Through library visits, trips to Waterstones with Christmas vouchers and full bookshelves at home, I was lucky enough to have a childhood filled with reading. As a dedicated reader herself, my mum helped open my eyes to the wonderful world of reading. From interactive picture books to stories about families from decades gone by, seeing and thinking about the books that I read as a child brings me so much nostalgia. These books made me who I am today, and I find that reminiscing on the books of my childhood is often just as comforting as the books themselves.
To start at the beginning, one of my favourite picture books as a child was Doing the Animal Bop by Jan Ormerod and Lindsey Gardiner. I recently read this book aloud to the three-year-old daughter of a family friend, and it was such a joy seeing her dance like the animals! While not quite like the Oxford college ‘bops’, the book is, as the title suggests, about a group of animals, whose dance the reader is supposed to imitate. Now that I think about it, I’ve really come full circle going from dancing in my living room to the animal bop to dancing at a college bop, probably dressed in some kind of animal costume… Doing the Animal Bop perfectly embodies the fun and silliness of childhood.
Another favourite of mine was Peace at Last by Jill Murphy, a cosy book about a family of bears. Mr Bear cannot fall asleep because of all of the noise in the house. Reading this before bed, curled up on the sofa under a blanket, was such a calming experience as the noises in the bear household were like those in my family home. Even thinking about it now makes me feel so comforted. Certain illustrations from these books also remain imprinted on my mind, and I can very clearly picture Mr Bear sleeping in a car. I think this shows just how important these stories were to me growing up.
Julia Donaldson is one of the most famous children’s authors, and I’m sure many of us had a favourite work of hers growing up. Mine was The Smartest Giant in Town which follows a giant who buys a very smart outfit (much like freshers buying their sub fusc) but then gives his clothes away to various people that he meets. I remember feeling such warmth towards the giant, who thinks of everyone before himself. I’m sure this taught me some important lessons in kindness. The illustrations by Axel Scheffler are evocative of children’s imaginations and my fantasies of escaping to different worlds.
When I was a little bit older, I encountered one of my favourite books for the first time: Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. This classic tale is about the March sisters and their everyday lives, dramas, and fun amidst sadness with their father away at war. I can vividly picture the edition that I had with a skirt and shoes on the front cover; I reread it so many times. The March sisters are presented so wonderfully, with each sister having different quirks and personalities, but nonetheless all charming in their own way. Little Women is one of those books which I reread whenever I am in need of something familiar. This also got me interested in people’s everyday lives in the 19th century, so perhaps this encouraged my love of history, which I now study at university.
Another older book which I enjoyed was Noel Streatfeild’s The Bell Family which I remember buying using a Waterstones voucher from Christmas, after a wonderfully long browse. Published in the 1950s, this book follows a reverend, his wife and four children as they grow up in a vicarage. I re-read this book a couple of years ago, and it was charming as ever. There’s plenty of chaos with a dog beauty competition, dance auditions and ample arguments. I still enjoy reading about warm family dynamics today, including novels by Maggie O’Farrell and Anne Tyler.
I am so grateful that books were such a key part of my childhood and that my parents raised me in a world of reading. Reflecting on these children’s books makes me realise the value that they had in shaping me as a person. They made me fall in love with reading, and I feel so fortunate that my reading experiences as an adult are as varied and exciting as when I was a child.