(Update: I cannot believe I forgot about #9, so I just had to squeeze it in after the fact. When I first started writing this, I didn't think I could come up with 10, but apparently I was wrong!)
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2. Reading by nightlight because I didn't want to get caught staying up past my bedtime. Yup, I was one of those kids. Forget all the other sneaky things I could have gotten myself into, I just desperately wanted to read one more chapter. OK, maybe two.
3. The Scholastic Book Fair. Please tell me you had these at your school as a kid. I looked forward to them so much it was kind of ridiculous. This was obviously the beginning of my book buying obsession. Of course at the age of 10, I had quite limited funds (and room in my backpack), which was probably a good thing.
4. Speaking of Scholastic, I have to include the Scholastic Book Club flyers. Do you guys remember those?! In the days before this thing called the internet enabled you to click a few buttons and have books magically appear on your doorstep, this was pretty much a third grade bookworm's dream. I filled out a form, gave my teacher some money, and then I got the latest Baby Sitters Club book delivered to me at school. So. Awesome.
5. One thing I really miss now that I'm an adult is reading a book cover-to-cover. As a kid, I remember settling in with a Nancy Drew mystery on a weekend or a rainy summer day and just reading the whole thing straight through. And on a really good day, I'd read another!6. In high school, I was always the first one up in the morning, so I would make myself something for breakfast and curl up on the playroom couch with my latest non-school-related book. I went to Catholic school and wore a uniform, so getting ready didn't take much time and I always thought I had time for a few more pages, even when I really didn't.
7. Now I know a lot of teenage girls like to go shopping at the mall and my best friend and I were no exception. What I'm not so sure about is if all the other teenage girls always made a stop at the bookstore. We were both readers, so we often swapped books and recommendations and it was always fun to browse the shelves. The day we realized the B. Dalton at our local mall was closing for good was a very sad day. How can a mall not have a bookstore?!
8. It was a little bittersweet, but I'll never forget lining up to buy Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at midnight with my husband (he was my boyfriend then -- can you see why I married him?), one of his friends, and my best friend. It's what all the cool kids were doing. Seriously. Well, my kind of cool kids anyway.9. Speaking of the cool kids, you want to know what this cool kid did on her 21st birthday? She went to An Evening with Harry, Carrie & Garp with said husband and best friend. Judging by the crowd, the excitement, and the general atmosphere, you would have thought it was a rock concert, but it was actually a series of readings and Q&A sessions with JK Rowling, Stephen King, and John Irving at Radio City Music Hall. My husband bought us the tickets and took the two of us since our birthdays are only 2 days apart. Forget going to a bar and getting legally wasted, that was one of my best birthdays ever.
10. And all this Harry Potter talk brings me back to the day my little brother came home from school and was practically jumping out of his skin and begging me to read the first book. "Christine you have to read this book. It's sooo good. And it's not just for little kids. I swear you're gonna like it." He must have been 10 which means I would have been 14 and not all that likely to believe him, but luckily I did. Best. Book Recommendation. Ever.Fast forward a few years to when my brother was 14 and Order of the Phoenix was published. He started it, but didn't like it as much as the earlier books, so he stopped after a few chapters and pretty much abandoned reading altogether. I was so mad because he got me started on the series and I wanted to talk to him about the ending so badly! Which leads me to my final bookish memory...
11. It's almost 10 years later and I never was able to convince my brother to read the rest of Harry Potter (or anything else, for that matter). Every year our family takes a beach vacation on the Jersey shore (not THAT Jersey Shore. Ew.) which is perfect for some relaxing summer reading, but nothing I tried ever worked. I'd ask him what books he wanted me to pack for him and he'd just make the "I know you're my sister and we're related, but you really are crazy" face at me. But recently he told me his latest job (which involves a lot of sitting around and monitoring a sign-in book) is so boring he might have to take up reading again. I was hopeful we'd talk about books again one day, but I wasn't holding my breath. Then I got a text from him: "Finished my 3rd book. The parents are reading frauds there are no books in the house." I couldn't help but smile and reminded him they go to this place called the library. It only happened yesterday, but I don't think it's something I'll forget anytime soon :)
Re: No. 7- I still look for the bookstore when I'm in the mall. Just as heartbreaking (at least for me since I was the music junkie as well) was the day Sam Ash closed. Our mall is a fraud.
ReplyDeleteRe: No. 8- I reread my books last summer and was slightly thrown when I realized that the dust jacket on Deathly Hallows was upside down. Then I remembered that it came that way and I smiled. I also remember staying up until 7AM to finish reading it so no one could spoil it for me at work that day. Totally exhausted, but worth it.
