Clive Barker’s Books of Blood. I member reading them in the dark attic of our family cottage. Binged thru all six in one summer in the early 90s.
Top pick, of literature and location!
The Phantom Tollbooth. I adored the surrealism and whimsy, probably reread it at least six times.
I always jump to the Island of Conclusions.
A Wrinkle in Time
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
My edition has a foreword by someone explaining that Lewis Carroll really really wasn’t a pedophile. He just had tons of pictures of naked children because it shows them soooo pure and he just loved them sooooo much.
Nothing could convince me more that he was a pedophioe than that foreword.
Still love the story.
The Hobbit and subsequently, the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
The Narnia series led me to these. They (and The Silmarillion) have stayed with me ever since.
I left Narnia behind and am now settled in Middle Earth. And always will be.
I loved and still love The Secret Garden.
I read that loads as a kid! It’s such a lovely story
If I had to pick just one, it was probably Watership Down. But The Forever War, the Hitchhiker’s Guide series, and the Great Tree of Avalon series all were also formative in my tastes and viewpoints growing up. I was also a huge fan of the original Warriors cats books and the Dinoverse series.
Watership Down, though, that book opened so many windows for me.
I used to love the film of Watership Down, although it’s obviously kinda sad and scary.
That one is so much fun!
Jurassic Park
The Chronicles of Prydain
It’s the series that includes “The Black Cauldron”. It’s got a little LOTR vibes but is definitely its own thing. It’s got enough adult themes and sad moments to be enjoyable to adults.
Folklore, Myths and Legends of Britain - a huge, solid, black Readers Digest compendium that covers the UK region by region and around the year and full of wonderfully gruesome linocut illustrations. I still have it on my shelves and bring it out from time to time.
I noticed with great pleasure that Charlie Cooper used it as a reference in his recent TV show Myth Country.
Joan Aiken - The kingdom and the cave
I used to read so many awesome books as a child but this one has was so wholesome and adventurous
Favourites were Which Witch (1979), witches performing magic to win a betrothal competition. May have influenced Dahl’s The Witches.
And, The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Talks about techniques of clearing your mind from distractions, great for young kids to hear.
Either The Little Prince or Who Will Comfort Toffle? I think. Probably the latter but I loved both. I just identified so much with Toffle and the art is so amazing.
Not sure I’ve ever had a favorite book. Plenty of books I enjoy, but none I can think of as a favorite. Never thought about it before and it seems odd now that I do.
