahh, the holy grail of my younger self's book collection. I have an obscene number of these books; it's kind of ridiculous. I think every girl has read at least one of them, but for those of you that don't know, they're about a group of 11 and 13-year-old girls that babysit kids and form a business/club around their services. I used to think they were so grown up and cool, but as soon as I turned 11, I realized, "wait a second, Mal and Jessie are MY AGE? Okay, there's no way they'd ever be babysitters in real life." But still, I loved them! There's Claudia, the funky artsy one. And Kristy the athlete. And Dawn, whose parents were divorced and grew up in California. And Stacey, the fashionable New Yorker. Alright, I'll stop there, because I could go on forever about how much I loved these characters.
I think that's the great thing about kids' series. Most of them have dozens of books in them, so you could really bond with and get to know the people in them. I love a well-developed character more than just about anything. They're what draw me to my favorite TV shows and books. I really do miss reading a good series! It's been a long time since I've bonded with a new character! Does anybody have any recommendations?
What were your favorite childhood books?
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- From: darci
- About Me: I'm a New York native attending the University of Miami (go Canes!). I love Cherry Coke, all '80s pop culture, the Olympics, snow, and a good story. :) Follow me on twitter at @darcisays!
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Comments (54)
OMG babysitter's club!!! I loved it!!
Berenstein Bears were my favorite, though!
Babysitter's Club, ftw. And the Box Car Children!!!!! And Amelia Bedelia !!!
Junie B. Jones!
Cam Jansen
Goosebumps <3
Oh and you can't forget Magic Tree House!
I used to LOVE the Babysitter's Club!! There was also the Boxcar Children, a series that I was obsessed with. Amelia Bedelia, Goosebumps and Wishbone were up there too!
@xsherryxkimx@xanga - And the Magic School Bus :D
Oh my god, I have a RIDICULOUS number of those Dear America books. Probably upwards of 30, not even exaggerating. I can't imagine how much money my parents spent on all those hardcovers X.X I can't remember the titles of my favorite ones, but I know one was about an Irish immigrant working in a mill and the other was about the Oregon Trail. Goosebumps was always really fun, too!
I loved Dear America books. I bought this one Dear America book and must've read it 10 times in one year.
Ahh Babysistter's Club! I had like half the collection, it has been in storage for ten years or so. xD
The Dear America books look good. I read a Royal Diaries series that featured monarchs like Marie Antoinette, Cleopatra, Queen Isabel of Spain, etc.
I used to read all of the Mary-Kate and Ashley books, too.
I loved baby-sitters club, box car children, and american girl (doll) books
Dear America....!
Anybody ever read the Marvin Redport series or Sideways Stories from Wayside School? Both by Louis Sachar and super weird and hilarious!
Sweet Valley High
And Harry Potter durp
I've never read ANY of these books, but I can def relate to some in the comments!
My List:
Beverely Cleary Books - was just made into a movie, btw! [ Ramona & Beezus w/ Selena Gomez]
Goosebumps
The Boxcar Children
Amelia Bedelia
Wayside School @sweetstacks@ireallylikefood - yesssss, i've read them. :)
&&&&& my absolute favorite, The Sweet Valley High Series, I had EVERY SINGLE one!
I LOVE THE BABY-SITTERS CLUB! dear america was also really great.
Babysitter's Club, definitely :) I think I read every single one in the series. I used to also read the American Girl books and the Berenstein Bears and the Magic School Bus! I used to beg mom to buy me those Magic School Bus books when the book fair came to school.
I loved the Dear America series! :)
I loved the Dear America books. I also read Magic Treehouse, Boxcar Children, and Sideways Stories from Wayside School books. My sister used to read the Sweet Valley Girls series, I don't remember the exact name, but the other day we were in the book store and there's totally a book about where the two twins from the series are now. We were freaking out haha. I read a few of them. It was like 20-30 dollars though so we didn't get it, but I thought it was kind of cool.
I was going down the list saying "No, no, no, OH MY GOD BABYSITTERS CLUB!!!" I absolutely loved the babysitters club!! Does anyone remember the movie? I miss my childhood :(
hahaha...I loved the Dear America books.
Everything else, I never read. I was pretty much only allowed to read classic literature as a child. Oh and Harry Potter. :)
BSC, Dear America and the Royal Diaries. OH and American Girl!!
OMG! I used to love Dear America books!
I like the Dear America series, too. And Ramona Quimby, and the Choose Your Own Adventure books. Oh and Amber Brown!
Oh and the gossip girl books when I got a little older... :/
I LOVED dear america and the babysitter's club!!!! <3 <3 <3
i also loved goosebumps, junie b jones, and the american girl books
THE ORIGINAL AMERICAN GIRLS, that is. *grouches* e.e