Favorite Reads: Past and Present

I have loved reading since I was a little, little girl. I was barely two years old and was "reading" the Sears catalog to my Mom and Dad. The childhood memories that stand out most for me include reading in some way. I remember that my Mom used to send me and little sister outside to play and instead of riding bikes or roller skating (like my neighbors were doing), I would go to the local library (it was down the street and around the corner and down another street from my house at 755 Haight Ave. in Alameda, California 94501). Reading and the library was my refuge. When I found out that my Grandma Harms died in 1979, I ran away to the library. Unfortunately for me, I also had to go the bathroom really badly and had an accident at the library. That library trip was cut short...

When I was 9 (almost 10) years old, my sister and I left 755 Haight Avenue and went to live at 600 Ignacio Blvd. in Novato, California 94947. We went to live with our Dad. Our Dad had a VW bus that was a pop-up camper. It looked something like the picture to the right.

I don't recall ever camping in this vehicle but it had all of the conveniences needed for camping. I can still remember what it smelled like inside that camper - a little moldy and dusty which I think was because of the pop-up camper part. While it wasn't used much for camping, once it broke down to the point of being un-driveable, it was parked under our carport and from then on became "Leslie's Library". For me, it was better than any treehouse or clubhouse. I had real books. The books had those pockets in the front jacket. I had a date stamp and 3x5 index cards. I was dangerous (at least for the neighborhood kids anyway). I required all library patrons to have a library card (created by me, of course) and if they didn't return the books in time, there were fines. Yes, fines.

The library was open for business as long as that vanagon (that was the "official" name) was disabled and until my Dad sold it (or maybe he gave it away, I don't remember now) and we moved to North Carolina.

While "Leslie's Library" is nothing but a memory now, I still have the books that lined it's "shelves" (not shelves, per se - the books were set on the backs of the couches and on the table). The titles have been read many times over the years and will always hold a special place in my collection heart.

These are some of my favorites from the past:

1. Little House on the Prairie - Laura Ingalls Wilder
2. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day - Judith Viorst
3. Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great - Judy Blume
4. Mrs. Piggle Wiggle - Betty MacDonald
5. The Nancy Drew series - Carolyn Keene
6. The Velveteen Rabbit - Margery Williams
7. Pippi Longstocking - Astrid Lindgren
8. Charlotte's Web - E.B. White
9. Ramona the Pest - Beverly Cleary
10. Amelia Bedelia - Peggy Parish

Here are some new favorites:

1. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
2. The Twilight series - Stephenie Meyer
3. The Harry Potter series - J.K. Rowling
4. The Shell Seekers - Rosamunde Pilcher
5. The Next Thing on My List - Jill Smolinksi
6. Snow Flower and the Secret Fan - Lisa See
7. Love Comes Softly - Jeanette Oke
8. The Red Tent - Anita Diamant
9. Animal, Vegetable, Miracle - Barbara Kingsolver
10. The Twentieth Wife - Indu Sundaresan (there is a sequel to this book too)

I believe that books are very personal so having said that, I put the disclaimer that I love these books but if you decide to read any of them and you don't like them or you find something offensive about the content or storyline, feel free to tell me. Just don't expect me to change my mind. I will love these books for a long time to come.