From being very young, I always read. On Friday afternoons, my friend Susan's mum would give us a lift home from school via the library, a couple of villages away, and I would look forward to a long weekend of doing little else other than reading. To begin with I loved any mystery books, but the series by Enid Blyton was my favourite - I particularly remember 'the mystery of the strange messages' and 'The mystery of the missing necklace' - I also loved the Famous Five, but wasn't so keen on the secret seven. As I got older I loved the 'Twins at St Claire's' stories and would have begged my parents to send me to boarding school had I thought it was anything like the one I so loved reading about. Even older still and Enid Blyton gave way to the 'Sweet Dreams' romance books and 'Sweet Valley High' which I admit that I still loved to read long after I should have outgrown such books!
It therefore made me feel all warm inside, when, at the weekend, in WH Smiths, my eldest Callum picked up a copy of 'Treasure Island' by Robert Louis Stevenson and asked if he could buy it with his own money.
So 9.15pm every night has become the time when me and my two boys curl up on the settee downstairs and read a chapter of Treasure Island, usually alternating a page each - It is a really nice time and I hope that the experience will give them a lifelong love of books.
When my daughter came along, I never really gave much thought to what this meant, until recently when it dawned on me that now I had a legitimate excuse to read and enjoy these books all over again!
And so my little stash of 'books to read with Georgia' has begun, starting with one of my all time favourites, Milly Molly Mandy!
Here is a picture of the little reading corner in Georgia's room - the bookshelf was from the 'Great Little Trading Company' and is great because she can see which book she wants to read from the cover, instead of just seeing the spine. There are a couple of baskets full of books under the shelf and a comfy beanbag just out of shot - we often sit up here and read a book or 2 or 3 or 4!
But Im not a book snob at all - I will quite as happily read an autobiography by Katie Price as I will a book by Jane Austen. Of course, with life being so much busier than it was when I was a schoolgirl, I don't get time to read nearly as much as I would like.
Here is a list of the books I have read so far this year - have you read any of these?
1. Whitethorn Woods - Maeve Binchy (I love Maeve Binchy, 'Tara Road' is my favourite)
2. Shopaholic and Baby - Sophie Kinsella (have read all the shopaholic series)
3. I did a bad Thing - Linda Green (very enjoyable)
4. The Island - Victoria Hislop (I simply loved this - read it if you haven't already)
5. Pushed to the Limit - Katie Price (Jordan setting the record straight)
6. P.S I Love You - Cecelia Ahern (The book made me cry, I haven't seen the film)
7. How I live now - Meg Rosoff (dark but wierdly enjoyable)
8. Diva's Don't Knit - Gil McNeil (I love knitting almost as much as I love reading)
9. I Capture the Castle - Dodie Smith (read because I heard so many good things about it in blogland - and it didn't disappoint)
10. The Friday Night Knitting Club - Kate Jacobs (another knitting themed book, but a great story too)
So, not a very long list from someone who professes to love reading so much, but if the truth be told, I do have a book in my hand most nights, if it is not a novel, it is usually one of my craft, home or interior design books.
The above two books are two I bought at the weekend, Im reading the Jane Green book first, I love Jane Green and this one is not disappointing either, I'll have it finished tomorrow to start on Jill Mansell!
Unusually, I don't often keep my paperbacks, I usually either sell them on Amazon (to raise cash to buy another) or I take them to the charity shop, which is where I buy a fair few of my books too
So please do share if there is a book you have really enjoyed, I would love to hear all your recommendations.
And as for two posts in as many days, I have realised I love blogging almost as much as I love reading, so I'm going to make an effort to post much more often!
Natalie x
P.S - Thanks for all the dressing table love you sent my way - I bought some lovely glass knobs for the drawers today, I'll show them to you later in the week!
15 comments:
I grew up reading Enid Blyton, too. Famous Five were my favourites, but I also had all the Secret Sevens, and I loved the Mallory Towers (was it?) about English boarding schools. I always wanted to go to a boarding school because of Blyton, but I grew up in Australia...without a TV, hence my personal addiction to books.
PS: York is my favourite city in England.
Strange that, I could never get into the Secret seven either, Famous Five was much better. Loved Milly molly mandy, Mrs Pepperpot, The Family At One End Street. Don't know what happened to my comment about your fab dressing table, but its brilliant!
