Share

Books we've loved

I was reading your article and found myself drifting back to the days of heated excitement, no worries and ice cream. I used to have this book that I absolutely ADORED!

It was one of those cardboard versions of The Ginger Bread Man, given to me on my fourth birthday, and I used to take it everywhere with me! I remember riding on my tricycle, round and round the washing line, looking at the pictures. Hehehe, my first lesson in multi-tasking!
Cindy Rossouw

...The Little Red Engine which went choo choo along its shiny tracks! It had the biggest smile and was ever so merry!
Karima Geldenhuys

...Ferdinand the Bull – about a Spanish bull, a magnificent specimen that did not quite like fighting. I must have read it over and over (in fact borrowed a copy from the library a year or two ago and read it again) and loved the story every time!
Annie

...Dahl's George's Marvelous Medicine. My parents let me stay up a good hour after bedtime because I just couldn't put it down. I am now a fanatical reader and devoure books at an alarming rate.
Melanie Pieterkosky

...the Kathy and Mark series. We still have a copy somewhere under the bed...I think. It probably survived not being thrown out because it was handed down from one sibling to the other.

When I had a chance to read it again when I was older, I found myself asking: "What possessed this person to write such drivel??"

But then, I remembered that at one time, I had enjoyed reading the book so much that I read it over and over again, which helped me appreciate any form of literature. Lesson: Every book has its own particular audience.
Lusanda Myira

The Thunderbeast... a wonderful fantasy tale that held me totally captivated. Don't know if it's still in print, but at age 5 it was my first 'proper' book and I was hooked for life.
Stephanie

The first memory I have with regards to reading is my dad tucking us into bed and then every night reading us a chapter of Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book. The book opened up a whole new world to me and brought about my love of books.
Lindsay Thompson

...The Magic Faraway Tree was one of the first that gripped my attention and held me spellbound for years. That magic book nurtured a love of books that has never left me.

I still read a book in one sitting to this day...Aaaah, you have reminded me of such a fond memory....I need to retrieve my copy of The Faraway Tree and read it again.
Kathleen Hughes

I remember is being extremely bored at home and looking at the pictures of a book for the umpteenth time. No one could read the book to me, as they were all busy with their own things. Suddenly, as you say, something clicked. I could understand what I was looking at. I devoured our Enid Blyton collection – probably close to 50 books – in less than a year. I still read at least 2 books per week.
Karen

I would devour book after book, enjoying them but never finding that one book or particular author that I truly fell in love with until the tender age of 11.

I was frantic to find something to read and was not allowed to browse in the "mature" section of the library!! I then found it... my first Stephen King book, at home, right under my nose. It was Misery and I was in love. I have since read every single one of his books I can get my hands on and am looking for some of his older works.
Sandi Gerber

...Nicholas Nickleby, by Charles Dickens. My late maternal grandmother gave it to me to read over school holidays, I think I was about 10 or 11.
Rabe Mutondwa

...The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy. Not the first book I ever read but definitely one that has stayed with me through the years, in fact I hunted for a copy on the Internet so I could just "own" it. I am now 43 and often recommend it to my friends' children in the hopes that they will find it as much fun to read as I still do.
Toni Olivier

As my gran is and was (she is now 80 years old) an avid reader, she started teaching me from the age of 3. By the time I was around 4 and a half, I was reading all my Disney Books by myself.

I remember the joy of The Jungle Book (as you do) and Cinderella, etc. Now my girls are 4 and 2 and it is an amazing feeling reading the books to them that I read when I was a little girl.
Cindy Botha

The first book I ever read (before the age of four) was A Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan. I know I read it before I turned four because I started school in Class 1 when I was four years, later matriculating at age 16.

When I started Class 1 at 4 years old, the nuns at the convent phoned my Mum and asked her if she realised that I could read, she of course did not know, because I had sneaked into the forbidden bookcase. From that day on I was given real books to read, not the usual flash cards and now at age 47 I have never stopped reading.
Katie Wetselaar

What was the first book you've read? Do you still remember? Share your memories with us in the comment box below.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()