Anything Goes discussion

The first book I can remember reading was about a little orange water dragon who lived in a forest. unfortunately the title escapes me which is pretty rubbish as this is my topic creation but I can remember the pictures vividly and recall pronouncing the word 'squirrel' as 'squeakle',and seeing as I was reading in front of my whole family I have never been allowed to forget this fact!

for the record i've found the book and it's called 'dragon in the woods' by Lucy Kincaid

for the record i've found the book and it's called 'dragon in the woods' by Lucy Kincaid

The first book I recall reading by myself was Green Eggs and Ham, , by Dr. Seuss. The first "non-picture" book I recall reading is The Magic Faraway Tree, , by Enid Blyton.

Matilda. Read it in a day.

Chris wrote: "The first book I recall reading by myself was Green Eggs and Ham, , by Dr. Seuss. ..."

I 'discovered' Green Eggs and Ham when reading to my kids, and now am doing it all over again with grandchildren!

The first 'books' I clearly remember reading were DC comic books like Superman, Batman, World's Finest and Action Comics. When I was a kid growing up in Hong Kong in the 1950s I used to hire a bike from a bike stall, cycle to the nearest comics stand and devour as many comics for free as the stallholder allowed or until my hour was up. It's often where my mother found me long after the hour was up!

Around the same time I had a go at the Just William books by Richmal Crompton. I loved the illustrations, but the language and the jokes were often beyond me, and of course the cultural references were rather obscure until I moved back to Britain.

Then I migrated to real classics via Classic Illustrated comics (can you see a pattern here?) which I used to skimread, missing out all the 'boring' bits. (It's not until recently that I've got round to re-reading properly and enjoying titles like Treasure Island and Great Expectations.)

Along the way I got through Enid Blyton's The Famous Five and The Secret Seven series, followed by authors like Henry Treece.

But to answer the question: no, I can't remember the first book I read, and I'm sorry it's been a roundabout way replying to it!

I can't remember the first book I read, but the first book I clearly remember is The Magic Faraway Tree - which I still love.

E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial In His Adventure On Earth - struggled through it when i was about 7

Black Beauty, Heidi, Lion, Witch and Wardrobe, Little Women - they are still amongst my favourite books ever.

I started reading very young and except for The Pokey Puppy I don't really remember a lot of the earlier ones. The ones I best remember are Time at the Top The Velvet Room and A Wrinkle in Time

Recall reading the dreaded Noddy books now, and suspect these were my first 'real' books. Probably learnt my words at home with the Peter and Jane books, but I wouldn't count these as 'real' books!

Been having a think, and I can remember reading Ladybird books - snow white and rose red etc. Also have a vague idea that we had a set of books that also had fairy tales in them, but they were only about twenty pages and each page had a big picture on it.

Karen wrote: "Been having a think, and I can remember reading Ladybird books - snow white and rose red etc. Also have a vague idea that we had a set of books that also had fairy tales in them, but they were only..."

These were the ones I liked too. Dad would buy me one every friday and we'd read together. My fave was The Elves and The Shoemaker.

Later it was Swallows and Amazons series and at the age of 9 I was given Jane Eyre and fell in love with Mr Rochester.

I can't remember the first books I read, but I can remember sneaking into the library aged about 7 to read the Dr Seuss books. My mother really disliked them so they were banned at home, but thanks to my super-sneaky skills (or maybe an understanding English teacher?) I was able to get hold of them at school. If you see my mum around - no snitching!

Epaminondas and His Auntie

This book, though far afield from political correctness, is extremely well written and illustrated. I remember my mom reading it to me, reading it on my own, and reading it to my twin daughters. When I read it today, it provides familiar amusement and warm memories.

JackieB wrote: "I can't remember the first books I read, but I can remember sneaking into the library aged about 7 to read the Dr Seuss books. My mother really disliked them so they were banned at home, but thank..."

ha ha! Definitely no snitching

I can't remember my first book, but I read all the Enid Blyton and re read them with my kids and now I'm starting to read them again.
I remember getting a set of classics with Jane Eyre, Heidi, Hans Christian Anderson's Fairy Tales and a couple of others and reading them until they fell apart. Jane Eyre is still my favourite book of all time.
My mother had Heidi, Heidi grows up and Heidi's children in a set she got in the 1950s and reading them again and again. I still have those copies and my eldest daughter reads and reads them.

Black Beauty, Heidi, Little Women, Nancy Drew series, Bobbsey Twins and I think something like See Spot Run (or something like that) which was a first primer I think.

I really don't remember the first, but suspect it was an Enid Blyton book. My mum used to take me to the library before I could read - The Story of Babar: The Little Elephant by Jean de Brunhoff was one of my favourites - but I can't recall when the transition between being read to and reading by myself came.

Bambi and Honeybunch

I don't remember the very first book because I started reading in sentences before I went to school--but I can remember the Dick/Jan/Puff/Spot readers and of course "Charlotte's Web!"

I doubt it was the first, but the first book I remember reading was The Trumpeter Swan by the same author of Charlottes Web.

The earliest books I remember reading was Rupert & anything by Enid Blyton. I especially loved the fairy books (not a lot changed there!) The Magic Faraway Tree, , Oh what memories of magical lands, they really instilled in me a love of reading

maisey mouse before it stopped

Did anybody read comics as much as books? I remember devouring Beano and Dandy before moving on to Classics Illustrated and Superman, Batman and the rest, all before the age of seven or eight. (Classics Illustrated might betray my age a bit, they've not been issued for many years now, though some have been re-issued, 'classic Classics Illustrated' as it were!)

My first book and the one i read over again was Snow Cloud Stallion. I still remember the front cover of this Penguin book.

Charlotte's Web was a real favorite---but I know I read others before that--this is the one that really sticks out in my mind!! The others I don't remember the names!

This question jumped out at me because I immediately remembered 'The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. I read it is about third or fourth grade and loved it!The Yearling

I remember The Gingerbread Man, and The Little Engine that Could. My mom loved to read my the Amelia Bedelia books, I think she laughed harder than I did at them!

The first book I ever remember reading myself was in first grade as they used to tell parents NOT to teach their children to read which was very bad advice. It was Dick and Jane which was horribly boring and I hated it.
I liked listening to many books that my mother read to me before that especially Peter Rabbit. I hope kids today don't have to read Dick and Jane. I don't remember really liking a book I read for myself until the 6th grade and it was The Black Stallion. There must have been some but I don't remember them.
Due to the American school system its a wonder I even like reading. Thanks to my mother I do like it very much.

The Black Stallion

Chris wrote: "Did anybody read comics as much as books? I remember devouring Beano and Dandy before moving on to Classics Illustrated and Superman, Batman and the rest, all before the age of seven or eight. (Cla..."

Yes, my sisters and I read comic books. We loved Archie and all that series.

Jughead! thanks as I had forgotten those.

Six months to live by Lurlene McDaniel