# Your favorite books of childhood **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 4, 1999, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861 "1999-11-04T19:08:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![SterlingNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@SterlingNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SterlingNorth)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/61 "1999-11-05T01:31:00Z")
These are stories I grew up on in no particular order: [ul][li]A Wrinkle in Time, _Madeline L’Engle_[/li][li]A Cricket in Time Square, _George Selden_[/li][li]Huckleberry Finn, _Mark Twain_[/li][li]The _original_ 19 Boxcar Children series[/li][li]Tom Sawyer[/li][li]To Kill a Mockingbird, _Haper Lee_ (I read it at age 10 not knowing that I’d have to read it every year between 7[sup]th[/sup] and 10[sup]th[/sub] grade.)[/li][li]Maniac Magee, _Jerry Spinelli_[/li][li]Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, _Dahl_[/li][li]The Mixed-Up Files. . .[/li][li]Socks, _Beverly Cleary_[/li][li]Indian in the Cupboard, _Lynn Reid Banks_[/li][li]The Ramona the Pest series of stories by Beverly Cleary[/li][li]A bunch of stories by _Bruce Coville_[/li][li]Sideways Stories from Wayside School, _Louis Sachar_[/li]Island of the Blue Dolphin[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Melatonin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b3f665/32.png) [@Melatonin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melatonin)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/62 "1999-11-05T01:35:00Z")
Every Astrid Lindgrin (sp?) book I could get my hands on. Pippi was great, but “Brothers Lionheart” and “Ronja the Robber’s Daughter” left more of an impression. Three cheers for the Phantom TOllbooth. I remember at least one other E. L. Konigsburg book- the title was a string of girl’s names and it was about becoming a witch. I, too, remember Mrs. Piggle Wiggle. I remember trying to convince my parents that it was _really_ worth their while to read those books. “The Endless Steppe,” by Esther Hautzig. About a family deported to Siberia from Poland during WW2, told through the eyes of the young daughter. One I can’t remember the title of: a boy who used to watch Walter Cronkite every night on TV stayed up late one night, past the time when they broadcast the national anthem, and out of the fuzz, the TV began receiving wierd signals. The next day he woke up in a parallel universe where everyone he knew and loved was the same, except one thing: they were all giant lizards (maybe dinosaurs.) I also really enjoyed the Guiness Book of World Records. 1977 edition. I was a wierd kid. ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/63 "1999-11-05T01:46:00Z")
I have new hardbound Pippi waiting for my daughter’s 5th birtday. Like many Europeans, my favorite as kid was Walt Disney comic books. It came every week and if I was sick at home I would leave a door open to hear the mail drop through the slot and rush out to read it. I taught myself to read from comic books. The Disney comic books can be ordered in the US from Bruce Hamilton/Gladstone in Prescott AZ. Each one of the European countries that still carries it, sells more than the US. Moomintrolls I also read in the comic albums, never the longer text.Tove Jansson and her brother Lars made both versions. She’s still alive, must be in her late 80’s or older. ---
**Author:** ![SterlingNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@SterlingNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SterlingNorth)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/64 "1999-11-05T02:10:00Z")
**Melatonin** , thank you! You’ve reminded me of another book, but not the one you’re talking about. (I don’t know what book you’re talking about.) There was this book about (I think) a boy who learned to travel the fourth dimension (assume it’s a spatial dimension and NOT time). The Boy Who Reversed Himself by William Sleator ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/65 "1999-11-05T02:19:00Z")
The Westing Game! Oh my! I loved that book! It is funny that it got mentioned because I was just thinking about it the other day and I couldn’t remember the damn title. Have they really made it into a movie? If so, I know I will have to go see it! I love this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/66 "1999-11-05T02:24:00Z")
I was particularly fond of the Danny Dunn series, Alvin Fernald, that other kid whose stories were written by Robert McCloskey. I even used to like Encyclopedia Brown, but the older you get the more contrived Encyclopedia Brown begins to seem. But my absolute favorite all time writer was Daniel Pinkwater. I read Pinkwater book I could get my hands on. He seemed to have as good a sense as anybody in the world what it was like to be a smart, alientated kid growing up in the city. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/67 "1999-11-05T03:28:00Z")
Melatonin wrote: > [@](#): > > One I can’t remember the title of: a boy who used to watch Walter Cronkite every night on TV stayed up late one night, past the time when they broadcast the national anthem, and out of the fuzz, the TV began receiving wierd signals. The next day he woke up in a parallel universe where everyone he knew and loved was the same, except one thing: they were all giant lizards (maybe dinosaurs.) **Lizard Music** by Daniel Pinkwater. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/68 "1999-11-05T04:02:00Z")
