The Books Of My Childhood

The first books I remember reading were The Bobbsey Twins. I have no idea why I got started with these stories of English children. My parents are gone so I can’t ask them. But the memory is clear. The adventures of children with whom I have almost nothing in common were a staple of my reading.

The Bobbsey Twins were actually two sets of fraternal twins, Nan and Bert and their younger siblings, Freddie and Flossie.  The first story was written in 1904 and new stories continued till 1979.  The family would explore different places and portions of the lives of an upper middle-class family.  There was a mom, a dad, a cook, a handyman, two dogs, a cat, and a duck.  Quite the fun group.

The Bobbsey Twin stories along with the next two entries on my list are all creations of the Stratemeyer Syndicate. While credited to a single author, the name was a pseudonym for teams of writers who cranked out adventure after adventure for a range of book series.  I owe a great deal to those unknown writers.

The twins were followed by the books that launched my love of mysteries and science fiction. Both the Hardy Boys mystery series and the adventures of Tom Swift books arrived in the mail, two slim volumes at a time. I read them again and again. Tom Swift arrived later, around the time that I was ready to move on to the next phase of my reading life.

The titles I remember next were “Ben and Me” by Robert Lawson, the story of a mouse who makes friends with Founding Father Benjamin Franklin. Amos would ride along in Franklin’s hat and share his adventures. As much as anything, that book probably helped launch my love of history. It’s a simple, child’s view of history, but it caught my attention.

The other was “My Side of the Mountain” by Jean Craighead George. The story of a 14-year-old boy who runs away from his crowded family apartment in NYC. It’s a wonderful adventure story of courage and using your brains to survive. I read the book several times. It also introduced me to the disappointment of a beloved book translated to the big screen. The movie version is a vast disappointment.

IIf Tom Swift introduced me to science fiction, then the Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher sealed the deal. I discovered these in junior high school, so they are, in many ways, the last books of childhood. Whereas Tom Swift was just the Hardy Boys in space, these books took me to a post-apocalyptic world that was unlike anything I’d ever encountered. They changed my reading patterns forever.

From that beginning began a lifetime of reading.  I continue to explore the genres I found at the beginning, but I am also always looking for something new to try.

Peace

JD