Oh and one of my absolute favorite memories is the summer my dad's friend came over with a box of Nancy Drew books from work and said "Enjoy!" That's also the summer I got in trouble for not spending enough time outside because I was determined to finish the whole box of books by the end of the summer.
DeleteOur mall is a major fraud :( I was much more into music back then, so Sam Ash was also a pretty bad blow.
DeleteAnd I almost forgot about that Nancy Drew box! That was the coolest surprise ever. I know I got to read a bunch of them too, but you always did read faster than me, even back then!
O and I can't believe I forgot going to 'An Evening with Harry, Carrie, & Garp' with you and Nick! Forget going to a bar and getting legally drunk, that was the best way to spend my 21st birthday ever (even if it was freakin' 102 degrees walking around NYC!)
OK I couldn't help myself, I had to squeeze that last one in (I made it #9) -- my bookish memories list was just not complete without it. I swear when I started writing this post I didn't think I'd be able to come up with more than five things, but clearly I was wrong, lol
DeleteOMG YES HOW DID WE FORGET THAT? That was an amazing night! Especially since there were still so many unanswered questions at that point. What an incredible evening that was!
DeleteOne of my other favorite memories was reading "Summer Sisters" by Judy Blume. I did not realize that Judy Blume would talk about such dirty things! And I doubt my family did either since I probably bought it when it came out in 1998, making me about 13. I remember sharing it with my younger neighbor too. If I was going to be corrupted by Judy Blume, I was bringing my friends with me!
I remember Summer Sisters being one of your favorite books. Come to think of it I don't think I ever actually read it!
DeleteGreat List and memories too !!! Just a suggestion - could you find a new favorite book quote ? PLEASE !!
DeleteHi Mom :) It figures the one potentially offensive quote out of the 100 that rotate at the top of this blog would be the one to pop up the day you come to read one of my posts... love youuu :)
DeleteOh, the good old Book Fairs back in the days of school eh.
ReplyDeleteMy Top Ten Tuesday
Yes indeed! Thanks for stopping by :)
DeleteI loved Scholastic Book Fairs! My mom started one at my elementary school and always got a "sneak peek" the day before. I thought I was sooo cool. Great bookish memories.
ReplyDeleteOh that must have been even more awesome :)
DeleteWhat great memories! I loved the book fairs and the flyer that you before before. I would circle all the things I wanted my parents to buy me. :)
ReplyDeleteI did that too!
DeleteGahh, how could I forget the BSC? My friends and I formed our own stupid club with Kid Kits for the ZERO kids that we actually babysat. Ah, well. At 7 years old, it was fun to pretend :)
ReplyDeleteThat's so cute!
Deleteomg! those scholastic book fairs at school i had for gotten about those! i was a big fan of Animorphs , and they always had those! and yes you feel so accomplished to finish a book in a day.. i wish some of my books were shorter.. makes me feel good when i can finish it quickly! thanks for checking out our TTT ! - Katie @ Inkk
ReplyDeleteThey were the best! I'm glad someone else remembers them too :)
DeleteYay, I hope your brother keeps reading and rekindles that love of books! :-) Can't believe I didn't think to put school book fairs on my list!
ReplyDeleteI hope so too! Glad to bring back some happy memories :)
DeleteThe Scholastic Book Fair, what great memories! I always looked forward to those days, they were the absolute best day of my week. I would go during school when it was our class' turn to go and then after school with my mom to get even more books in case I didn't have enough money earlier in the day. :) Although, she never did let me get all the books I wanted! lol
ReplyDeleteThat is great news about your brother! I hope he sticks with it. My younger brother reads on and off a lot, but when I get him to read a new book it is my favorite.
I hope he sticks with it too. It's always fun when someone likes a book you recommend, especially if the person is a bit of a reluctant reader - feels like a small victory!
DeleteSo your memories have totally reminded me of several things I forgot to add on my list! The Book Fair was a BIG DEAL for me. I would make a list of what I wanted and pour over that list for hours figuring up all kinds of combinations that would fit in my "budget" (aka the money my mom allotted me) until I settled on my final purchase. Also, when I was in middle school (I think) I got grounded from reading before school because I would read instead of getting ready which made me late for school. My husband isn't a big reader, but he did get into the Percy Jackson series. He read the first four books...and then quit. He only had one book to go to finish the series, and to this day, he has not read it nor does he have the desire to read it, which I do. not. get. at. all.
ReplyDeleteKristin, your childhood sounds quite a bit like mine! And I hate not finishing a series! Even if I start losing interest, I'm usually invested enough to at least want to know how things turn out. My husband is a bit more of a reader, but he goes on kicks -- he'll read non-stop for a few weeks or though an entire series, but then he won't read anything else for months. But eventually, he will pick up another book when something catches his interest.
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