There is always something special about book read as a kid. It probably has to do with the magic we still felt as kids and how that magic gets sucked away as we get older. Oh, that’s getting a bit melancholy…let’s jump into the books I wish I had read as a child and experience some magic!
Harry Potter by JK Rowling
When Harry Potter first started gaining traction in my little California town, I was that annoying person who refused to read a book because it was popular. But shortly after seeing the first movie in theaters with my mother, I devoured the first two books on a car trip from Northern California to San Diego and was hooked. I still wish I could have gotten into these back when they first came out, but I’m just glad I got to be a part of them at all.
The Hobbit/LOTR by JRR Tolkien
Even though I consider The Fellowship of the Ring one of the first books I DNF’d, I wish I could have experienced these books as a kid just learning about epic fantasy worlds. Yes, there are some truly dense and boring parts of the novels *cough* Council of Elrond *cough*, no one can deny that these books are classics for a reason.
The Tortall Series by Tamora Pierce
I was introduced to Tamora Pierce’s Totall series in my late teens and early 20s, but oh how I wish I’d gotten my hands on these when I was a young girl. Though there are a few problematic bits, the overall theme of women finding their strength in a patriarchal world is something every girl needs.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
My first real introduction to Little Women was in an episode of Friends, but this novel has always seemed like such a classic that must be read. I’m not sure what I would have made of it during my youth, but I wish I could have given it a shot.
Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
I tried to start the Complete Adventures of Sherlock Holmes a few years back, but between Benedict Cumberbatch and Robert Downey Jr. fresh in my mind as the titular detective, the original hardly stood a chance. The modern, quippy adaptations made it difficult to sink into Doyle’s old fashioned writing style and I wish I’d been able to enjoy the source material before the pop culture phenoms from Moffat/Gatiss and Ritchie.
The Once and Future King & Mists of Avalon
There is just something magical and alluring about these books. I’ve had copies sitting on my shelves for years, but there is a deep part of me that wishes I had read them back when I was young and full of wonder.
The Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
I’ve always, always wanted to read these books. Is it weird that I wish I’d read them as a kid, but I’m too intimidated to read them now, as an adult?
Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
Straight up, this boils down to me wanting to be able to read these books without getting bogged down in religious over or undertones. Sometimes, you just want to be able to experience things as a child without wading through the deeper meanings.
Dune by Frank Herbert
For Dune, I really just kinda wanted this to be my intro to classic science fiction, rather than Ender’s Game.
Marvel Comics
Look, I don’t ever want to be that person who flaunts having read the source material before the adaptation, but there is a part of me that wishes I had been into comics, specifically Marvel when I was a kid. There is something so nostalgic about collecting superhero stories and I want that feeling.
Ahh. I should have put Little Women on my list. I’ve read it recently but I think I would have enjoyed it better if I had read it when I was younger. I have Dune on my must read before I die list so I will definitely be getting to that one at some point. 😍
LikeLike
Yeah, I also wish I’d read Little Women (although I was a little put off by Joey’s reaction in Friends!)
LikeLike
I loved Little Women as a kid. I don’t think I’ve ever reread it as an adult.
My TTT .
LikeLike
It might be melancholy, but I think you’re right – we have so much imagination and magic inside of us as kids and we lose it as we become adults. It makes sense, then, that books that enthralled us as kids might not do so now that we’re adults. Some do stand the test of time, though. LITTLE WOMEN is one of those for me. I was already in my late 20s when the HP books came out. I loved them as an adult, but I would have been ABSOLUTELY BONKERS for them as a kid!
Happy TTT!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
LikeLike
You’ve got great books on this list! I read an abridged version (ugh) of Little Women when I was young, and then when I went back to read the real thing as an adult I struggled with it. I read most of the books on your list as an adult, except for the first Narnia book, which I loved.
LikeLike
Harry Potter was a massive part of my preteen/teen years. I loved The Hobbit as a kid, but I was never able to get through LOTR.
LikeLike
I really wish Harry Potter had been around when I was kid. That had to so magical to read!
LikeLike