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| Image by Mrs Booth |
My favourite books as a child were: The Lottie Project by Jacqueline Wilson, The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton, What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge
As a child I really struggled with reading. My mother frequently reminds me that I was extremely reluctant and was a nightmare when it came to learning to read. I loved being read to, but refused to try to do it myself. As I got older, it became apparent that part of the reason was that my vision was shocking. But it wasn’t till I got to 17 that the real reason behind my childhood reluctance to read aloud was due to my dyslexia, something that can still affect me today.
Books were a common feature in my childhood home. I remember having The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton, read to me in the evenings and this was the first book that would lead me down the path to being a massive fantasy lover.
My comfort read is: The Belgariad by David Eddings
At 11, I was getting sick of Enid Blyton and Jacqueline Wilson and wanted something different and new. My ability to read had massively improved and my introverted self loved to hide away with a book and classical music. My mum recommended The Belgariad series, by David Eddings, which was one of her favourites. I devoured the first book, Pawn of Prophecy in a few days; the entire series over a matter of weeks. I remain a huge fan of these books to this day and have read Eddings’ entire collection, some numerous times!
At secondary school I was often found to be reading in class, rather than engaging with most of my peers. Incidentally, my school days were awful, but I did find solace in the school library and in the worlds on its shelves. Over 5 years there, I read most of the fiction, even going through a phase in year 10 of only reading Russian Classics (No idea why – I never really enjoyed them and could barely pronounce their names! Dostoevsky anyone?). But one book that really stuck with me was Junk by Melvin Burgess. This book was controversial and considering the subject matter, was barely ever on the shelf. It was the most requested book in the entire school, until Harry Potter was released when I was in Year 11.
Sixth form introduced me to more writers, more genres and fuelled a trend of reading gritty crime fiction, especially novels by Val McDermid, and a HUGE obsession with Harry Potter, resulting in fan fiction, cosplay and a variety of Ravenclaw accessories. It also pushed me to do my degree in English Literature.
The last book that made me laugh: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Although I don’t read as much as I used to, I still love it. My love for word-based escapism has never dwindled. And neither has my love for fantasy, dystopia and gritty crime, the three genres that I am always drawn to. A couple of year ago, one of my students introduced me to a new writer, a writer that I have become obsessed with, Sarah J Maas.
The last book that made me cry: A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas
