Sunday, May 6, 2012

Children's Book Nostalgia

I've worked on the adult side of publishing and as much as I enjoyed it, it doesn't compare to the love I have for children's books.  I now work with books ranging from picture books to young adult, and I couldn't be happier.

I read adult books (though not as much as I used to, living in kiddie land), but I have a soft spot for children's books that I don't have for their older counterparts.  There are wonderful and affecting adult books (like Wally Lamb's She's Come Undone, which is one of my favorite books of all time), but it's my contention that children's books touch us in a way adult ones don't.  As children, we read children's books and they become part of our identity in a special way.  We grow up with them and even if we look back at some of them now and shake our heads, we can't help but acknowledge the indelible impression they've left on us.

As a kid, I was obsessed with the Sweet Valley High series.  I even subscribed to their book mailing and looked forward to getting a new book each month.  Let's not get started with the TV series it spawned, which I watched each Saturday (When I was 15, as a matter of fact, in Manhattan I ran into one of the actors who played Todd Wilkins!).  I cried when I missed an episode once, a fact that my sister refuses to let me live down.  Flipping through this series now, I realize how terribly soap opera-esque they were, but I still love 'em, flaws and all.


I was also hooked on teen horror and paranormals--Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, Annette Curtis-Klause, Richie Tankersley-Cusick, Lael Littke--I could go on and on, so I'll stop there.  I'd amassed so many books that I had to give most of them away at some point.  Now, thanks to my love-hate relationship with Amazon, I've been able to locate and purchase some the out-of-print books  once owned and loved.


Whenever I buy the used books, I make sure they have the original covers, since that's what makes them extra special to me.  Repackaged covers are great for drawing in new generations of readers. Those old school covers spark memories that new shiny ones just don't.  I see a cover I recognize from childhood and I just get goosebumps.






Speaking of which, I was a Goosebumps fan.  (See?  Most things just remind me of books!  And, yes, I also watched the TV series.)


Hmmm...since it appears I've written a love letter to Francine Pascal and R.L. Stine, let's throw in some Judy Blume love.


What about you?  Do you have any children's books that bring back memories?


4 comments:

  1. Let's see, all books Judy Blume, E.B. White, Roald Dahl. . . Boxcar Children and anything else I could get my mitts on. ^_^

    Found you over at the Linkedin SCBWI group. Nice to meet you. ^_^

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    1. LOVED those books. I'm still trying to read all the children's classics I've missed, to read even more in the field. So many books, so little time.

      And nice to meet you!

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  2. Oh, too many to count. All the Christopher Pike ones (Remember Be comes to mind right away), Lois Duncan (Summer of Fear terrified me!), Judy Blume, SWH (which my sister is still collecting! she's having a hard time finding certain volumes), VC Andrews!!

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    1. Oh, VC Andrews, the ultimate guilty pleasure. I've read just about all her books, even the ghost written ones like the Orphans and Wildflower series! So addictive.

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