Over at Kate's Book Blog, Kate is thinking about how we become readers and grow as readers, and has created a meme about early reading experiences. The questions are very interesting, as are her responses. Here are mine.
1. How old were you when you learned to read and who taught you?
I learned to read when I was about 4. My most active teachers were Sesame Street and The Electric Company. I still believe that my early addiction to those two shows put me ahead of many other kids my age when it came to reading.
2. Did you own any books as a child? If so, what’s the first one that you remember owning? If not, do you recall any of the first titles that you borrowed from the library?
When I was very young we had a lot of Dr. Seuss books around the house, and other picture books I can't remember as well. But I don't really remember owning my own books until I was about 8 or 9. The first books I remember owning were Nancy Drew books. The first books I remember borrowing from the library were the Little House books and the Katie John books, though I'm sure I borrowed books from the library before those.
3. What's the first book you bought with your own money?
That's an easy one. Nancy Drew, probably somewhere around #30 or 40. I was completely addicted to Nancy Drew for about a year, maybe two. The only thing that cured my addiction was running out of books in the series. Then I moved on to Trixie Belden (who I ultimately liked better).
4. Were you a re-reader as a child? If so, which book did you re-read most often?
I don't remember being much of a re-reader when I was a child. I am now! But I was more eager to get the next book in the series, or to find a new series. I was sad when I found out that Louisa May Alcott was long dead and there were no more books by her. So when I did any re-reading at all, it was usually Alcott books.
5. What's the first adult book that captured your interest and how old were you when you read it?
Somehow I got interested in Sherlock Holmes when I was about 12 or 13. This led me to Agatha Christie, and on to Alistair MacLean. By the time I emerged from those, I was pretty much done with children's books (except for Trixie) until college.
6. Are there children’s books that you passed by as a child that you have learned to love as an adult? Which ones?
So many!
One evening at the end of my sophomore year of college, when I should have been studying for finals, I ended up browsing the children's section of a local bookstore. That night I discovered a line of books published by Dell called Yearling Classics. It included titles I already knew (like Little Women and The Five Little Peppers) but also titles I'd never heard of that turned out to be wonderful books (Daddy-Long-Legs, Girl of the Limberlost, The Princess and the Goblin, etc). And that easily, just in leafing through and then reading a few of the books, I was hooked again on children's literature.
I went on to do my undergraduate thesis and my graduate work in children's literature. But during this time, I focused on a pretty narrow scope of books -- girls' books written in North America in the late 19th century or early 20th century. So there were so many children's books I was missing, even then. And I still have a lot of catching up to do.
So... what's your early reading story?
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4 comments:
Very interesting! I too was a child of Sesame Street, and it sounds like we've got lots of childhood reading in common as well. I loved the Little House books, and Katie John, and Nancy Drew, and Louisa May Alcott's books, and Agatha Christie also served as one of my gateways into adult reading...
1. How old were you when you learned to read and who taught you?
I honestly don't remember actually learning to read. My mom always read to me, and I know I went to kindergarten reading. I guess I'd have to say my mom, but I don't remember being "taught." I also loved Sesame Street, that may have helped!
2. Did you own any books as a child? If so, what’s the first one that you remember owning? If not, do you recall any of the first titles that you borrowed from the library?
I owned books and books and books. Whenever my dad took me for the weekend, he said he would always buy me a book, no matter what. The earliest book I remember is Richard Scarry's big huge story book...I forget the title, but could go look it up, as it's in Daniel's bedroom right now! It has stories, word pages, ABCs, everything. It was given to me by my grandparents when I was 2.
3. What's the first book you bought with your own money?
I have no idea. I don't think I actually needed to buy my own books for a long time, since both my parents were so willing to get them for me.
4. Were you a re-reader as a child? If so, which book did you re-read most often? Yes, I do remember rereading books, but not which ones specifically. The only one that stands out is Anne of Green Gables, and that's probably only because I continued to read her into adulthood.
5. What's the first adult book that captured your interest and how old were you when you read it?
No idea. I do remember looking at my mom's books however, and marvelling at the "tiny" print compared to mine, and wanting to be able to read books like that someday.
6. Are there children’s books that you passed by as a child that you have learned to love as an adult? Which ones?
Hmm...I can't think of any really. There weren't too many I passed by as a child. And the ones I wasn't interested in, I never really went back to read later.
For anyone besides Nancy who is reading this, I teach kindergarten, and did my grad work in teaching reading. (This is Featherbee...I can't recall my stupid password!)
I started reading when I was 2. Prior to that, when Mom tried to read to me, I would close the books and tell her that I wanted to do it myself, that I wanted to read, that I wanted to know every word and its definition. She complied. I'm lucky. - Little Willow
Wow. Reading at 2 years old? That's amazing.
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