WOW, I really started something here! I posted at noon and thought, “Oh, I’ll check back after dinner for a look.” and when you have a toddler, there is something called a time warp and 10 hours and 65 responses later… It’s great to relive all the warm and fuzzy memories that the companionship of an excellently written character gives us. Everyone’s lists ( partial or not) have brought back long forgotten memories of many dear books. I have printed this thread out and fully expect everyone to continue their contributions. ( Consider yourselves properly ordered 🙂 ) \*\*PLDENNISON \*\* Phil, I completely and totally forgot about _Flat Stanley_ ( except when making jokes about someone fatter than whatever they are trying to squeeze through) until I was leafing through one of the purest joys of my childhood, The Scholastic Book Magazine. I spied Flat Stanley ( by Jeff Brown) and had to order it. With the exception of my sister in law, no one I’ve ever met has ever heard of this fabulous book. I thought maybe I made up this kid. I had forgotten what a thrill it was to chose one or two books, order it, forget about it for a few weeks and THEN I WOULD GET MY BOOKS! My sister in law teaches 1st grade and lets me order from it and I relive this excitement all over again. Only it’s not one or two books, uh huh, it’s like 10 -25 books at a crack ( she gets several book catalogs) and I think my highest bill was something like $75. Today’s order that I just placed was whittled down from $62 to $33 and it just about killed me to have a book not make the cut. I have really only one serious addiction in my life and it is books. My son’s (and TBA daughter’s) library is so loaded right now that I have the 1st grade on up books in storage in the basement and it’s just killing me to introduce them to them. It will go something like this: “Books, meet Carsten and Baby X.” “Baby X and Carsten, meet Books. The Books will be your friend no matter how grouchy, grumpy, sick, tired, crabby, dorky, lonely you feel. They just want to please you. They want to be read. They will comfort you when you are sick. They will make you laugh when you are crabby. They will give you everything and expect nothing in return except for you to treat them well and pass them along to your children.” ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/69 "1999-11-05T05:07:00Z")
I have found a couple of great books for my kids that I found through the Scholastic Books Magazine or by chance browsing at the bookstore. Chrysanthemum - A girl ( mouse) learning to love her odd name. Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse - The excitement of a new purple plastic purse causes Lilly ( a mouse) in school and how she hates her teacher (that she just loved)for making her put it away until the proper time…( I think that’s the story line…it’s been awhile.) Both are by Kevin Henkes.(He has great books, btw.) For 1st and 2nd grade readers. Another book that is just wonderful and made me tear up the first time I read it was: The Christmas Miracle of Johnathan Toomey. ( I don’t have the author handy.) A little boy and his widow mom ask the grumpy village woodcarver ( a widower) with help to carve a nativity scene for XMAS which is only a few days away. The little boy tries to be good while helping out, but touches the dead wifes stuff and gets into trouble. The woodcarver gets less grumpy and it has a nice ending. A great book about healing, forgiveness and warm fuzzy stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Babar714](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Babar714](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babar714)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/70 "1999-11-05T05:22:00Z")
Where the Wild Things Are The Scrubious Pip The Digginest Dog ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/71 "1999-11-05T05:55:00Z")
Oh, man, I almost went to bed before reaching this thread. Some of these have already been mentioned. Jenny and the Cat Club series Misty of Chincoteague Stormy, Misty’s Foal King of the Wind 101 Dalmations Mary Poppins series The Incredible Journey James and the Giant Peach Paddington books Frog and Toad stories White Fang Socks Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing Superfudge Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great A Wrinkle in Time A Wind in the Door A Swiftly Tilting Planet Many Waters Where the Sidewalk Ends A Light in the Attic Kidnapped Peter Pan (full version, not Disney version) Bambi (ditto) Bambi’s Children The Westing Game The Dark is Rising series Henry? & Norma Fox Mazer novels Oliver Twist Jungle Book Kim Pippi Longstocking books Bobbsey Twins books Smokey the Cow Horse Silver Chief and one I do not remember about a witch and a bumblebee I’m sure there are more, but that is enough for tonight. ---
**Author:** ![JimOfAllTrades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@JimOfAllTrades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimOfAllTrades)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/72 "1999-11-05T06:10:00Z")
Oh man, there’s some good stuff mentioned on this thread! Some of my old faves, in no particular order. A Wrinkle in Time Space Cadet Winnie the Pooh Yertle the Turlte The Jungle Book The Hobbit Lord of the Rings Island of the Blue Dolphins Pippi Longstocking Old Yeller The OZ Books (My dad read these to me and my sister beginning when I was about 5. Some of my fondest memories.) Tom Sawyer (Huck Finn came a little later) To Kill a Mockingbird Any Dr. Suess book And many others that don’t come to mind now. Thanks for the memories, everyone! Ugly ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/73 "1999-11-05T06:26:00Z")
