What book(s) kindled* your love of reading?

[postman]

It will have been Famous Five,then i saw Great Expectations on telly and got Dickens fever.I love detective stories.I have just downloaded numerous free books off Kindle,which include Dickens.Mrs P reads and the kids they followed us.Our son complained at primary school the books were too easy and he got bored.Holidays here might include places like Barters Books or numerous small shops in Edinburgh or Waterstones nearer home.

 

[lazybloke]

Neil Shute!

He had a way of gently telling a story that still packed a punch. "On the Beach" is a favourite.

Since studying Lord of the Flies for O Level English, I've always enjoyed dystopian novels: 1984, Brave New World, Fahrehnheit 451, the Oryx and Crake series; they're are good, but there's something about On the Beach that stands apart. As you say, it's gentle, but it's a corker. Think I'll be reading that again tonight!

I've generally avoided seeing films of these books, with one exception: the Truffaut version of Fahrenheit 451 with it's final scene filmed in unplanned/unexpected snow ; I found that scene strangely beautiful and moving.

Does the Cyclechat bookshelf have room for any Stephen King?
Sometimes I think he's stories are overly long, so I'd nominate Skeleton Crew - a collection of short stories; although I really liked Salem's Lot and Pet Sematary.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Does the Cyclechat bookshelf have room for any Stephen King?
Sometimes I think he's stories are overly long, so I'd nominate Skeleton Crew - a collection of short stories; although I really liked Salem's Lot and Pet Sematary.

Nothing to do with childhood reading but I picked up The Shining to read on a journey years ago, expecting it to be easily digested pap. It wasn't. To my surprise I thought it was really excellent.

 

[lazybloke]

Nothing to do with childhood reading but I picked up The Shining to read on a journey years ago, expecting it to be easily digested pap. It wasn't. To my surprise I thought it was really excellent.

The Shining movie (Kubrick) is very different to the book; both enjoyable.
Anyone else thinking they've neglected their reading recently?

 

[newts]

Do you recall the character Smokey (or Smokin) Joe ?

He was the hermit/charcoal burner in the forest.

 

[All uphill]

Since studying Lord of the Flies for O Level English, I've always enjoyed dystopian novels: 1984, Brave New World, Fahrehnheit 451, the Oryx and Crake series; they're are good, but there's something about On the Beach that stands apart. As you say, it's gentle, but it's a corker. Think I'll be reading that again tonight!

I've generally avoided seeing films of these books, with one exception: the Truffaut version of Fahrenheit 451 with it's final scene filmed in unplanned/unexpected snow ; I found that scene strangely beautiful and moving.

Does the Cyclechat bookshelf have room for any Stephen King?
Sometimes I think he's stories are overly long, so I'd nominate Skeleton Crew - a collection of short stories; although I really liked Salem's Lot and Pet Sematary.

Have you tried 'The Death of Grass' by John Christopher?

A perfect mid 20th century dystopia book.

 

[Time Waster]

At school I read hobbit, a little Shakespeare (utter cr@p imho), animal farm, cider with Rosie, etc as part of English lessons. I went on to 1984 and brave new world. On holiday once with my parents, gran, sister and her the baby, he's 19 or 20 now, I read catch 22 by Joseph Heller. I absolutely loved it. I know that's a big marmite book and is one book that often doesn't get finished like ullyses from another author.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Not really sure, I've always loved reading, I can never remember a time when I didn't have a book on the go.

One of the few things from my childhood that I can remember is walking to the library on a weekend, getting five books and reading them all by the following weekend and then doing it all again.

Favourite books, anything by Stephen King, Lord of the Rings (read this several times.)

Also love non fiction, especially true crime stuff.

Currently re reading I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes.

 

[Dadam]

The earliest I can remember apart from the trivial Janet and John stuff which I went past really quickly, would be the Famous Five books. I think I started with the Secret Seven, read one or two of those then most of the Famous Five when I must have been about 5 or 6, and other Enid Blyton especially the Adventure books
Treasure Island
CS Lewis's Narnia books
HR Haggard: King Solomon's Mines, She
Biggles
Reach for the Sky
Willard Price's "Adventure" books (from the library)
I read some Mark Twain, can't remember which one.
Jack London: Call of the Wild and White Fang.
Tolkien: The Hobbit. I never read LOTR until adulthood.
Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan books, and the John Carter of Mars series
Star Wars (I got the novelisation from the school book club* and read it about 5 times before I got chance to see the film! I've just googled it as I thought it didn't sound right given I saw the film pretty soon after it came out, but yes the novel was published in late 1976.
My aunts were heavily into scifi and fantasy so I could borrow a seemingly limitless supply! The Conan books by Robert E Howard (and later L Sprague De Camp). Michael Moorcock's Elric and Corum novels, Asimov, Heinlein, Alan Dean Foster, Harry Harrison, Poul Anderson etc.

One of the best Christmases I remember was when I got a stack of books including Treasure Island, one of the Narnia series and one of the Tarzan ones. The smell of a new paperback still takes me right back to then. I must have been about 6 because I remember my teacher making a fuss because I was reading "such an advanced book" for my age (it was Voyage of the Dawn Treader). I didn't get what the fuss was about, I thought it was quite an easy book, but they told my folks I had a reading age of 16.

*The "club" where every month or so you got a printed leaflet with a selection of books and could tick the boxes next to your choice(s) then fill in the rest of the form with your name etc. I remember the excitement when the stack of books was on the teacher's desk with the order slips wrapped round the books.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Anyone else thinking they've neglected their reading recently?

I still read a fair few books, but very rarely fiction.

 

[gbb]

Definitely adventure in wild places:

• R M Ballantyne, The Coral Island, Martin Rattler
• Daniel Defoe, Robinson Crusoe
• Armstrong Sperry, The Boy Who Was Afraid, Thunder Country
• Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn
• H Rider Haggard, King Solomon's Mines, She
• Johann David Wyss, The Swiss Family Robinson
• Nathaniel Hawthorn, Tanglewood Tales (simplified Greek myths for children, espeially the Theseus myths)

Id forgotten my younger years..
Robinson Crusoe...definitely,
Mark Twain
I can't remember is I was watching Stig Of The Dump or read the book.
Also, I seem to remember Lord of the Flies ?, set on an island perhaps .

 

[Dave7]

He was the hermit/charcoal burner in the forest.

He was.....a real character. You know what, I think I will read it again.

 

[Domus]

Started with Secret Seven, progressed to Famous Five then Adventure series.
Devoured Denis Wheatley and Neil Shute.
Went on to explorer stuff Kon-Tiki, Everest, Polar stuff then onto Biography.
Still read every night. Very eclectic now, crime, cycling but always biographies

 

[Kingfisher101]

The Good book itself.

 

[Mo1959]

Has anyone else read War and Peace? I read it probably over ten years ago. Wasn’t as heavy going as I thought.