From Friday Five: 1. What were your favorite childhood stories? The adventures of Narnia, Dr Suess, Hans Christian Anderson, Trixie Beldon, Paddington Bear, Blinky Bill, Seven Little Australians, The very hungry caterpillar, The Rainbow Serpent, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, The Magic Tree, Anne of Green Gables, Winnie the Pooh, The Magic Pudding, Black Beauty - just loads really. One of my favourites as a little girl was Snow white and Rose red as it was about two sisters. I was always Rose Red.
2. What books from your childhood would you like to share with [your] children? All of the ones I loved obviously. I've been thinking about this lately as my sister has kids now and she was never much of a reader and I worry that she will not know the essential books that no childhood would be complete without.
3. Have you re-read any of those childhood stories and been surprised by anything? Some books that you first read in childhood are not really solely kids books like Lord of the Rings I've read a number of times, Little Women, books like that and with those type of books you are not really surprised about what you find as over time they become familiar kind of like a big snuggly blanket. That said I did reread Seven Little Australians when I was back home at Christmas and really enjoyed it all over again.
4. How old were you when you first learned to read? I don't remember, I know I was reading when I got my adenoids and tonsils out and I was four then as my sister remembers it. She saw me come out of surgery covered in blood (god knows why) and for the rest of my stay I capitalized (apparently) on her trama by getting her to fetch me books until I had read them all.
5. Do you remember the first 'grown-up' book you read? How old were you? I do remember that when I was 10 I read my first Judy Blume and that certainly seemed "adult" at the time.