I have a bunch I haven’t seen mentioned here… Sir MacHinery. A scientist holes up in a Scottish castle to build a robot. Brownies (not the junior Girl Scouts) discover the robot and, seeing “machinery” printed on nearby crates, think he’s a knight of Clan MacHinery. Adventure ensues. Though it’s for a somewhat-older child, I remember reading Space Station Seventh Grade before reaching grade 7…very humorous. I’m surprised no one’s mentioned “The BFG” by Roald Dahl…heck, just about everything the man’s written is gold. Also, I don’t recall anyone mentioning Shel Silverstein’s poetry books, like, “Where The Sidewalk Ends” and “A Light In The Attic.” Anyone else remember books called “The Ape Inside Me”, “Do Bananas Chew Gum?”, “The Snarkout Boys and the Avocado of Death”, “Gowie Corby Plays Chicken”, and “Sometimes I Think I Hear My Name”? ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/74 "1999-11-05T06:35:00Z")
These are a mix of books I read as a kid & books my kid enjoyed. They’ve almost all previously listed: Walter Farley - Black Stallion series, Island Stallion series, Man O’ War Marguerite Henry - Misty series & many other stand alones Madeleine L’Engle - Wrinkle in Time & others. Sherlock Holmes - way cooler than Encyclopedia Brown… Jules Verne weird book called The Silver Crown, can’t remember the author - fantasy/mystery mix. NOT Charles Dickens. Good “transition” books (10-14): ## Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit Mary Stewart mysteries Watership Down Earth’s Children series by Jean Auel if you don’t mind the sexual content. Dick Francis mysteries set against horse racing background if you don’t mind violence. Xanth series by Piers Anthony if you don’t mind bad puns. Sue from El Paso [members.aol.com/majormd/index.html](http://members.aol.com/majormd/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![Poto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ab992/32.png) [@Poto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poto)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/75 "1999-11-05T12:12:00Z")
Shirley U: about Baby X and Carsten. Just don’t name baby X Bentley or any of those current fads. Does Carsten have a nck name? My rule for kid names is no more than two syllables.Otherwise they get a nick name anyway. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/76 "1999-11-05T13:04:00Z")
Sue, you’d recommend the Earth’s Children series to ages 10-14? I can’t get some of my adult friends to muddle through the long, meticulous passages on things such as flint knapping! And, yes, I do believe the sexual content is too mature for that age group. I highly recommend them for adults, however. ---
**Author:** ![Atrael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Atrael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atrael)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/77 "1999-11-05T13:46:00Z")
Great thread…unfortunatly, most of my favorites have already been mentioned. ☹ I’m a huge fan of the Tom Swift Series.These are the books that first grabbed me and made me interested in reading. I’m working on collecting the entire series, and those will be passed down to my children. As a side note, the series has actully been written by three generations. Victor Applenton the I, II, and III. I have some if the First edition by the original author dated around 1921. The Black Stallion Series The Hardy Boys The 3 Investigators Little House series Robinson Cruso(sp?) Swiss Family Robinson Lad of SunnyBrooke Call of the Wild At the upper end of that reading scale is possibly the Xanth series by Piers Anthony Tom Sawyer Huckberry Finn Mary Poppins Dr. Sues That’s all I can think of now…Think I’ll call my Mom and ask her what I read… * * * “Love thine enemies…it really pisses them off.” -Anon ---
**Author:** ![jazzmine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jazzmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jazzmine)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/78 "1999-11-05T14:11:00Z")
Where the Red Fern Grows Old Yeller ---
**Author:** ![Derf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@Derf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derf)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/79 "1999-11-05T14:23:00Z")
Wow, it feels like I’m visiting old friends. . . Don’t think I saw _The Rescuers_ or any others in that series. . . Anything by Madeline L’Engle rocked, the whole _Wrinkle in Time_ series. . . All of the Pern books by Anne McCaffrey, but of course _Dragonsinger_ got me hooked. . . Sterling North wrote several books that I loved as a kid, there was also a book (I forget who wrote it, _My Side of the Mountain_ When I was really young, I loved Richard Scary books. . . ## But my all time faves: _The Chronicles of Narnia_ and _The Lord of the Rings_ Wow. This is a great thread. . . “To be great is to be misunderstood” – Ralph Waldo Emerson ---
**Author:** ![Chef\_Troy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Chef\_Troy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chef_Troy)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 1999, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861/80 "1999-11-05T14:48:00Z")
Wow, I haven’t thought of “The Three Investigators” in years! “Red Gate Rover, come over, come over…” I loved that series as a kid because I was a plump, bookish, too-smart-to-be-popular kid, and I would have given ANYTHING to be Jupiter Jones. I can’t believe only one other person in this whole thread has mentioned “The Phantom Tollbooth.” I went out and bought a copy when I was in college and I’ve read it to my son. “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” of course. (How many of you have read the sequel, “Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator”?) Roald Dahl was the greatest. I also read my copies of the Chronicles of Narnia, the Oz books, and the Lord of the Rings to tatters. * * * Live a Lush Life Da Chef [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-books-of-childhood/10861.md?page=5)