There are certain children’s books and movies that are classics and I remember them vividly and the affected they had on me. My favorite children’s classic was Heidi. I loved the story of the orphaned Swiss girl who charmed her grandfather who cared for her. Not only did I read the most popular book Heidi, but I also loved the rest of the trilogy which follows Heidi as she grows from a little girl to a young woman. I especially remember the descriptions of the melted cheese and bread sandwiches that Heidi ate to build her strength. Those passages would make my mouth order since I loved melted cheese sandwiches.
Another favorite book was Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. When I first read it, I didn’t understand that the setting was the time period was the War Between the States (the Civil War). When I read it again later when I was older and realized this, I enjoyed the book even more because I could understand it better. I cried when Beth died, as she was my favorite character, but I also loved Jo for her strength of character and determination. This book, too, I followed with reading Little Men. I couldn’t get enough of Alcott’s stories.
When I was quite a young reader, I loved the Bobbsie Twins series. I was enthralled by the concept of two sets of twins, one dark complected and the other fair. I could identify especially with Nan, the older girl. I remember that I especially liked the book where the Bobbsie Twins go to the seashore.
I read The Wizard of Oz and really enjoyed the book. But when I saw the movie, I was absolutely terrified of the flying monkeys. The witches were fine, but those monkeys were horrible. And we always watched the movie when it came on televsion, and to this day, I have little love of monkeys, flying or otherwise.
I didn’t read the play until later, but as a child I loved Mary Martin’s version of Peter Pan when it was on television. I saw the Disney cartoon when I was quite young, probably no more than four. My babysitter Connie Guilfoyle, the daughter of my father’s supervisor, took me to see it. I remember that Connie told me that I could cover my eyes when the part with the crocodile came on because that part scared me. Connie also took me to see Alice in Wonderland. I had an Alice in Wonderland rain cape and umbrella which I loved wearing. It was made of pink translucent plastic and had the characters imprinted on it. I didn’t read the Alice books until I was much older but truly enjoyed them.
When I was older, a pre-teen, I loved reading the Nancy Drew series of books. I had quite a number of books in the series and I would trade books with my friend Debbie Brown who had even more books in the series than I did. I also liked the Cherry Ames series, which was about a nursing student, who then became a nurse and had adventures as she worked in different types of nursing situations.
Another series I loved and appreciated when I was older was the Winnie-the-Pooh books. I never had them read to me when I was younger but loved them when I read them by myself. When I was in high school, I even read the Latin translation of Winnie-the-Pooh. When the Disney corporation bought the rights to Winnie-the-Pooh, I was tremendously disappointed in their version because the cartoon characters looked nothing like the drawings of the characters in the books. And they made Piglet, my favorite character, to be such a coward, when I did not see him that way from reading the books.
These were my favorite children’s books and I have even read them as an adult. They still hold much pleasure for me today as they did all those years ago.
Another favorite book was Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. When I first read it, I didn’t understand that the setting was the time period was the War Between the States (the Civil War). When I read it again later when I was older and realized this, I enjoyed the book even more because I could understand it better. I cried when Beth died, as she was my favorite character, but I also loved Jo for her strength of character and determination. This book, too, I followed with reading Little Men. I couldn’t get enough of Alcott’s stories.
When I was quite a young reader, I loved the Bobbsie Twins series. I was enthralled by the concept of two sets of twins, one dark complected and the other fair. I could identify especially with Nan, the older girl. I remember that I especially liked the book where the Bobbsie Twins go to the seashore.
I read The Wizard of Oz and really enjoyed the book. But when I saw the movie, I was absolutely terrified of the flying monkeys. The witches were fine, but those monkeys were horrible. And we always watched the movie when it came on televsion, and to this day, I have little love of monkeys, flying or otherwise.
I didn’t read the play until later, but as a child I loved Mary Martin’s version of Peter Pan when it was on television. I saw the Disney cartoon when I was quite young, probably no more than four. My babysitter Connie Guilfoyle, the daughter of my father’s supervisor, took me to see it. I remember that Connie told me that I could cover my eyes when the part with the crocodile came on because that part scared me. Connie also took me to see Alice in Wonderland. I had an Alice in Wonderland rain cape and umbrella which I loved wearing. It was made of pink translucent plastic and had the characters imprinted on it. I didn’t read the Alice books until I was much older but truly enjoyed them.
When I was older, a pre-teen, I loved reading the Nancy Drew series of books. I had quite a number of books in the series and I would trade books with my friend Debbie Brown who had even more books in the series than I did. I also liked the Cherry Ames series, which was about a nursing student, who then became a nurse and had adventures as she worked in different types of nursing situations.
Another series I loved and appreciated when I was older was the Winnie-the-Pooh books. I never had them read to me when I was younger but loved them when I read them by myself. When I was in high school, I even read the Latin translation of Winnie-the-Pooh. When the Disney corporation bought the rights to Winnie-the-Pooh, I was tremendously disappointed in their version because the cartoon characters looked nothing like the drawings of the characters in the books. And they made Piglet, my favorite character, to be such a coward, when I did not see him that way from reading the books.
These were my favorite children’s books and I have even read them as an adult. They still hold much pleasure for me today as they did all those years ago.
No comments:
Post a Comment