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My Ten Book Challenge...

3/9/2014

5 Comments

 
Picture
Much more pleasant than neck nominate or The Ice Bucket Challenge, thanks for the challenge Bryn @Bryngoodman

Choose ten books that have stayed with you throughout your life, say why, give as much detail as you would like and challenge others to do the same! 

(In no particular order)

1.   To kill a mockingbird by Harper Lee - I did this one for my GCSE's with Mrs Coleman a teacher who inspired my love of English. 

2.  The Colour Purple by Alice Walker - Another one from Mrs Coleman, I can't think of any 15 year old boys who wouldn't want to swear in class? Truly an 'awakener!' 

3.  My Sister Lives on the Mantlepiece by Annabel Pitcher - a book aimed at teen readers, i read it on a campsite in France last year.  A heart warming, tragic, comedy about a family coming to terms with the death of a daughter/sister. 

4.  The Magician by Raymond E. Feist - We first meet the characters of Pug and Tomas in this stunning opening to a saga that has lasted over 30 years.   Beautifully fantastic. 

5.  The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks.  Heard it discussed on the radio and was intrigued.  Weird? Not half! Another dark, gruesome and comedic tale. 

6.  The House on falling star hill by Michael Malloy - a fantasy novel for children, when the stars fall from the sky they leave holes to another world to be explored. 

7.  Five on a Treasure Island by Enid Blyton - I read every book in this set, featuring featuring Julian, Dick, Anne, and tomboy George along with Timmy, the dog.  Written in 1942 I read it about 35 years later and loved it.  


8.  Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard - Tells the story of Jamie Graham, a young British boy living in Shanghai and his story during World War 2


9.  The Silver Sword by Ian Serrallier - Another World War Two story which I first read when I was in year 4 and have read numerous times since.  A story about a family of children who walk from Poland to Switzerland to be reunited with their parents when they become separated. 


10.  Face by Benjamin Zephaniah - A teenage boy is burned during a crash when he is joy riding, the story tells how is shunned by his peers during his recovery but dancing changes that for him. 


That was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be! Thanks to @Bryngoodman for nominating me.   


I now nominate the following people
@gingerkatpaws, @lobroo, @ICT_MrP, @Wats-ed, @paulgarvey4, @blandpoet, @MichaelT1979, @shaunh0pper, @imagineinquiry, and my 10th nomination goes to anyone who has read this blog and his the inclination to try it out! 


If you do try it then leave links to your list below here for other people to read!


Many Thanks


Rob 


(Comments greatly appreciated!)

5 Comments
Paul Garvey link
4/9/2014 01:54:51 am

10 favourite reads. Thanks for the chance to do this, Rob. Some great memories for me, during the hour it stole from my work day!! Well worthwhile doing!

Here you go. Surprisingly easy!

1. 'War and Peace', Tolstoy. I peed off the science department at my grammar school by buying a literary tome, when I won the science prize at 'O' level. They honestly couldn't believe it when I didn't buy a science book and told me in no uncertain terms!! War and Peace stays with me as the greatest book I've ever read. I've re-read it twice since and loses none of its scope, or grandeur.

2. 'Wilfrid Owen', collected poems. One of an anthology called; '9 modern poets' I read for GCSE, I splashed out on my first collection as a result. It turned on my poetry love-switch!!

3. TS Eliot' 'The Complete Poems and Plays'. Oh! Prufrock! Greatness oozes from every line Eliot ever wrote. All men turn into Prufrock; how could Eliot know?? This is how (with apologies); 'He grew old, he grew old, he wore the bottoms of his trousers rolled' *>))

4. John Keats, 'The complete works'. lyrically amazing poetry. He stayed in Teignmouth nursing his dying brother in 1818, visited Dawlish and wrote "Dawlish Fair" - a scrap, really and not his best work by a long way, but it resonates, because I live here. I visited his grave in the Protestant cemetery in Rome. A beautiful, spiritual experience.

5. '100 years of Solitude'; Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The great man died earlier this year and the whole country (including Shakira) mourned. I nearly put either 'Love in the Time of Cholera' or 'Death of a Partriarch' at number 10, but I'll leave them with mentions here!

6. '1984'. The year my father died. Thank goodness Winston Smith's existence never came true. We must fight to ensure it never does and that kindness will eventually win out to bond nations, religions and cultures. Orwell's sacrifices and near-death in Catalonia helped to shape me. An 'O' level text, again.

7. 'Catch 22'; Joseph Heller. The funniest book I've ever read! So clever! Major Major Major major running down his trench to escape Yossarian and Milo Mindbender controlling the whole war, having to get the Germans to bomb his own base in payment!

8. 'Opened Ground: Selected poems 1966-1996'; Seamus Heaney. I could have chosen any of his collections. Rural/family life was never better documented. "A four-foot box, a foot for every year". Heaney's distillation of language is remarkable.

9. Dylan Thomas; "Collected poems' I walked up to sit on my favourite hillside (not a pit stack!) in Pontefract on my 30th birthday. Unforgettable, just like Thomas' poetry. Listen to the bard read 'Poem in October' why America (and me) loved him. http://bit.ly/WekzKM A wracked genius, sitting in '9 modern poets' and waiting for me to discover him in my 'O' Level English.

10. Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare. Again, 'O' Level!! If I'd never read this, this boy from a poor mining family would have never grown to love Shakespeare. I now see how crap my grammar school was, but schools really do shape you, crap, or not. Teach them well!

Hmmmm more poetry than novels. I didn't plan that, but it sums up my literary loves, I suppose. I'm 4/5 of the way through Ulysses and it may well enter the list high up. So what do I do about my number 10, Shakespeare?

Reply
Rob
4/9/2014 03:01:18 am

A great list Paul, you are right, easy to get lost in the memories of books.

Reply
Becky Burdon
4/9/2014 01:35:16 pm

1- The Hungry Caterpillar - my first memories of loving a book!

2- The First Term at Malory Towers by Enid Blyton - my passion for reading started once I had discovered Enid Blyton. Her writing style inspired me to write from a young age.

3- The BFG, by Roald Dahl - Dahl's imaginary worlds captured me from a young age, remaining a favourite author to this day.

4- Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood - studied at A Level and Degree level. Outstanding!

5- The Awakening by Kate Chopin - feminist literature at its best.

6- The Bell Jar by Slyvia Plath - breaking down barriers for its time. Formed the foundations of my dissertation, read over and over again.

7- Omeros, by Derek Walcott- having never been a huge fan of poetry I came across this 300+ page poem. It changed my thinking. Outstanding read based on the struggles during slavery.

8- A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness - teenage book, focusing on the heartache of a teenager losing his mum to terminal cancer! Most recent book I've read which made an impact.

9 - Adrian Mole by Sue Townend - the whole collection captured perfectly the awkwardness of teenage years.

10- Charlotte's Web by E. B white - my first book which dealt with the issue of death. Touching, heart warming book about a spider and pig's relationship.

Reading throughout my childhood was the most inspirational past time I did, and I continue to try and create this passion for reading in my own child, and my 30 primary students I teach.

Reply
Rob
6/9/2014 03:21:32 am

Becky - I love Adrian Mole, I read it around the age of 12/13
I read The Bell Jar for A level, I like Plath copies of her poems are ever present on my book shelves.

Reply
Camilla Mercer link
14/9/2014 07:43:17 am

I've loved reading all the lists so far, and was excited to write my own, which you can read here:
https://makingandmarking.wordpress.com/2014/09/14/my-top-ten-books-as-inspired-by-literacyshedblog-com/

Reply



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    Rob from Literacy Shed

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