Top Five Friday – Childhood Books
Welcome to my first ‘Top Five Friday’ post where I will be posting my top five on a particular bookish topic once a month. As this is my first one, I thought that it would be good for this top five to look at where my love of reading started: my childhood.
These aren’t in any particular order as they are, as you will see, very different! I’ve also only chosen books rather than include picture books for this post.
1. Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo
This novel is the account of soldier Tommo (Thomas Peaceful) as he looks back on his time on the front line during World War I and the relationships he has with his brothers before and during the war. I think out of all of the books on this list, this is the one that had the biggest impact on me and it’s haunting ending has followed me ever since. Just thinking about the novel again for this post is causing my heart to break all over again.
2. Point Blanc by Anthony Horowitz
This novel is the second in the Alex Rider series where the teen spy is sent to a boarding school for troubled elite teens to discover the sinister motives behind the institution. After seeing Stormbreaker in the cinema I immediately begged to be taken to Borders (still bitter that got shut down as it was HUGE) to get the books. I loved the series as a whole but Point Blanc stands out to me in particular. I just loved the settings and the creepy undertones!
3. The Witches by Roald Dahl
Now, it is important to note that this book isn’t a fairytale, it’s about real witches. A young boy learns of this fact after going to live with his grandmother, who happens to be a hunter of witches. He quickly discovers that witches aren’t as rare as he thought and they are incredibly dangerous to children. This was a book that I studied in primary school and loved it, despite it also leaving me rather unsettled! Although, as well as the book being an exciting tale of a boy trying to save himself from being eaten by witches, it’s also a lovely representation of a child’s love for their grandmother.
4. Fairy Tales told by Berlie Doherty and illustrated by Jane Ray
A collection of classic fairy tales including Snow White and Little Red Riding Hood, mixed with some lesser known fairy tales that quickly became favourites like The Wild Swans and The Fire-Bird. I remember finding this particular edition at a school book fair and immediately fell in love with the illustrations. I still treasure this book to this day with the magic of the fairytales combined with the beautiful, unique, illustrations.
5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
Okay, so, I’ve buried this one at the bottom as I still wanted to acknowledge it (as the series was a huge part of my childhood, as it was for most people my age) but not dwell on it. Out of all seven books, the fifth one was by far my favourite and the one I re-read multiple times. I will always be disappointed in how much the film adaptation cut out, but not as disappointed as I am in Rowling herself and her views on trans rights amongst other things…
So, here are my top five favourite books from my childhood and I’m curious to know what are yours? Do we have any of the same? Let me know in the comments!
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