Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Memories

Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday!  This week is all about Bookish Memories  I have many wonderful memories about books, so let’s get to the list!

One of my very earliest memories of reading is sitting on my mom’s lap in a rocking chair as a child.  She would have a stack of books on one side, and she read them, she’d set them on the other side.  When we made it through the stack, she’d start over again!

I’ll always remember going to the library as a child.  I’d go to the back section and check out the old, often overlooked books of fairy tales and myths from places all over the world.  I loved the feel and smell of the old pages.

Reading Little House in the Big Woods is another cherished memory.  My second grade class read it and did all sorts of activities associated with the book, like making butter and candy in the snow.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and it sparked my interest in history and historical fiction.

As I’ve mentioned before, my favorite book is Beauty by Robin McKinley.  I read it for the first time when I was in fourth grade.  I was browsing the school’s library (again seeking out old books of fairy tales) when the librarian recommended Beauty.  I loved it and it will always have a special place in my heart.

Book on Brown Leaves

I’ll also never forget the first time I read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.  I was in seventh grade at the time and we read The Hobbit  and The Fellowship of the Ring as part of our class work.  I fell in love with Middle Earth and all the characters and adventure to be had.  My parents gave me the series for Christmas that year so I could finish it on my own.

Discovering Edgar Allan Poe was also memorable.  I had to memorize a poem for a Language Arts class, and as I was looking through my dad’s books, I stumbled upon his collection of Poe’s poetry.  The first one I read was Annabelle Lee.  It was so haunting and passionate!  It remains my favorite poem.  (Of course I then went on to discover Poe’s short stories!)

Interview with the Vampire was the first book with vampires I ever read.  My husband (who was my boyfriend at the time), was reading it.  We were in high school and he’d borrowed it from his older sister.  He had the book out one afternoon, and I started reading over his shoulder  It wasn’t long before I had the book.  I went on to read the rest of the series and to seek out more books with vampires.

Of course one of the great things about books is sharing them with others.  I’ve had a lot of fun discussing books with my husband and my friends.  However, the best memories are of sharing books with my children.  Snuggling with my kids under a blanket on the couch reading How the Grinch Stole Christmas is one memory that comes to mind as we’ll be heading into the Christmas season soon.

I had a lot of fun making this list and reminiscing! What is your favorite bookish memory?

Comments

  1. I have a very specific memory of lying across the back of our living room couch, resting against the wall, reading Little House on the Prairie. I wonder why that memory stuck when so many others didn’t?

    My post is here— https://fiftytwo.blog/2021/11/30/ttt-bookish-confessions/

    Happy TTT!
    Lori
    https://fiftytwo.blog

    • The Little House books are special to a lot of people. I ran across several posts this week mentioning them!

      Thanks for visiting and commenting. 🙂

  2. My friends group and I went through our Anne Rice period together, I have a lot of fond memories about discussing those books (especially Queen of the Damned) and how desperately we wanted Louis and Lestat to. just. be. happy.

    • I was the only one of my closest friends who ever really got into Anne Rice! My husband never made it past the first book, though he has decided to try them on audio book recently.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. 🙂

  3. Such great memories! And I love that your favorite memories are reading to and with your children!

  4. What great memories! I think it’s so cool that you got to do things from the Little House on the Prairie series in class – props to your teacher for thinking out of the box!

    • She was by far one of my favorite teachers! She made books so memorable.

      Thanks so much for visiting and commenting! 🙂

  5. Love your memories, thanks for sharing! Reading The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring for class must have been so much fun. I also love how your favorite memories are reading with your kids!

    • Reading The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring was so much fun! I loved it! Yes, reading with my kids is awesome. I love sharing books with them.

      Thank you for stopping by and commenting! 🙂

  6. I loved it as a librarian when people would ask me for recommendations and then like the books I suggested. I wonder if your knew how much BEAUTY meant to you?

  7. I also have a soft spot for The Hobbit. Happy reading! My TTT https://readwithstefani.com/ten-books-i-have-a-strong-emotional-attachment-to/

  8. I love that image of you and your mom reading all those books! What a wonderful memory. I’m sad to say I have never been that patient. Although I always read to my kids when they were little, I would often skip pages of longer books and/or purposely choose really short ones to read! LOL. I think I was just impatient to get back to my own reading.

    Happy TTT!

    Susan
    http://www.blogginboutbooks.com

    • I’m glad you enjoyed my list! Reading to kids can be challenging at times, especially when they want to hear the same book over and over! I’m really hoping that my kids retain their love of reading as they grow!

      Thank you for visiting and commenting! 🙂

  9. Such great memories!

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
    https://readbakecreate.com/unusual-books-i-read-in-high-school/

  10. Something about reading books at school (or having them read in class). I read some of the Little House books as well and I think they were sparked by coming across them in school!

    Love your memories too of Lord of the Rings. And Poe- I’ve never read but I remember seeing some of the old movies based on Poe (with Vincent Price) and thy were creepy!

    • I know a lot of people complain about having to read books in school, and I agree sometimes it can be hard. However, I was fortunate to have teachers who made reading and stories really come alive. My fondest memories of school are of teachers reading to the class.

      Thanks so much for visiting and commenting. 🙂

  11. Reading Little House in the Big Woods is a happy memory of mine as well. I didn’t read it in class, though (and I’m kind of glad I read it on my own) but it sounds like you had a lot of fun doing the book-related activities in class.

    Thanks for visiting my TTT list.

    • I think the Little House books are special for a lot of people. I still have my copies. 🙂

      Thank you for visiting and commenting! 🙂

  12. Great post. I really loved the Little House books when I was a kid too.

  13. I honestly cannot remember if I’ve read any of the Little House books or not. I know I watched the show, and owned the books. But beyond this, well, I’m clueless! Thanks so much for visiting Finding Wonderland on this week. Appreciate this. 🙂

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