Temporary? Insanity

I’ve never stolen a Meme before – it’s kind of exciting! I saw this on Deanne’s page and couldn’t resist. So I grabbed it and did a runner.

1.How old were you when you learned to read and who taught you?

I’m assuming I learned in Grade One, and while it seems I should list my first grade teacher, I’d have to say that it was more through the efforts of my mom. Even before we attended school, she was teaching us in the home. Every morning we had “school” and would learn and do crafts and things. I hope I can find the energy to do that with my girls!

2. What books do you remember owning as a child?

I remember The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, a Leonardo Da Vinci pop up book, Horton Hears a Who (and lots of other Dr. Seuss), some great Sesame Street books…and about a bazillion others.

3. What is the first book you remember buying with your own money?

Not positive, but I think it was a babysitters club book. The first clear memory I have of buying a book is picking up a tattered old copy of Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring at a Scout’s garage sale. Fill a plastic grocery bag for only five dollars! What a deal!

4. Were you a re-reader as a child? If so, what did you read the most often?

I was and I wasn’t. I only re-read my favourites if I couldn’t find something new. I read between one and two books a day. I definitely enjoyed reading a book over again though, as I found (and still do) that there was always something new to discover.

5. What is the first adult book that captured your interest and how old were you when you read it?

I really don’t know for certain. I know I started reading a lot of adult fiction when I was about twelve or so (Phyllis A. Whitney, Mary Stewart, etc…). I started reading Tolkien at age eleven and Jane Austen at age thirteen. And I know I read every book of Fairy Tales I could get my hands on when I was in grade six or seven. Might not sound very adult, but those stories were not nursery rhymes let me tell you!

6. Are there any children’s books you passed by as a child and learned to love as an adult?

Definitely Anne of Green Gables. I saw the movie at a friend’s house when I was about eight years old, and was so traumatized by how cruel everyone was to Anne over the whole accidentally getting Diana drunk thing, that I walked out on the movie and refused to read the books. My parents gave me the complete set as a gift when I was about twelve or so, and I didn’t read it till I was twenty. I fell in love with the story of Anne, but I’ve been afraid to read them again since my tastes have changed so drastically in the last few years.