Books...
I have been a book lover as long as I can remember. Probably my earliest book memories are Ladybird books, especially the rhyming ones about animals such as 'The Bunney-Fluffs Moving Day', I recall the rhymes and onomatopoeia making me howl with laughter. Yes, there are wonderful entertaining picture books for young children these days with beautiful illustrations and fascinating stories, but at the time those Ladybird books were a world of imagination. I was lucky enough to have an older sister to read to me, I can't remember if this was a regular activity or a rare treat but I remember it well. We read such books as 'My Naughty Little Sister' and 'Big Sister and Little Sister' - one very funny, the other quite poignant.
By the time I was reading by myself Enid Blyton was my author of choice. I enjoyed wonderful adventures with 'The Magic Faraway Tree', before moving on to the more exciting stuff of 'The Famous Five'. I spent whole weeks of my summer holidays re-reading these adventures, by the time I was in my early teens I could lay on my bed and read a whole book in one go. Wonderful days.
As an older teen I consumed books, largely influenced by my mum and my sister's choices, shelves full of Stephen King, James Herbert and Dean Koontz. Mostly they scared me silly and after reading 'Salem's Lot' I took to sleeping with my Crucifix under my pillow! I probably started dabbling with classics around this time, reading a few Dickens and Austen, as well as Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' and Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstien', but by far my favourite was Wilkie Collins. He became my all-time top author and I spent time seeking out lesser known novels that I hadn't read.
In my early adult life I read all sorts of books, including the 'different' novels that gripped the nation such as 'Life of Pi', 'The Lovely Bones' and 'The Kite Runner' as well as my usual crime and detective fiction, James Patterson being a favourite of this genre. I also read 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy. In fact the only genre that really doesn't do anything for me is Romance or 'Chick Lit'.
I was actually quite late in joining the 'Harry Potter' brigade - I read odd books in the series out of sequence before I became hooked with 'The Order of the Phoenix'. I can't put my finger on exactly what it is about these stories that make them so good, but the history of their popularity speaks for itself. The only time since I was a child when I actually read a whole book in one sitting was publication day of 'Deathly Hallows'. In a desire to find out what I was missing I also read Stephanie Meyer's 'Twilight' series which I enjoyed but doesn't make my top ten.
My latest discovery is 'Department 19' by Will Hill. I am currently reading the second in the series 'The Rising' having been lucky enough to secure a copy before the official release date. Its one of those books which has several elements cleverly woven together and could potentially make it to my 'phenomenally good books' list below.
There are two things which I believe make a good book a phenomenally good book:
1) When you reach the end you want more.
2) You feel the need to read it again.
There are only three authors in my experience whose books I have ever wanted to re-read, these being Enid Blyton, Wilkie Collins and JK Rowling. I really hope new authors continue to demonstrate creativity, imagination and skill in coming up with new and fascinating material, but if those three authors had produced the only books ever written, for that alone I would be truly grateful.
Of course, this is just my snap-shot, book choices are extremely subjective and personal - what's your 'book history'?
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