I loved (and still love) Famous Five books and had the entire set as a child. They disappeared somewhere along the line but we are slowly replacing them for Grace and Ruth. I loved the St Clares and Mallory Towers books and begged to be allowed to go to boarding school. I wasn't as keen on Secret Seven, but had one or two. I love re-reading all my old favourites to the girls - the most recent has been What Katy Did, but I forgot about the paragraph where Katy fills the stockings at Christmas and had to gloss over that bit. Santa still visits our house and I want it to stay that way for a while longer!
Cathy X
Love, love love Enid Blyton and Milly Molly Mandy and I'm really pleased to see my children and yours do too! Reading is so special. My eldest daughter loved How I live now and I'll make a start on it one of these days.
Kimx
I love my books too and End Blyton was also a favourite in our house. I always liked up the faraway tree and chinky and the magic wishing chair and the famous five books. Roald Dahl was and still is another favourite author of mine, particularly Matilda, I'm sure Georgia would love that one.
Books I've recently read which were great are the Stonewylde series by Kit Berry. Can't recommend enough and the series by Juliet Maurillier fantastic.
Take care Pixie :) xxxxx
I was an Enid Blyton girl, my faves were The Faraway Tree, Famous Five, The Mysteries of...(these were my favourites), St Clare and yes I really wanted to go to boarding school too, then Mallory Towers. Then I got into the Judy Blume books, I cant remember what they were called but they definatly opened my eyes about growing up.....lol....great post....Claire xx
Oh yes and I completly forgot about the Sweet Dream and Sweet Valley High books, next time I'm at my dads I'm going to see if I can find some as I still have so many things from when I was a teenager.
I never really liked secret 7 or famous 5 but i loved all other Enid Blyton books - I also liked the Chalet School series.I recently re-read Family From One End Street too. Milo is learning to read the Peter and Jane books at the mo. I keep looking at the Shopaholic books but havent actually read one yet - maybe I should give them a whirl
lisa x
I loved Milly Molly Mandy and Enid Blyton. I haven't read any of the ones that you've read this year but I have read the rest of the shopaholic stories, I like Jill Mansell and Jane Green but I love to read Jilly Cooper, Marian Keyes and Raffaella Barker.
Yvonne
The only time I seem to get to read is when we go on holiday. If I try to read in bed I only manage a page and then I fall to sleep!!
It's funny coming across your blog about reading. I had just fiished one a week or two ago about the childhood books I loved to read on my blog, "traveling on fumes" . Mysteries were high on my list. I started with boxcar children, then Nancy drew and the Hardy boys and then Agatha Christie. I love all mystery books but I am drawn to the English ones especially.
I love gardening, needwork, craft, sewing, cooking,,,and if I find a mystery that has one of these elements, I am in bookworm Heaven.
I know what you mean about books, my mum has taken me to the library from being very young and when I was about three or four years old, my mum says I "escaped", she was frantic, apparently I had put on my coat, bobble hat, undone the gate, crossed three busy roads and walked to the library on my own! it just shows how often we went if I could do all that on my own! I loved Enid Blyton books too and I've still got some of my books, Brer Rabbit and some others and I remembered reading a book in secondary school about Kevin and Sadie based in Northern Ireland and thanks to the internet and amazon I managed to find the correct book names and the author and I now have all five books. I still read a lot now , mainly celebrity autobiographies, and love looking round book shops when we go out anywhere for the day.
oh Milly Molly mandy! I was so pleased when I had Ellie because that meant I could read all those fab books again too. I love 'Naughty Amelia Jane' too!
As for grown up books, I love Marian Keyes. Her books are so funny but also sad. (I love getting her online newsletter as well, she is so entertaining) I am waiting for her newest book to come out in paperback. I also like India Knights two novels 'My life on a plate' and 'Don't you want me'.
You had read so many of my favourite books...love books! I encouraged my three to read, they all enjoy a good book to relax with.
You list is very interesting..there are quite a few that I have on the shelf! in waiting and some on there that I would like to get....book obsession!
I have been busy with paint brush too. I am painting everthing that is pine coloured, I do feel bad when it is a vintage piece - but I just love the lightness it brings to the room.
Carol xx
I bought that Milly Molly Mandy book too (for myself!) I adored the stories as a girl and still have some of the old books. I alos loved the Pippy Longstocking books.
Post a Comment