> Dr. Suess goes without saying. > Dr. Seuss and the Oz books were my favorites. Particularly 'The Patchwork Girl of Oz' and 'Glinda of Oz'. I also liked 'Alice in Wonderland' quite a lot. I think I was a young adult by the time I finally read 'The Wind in the Willows' but when I did finally get to it, I found it to be utterly enchanting. I was in my 30s when I read the Narnia Chronicles but I did enjoy them. Loved finding out where Joni got the title for 'The Dawntreader'.
I never was a fast reader (I'm still slow) and I think it was a serious detriment throughout my formal education. Like Colin, I don't think I ever read a book that was assigned to me in middle school or high school. Faked my way through all of them. But ironically I developed a fascination for long novels when I was about 13 or so. I remember checking Michener's 'Hawaii' out of the public library & renewing it and renewing it and renewing it again & again! But I finally got through it! I first read 'Gone With the Wind' when I was about 14. Also 'Dr. Zhivago'. In high school I tackled 'Atlas Shrugged' and 'War and Peace' in my junior year. Took me forever to get through these books but I guess I'm possessed of an inordinate amount of tenacity when it comes to some things. Also read 'The Lord of the Rings' for the first time in high school. Growing up I liked to read the books that the various movies I saw were based on. Sometimes you discover good literature that way. Not always. I still do this, but I think the books the movies I like now are based on are a bit better quality than they might have been back when I was a kid. Having seen 'Orlando' and 'Mrs. Dalloway' I subsequently discovered the fascinating writing style of Virginia Woolf. Merchant/Ivory led me to read E. M. Forster & I certainly don't regret that. I've also read all of Jane Austen's published novels (Colin don't worry about 'Northanger Abbey' - you didn't miss much - my least favorite & her weakest work, imo) partly out of seeing all of the film adaptations that came out in the 90s. She was a wonderful writer and her books are full of so many truths about what it is to be human. Ok, that's enough for now lest I begin to sound like a pretentious bore. (oops! too late.) Mark E.
