Every child is familiar with at least one story growing up that they read over and over again. For many in my generation, it was Harry Potter. For others a little younger, it was the Percy Jackson series.
I struggled hard with dyslexia as a child. While I still have it (I'm stuck with it forever), I've learned to cope with it and find workarounds for many of my issues involved with it. As a child, however, I had to just struggle and deal (as well as deal with many many tears).
But even though I struggled with reading, I still enjoyed it. At first, I had my mother read me bedtime stories and once I got the courage up to read by myself, there were tears of course as I felt I was extremely stupid, I loved reading.
This is a list of some of my favorite books growing up and what they meant to me. Some I haven't read in so long I barely remember them, but I have the memories attached to them. This list isn't in any particular order.
1. Anastasia
This was the first big book I made my mom read to me as a child. I don't remember much about the book itself, other than it was super long and I forced Mom to read to me for a bedtime story several nights in a row. I still haven't seen the movie, but I definitely need to.
2. The Little Mermaid Books series.
I don't many people who remember these books but, growing up, my family was super poor. We still managed to get a good chunk of these books and I read them all so many times. I remember these books specifically being the ones that made me cry the most because I wanted to read them so badly. They're just little one-off stories that take place in the little mermaid universe. Really cute.
3. Harry Potter
This was a big one for me. I was part of the Potter hype of the early 2000s. I loved that series so much, I now have a full Potter sleeve tattooed on my right arm. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone used to be my brothers but I stole it from him when we learned I was a much bigger fan. My SS book was read so many times, the book split in half down the spine.
It devastated me to learn about Jk Rowling's views on Trans people. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community (especially the T, Q, and +) I don't NOT condone Jk Rowling or her views. I just enjoyed the story she happened to create. I take full ownership of the Potter series now. It's mine now.
4. Go Ask Alice
This book used to be my mother's and I loved reading the books she read. I was much too young to be reading a book like that but hey, I don't do drugs now. Growing up I believed this book was 100% true, so it really hurt to learn it was made up. I'm glad no one was actually hurt to make this story hit the shelves, but I felt a real story was much more impactful than a story specifically written just to scare kids out of doing drugs.
5. The Goosebumps series
I think all people my age read these growing up but I loved them. They belonged to my brother but I would steal a few from him and read them in my room when I should have been asleep. I was a scaredy-cat growing up, but I think these books sparked my love for horror today and are the reason I write the way I do now.
Harry Potter and Goosebumps definitely had the most impact on me as a writer, but the others encouraged me to read. If I didn't start reading, if I let my dyslexia defeat me, I wouldn't be where I am today. So, controversies or not, I love that these exist.
What were some of your favorite books growing up? Tell me about them.
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