Favorite Books from my Childhood

Inspired by the facebook 30 Books in 30 Days challenge, I loved the idea of thinking through my favorite books. I am not typically someone who re-reads books, so it's usually just one really impactful read that I remember for years. I find that I can't normally remember the whole story end to end, but there are moments and passages that resonate with me. In no particular order, here are my top books/series from my childhood. Keep your eyes peeled soon for my top list for adult reads.

• The Phantom Tollbooth by Jules Feffier - I read vividly remember reading this book in EPP class in elementary school. I loved the cities of Digitopolis and Dictionopolis, the literalness of the reasoning in the towns. I can practically still taste the letters the main character Milo bought at the market. I remember the slow bummer of the Doldrums, thinking how easy it can be to slip into a major case of the dumps. The characters represented many different personalities, like main character "everyman" Milo, the princesses Rhyme and Reason, the watchdog Tock, and the Humbug. This is one book I have read over and over, it's all tattered. Early in our relationship Kevin and I asked each other to read our favorite books. This was what I gave him, he gave me Moneyball. Needless to say, neither of us finished either book since our styles are so different.
• Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maud Montgomery - This was a book series that I actually saw first as a TV movie that I loved. My friend Amanda and I would watch this repeatedly on summer vacations. Once I learned that the story was initially a book series, I devoured my mom's copy of book #4 Anne of Windy Poplars. Just looking this book up for a link, I discovered that there are actually 13 books about the precocious orphan, Anne. I may have to check a few of those out of the library. The main character has such spunk and confidence, I can't help but think that a bit of her rubbed off on me.
• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum - Another book from elementary school, I remember sitting in my forth grade teacher's reading circle. She would read to us every day, funny kid books like Bunnicula and one about a terrible teacher the kids always outsmarted. But my favorite she read was Oz. I would disappear into the story, not feeling connected to my body (even though girls used this time to braid each other's hair and draw on backs) and being in awe of this magical place. I read several of the other books in the series as well, but none captured me the way The Wonderful Wizard of Oz did.
• Andrew Lang's Fairy Books - The Brothers Grimm were a bit to intense for me as a child, so I developed my love of fairy tales by reading Andrew Lang's "colored books". My school library had the Red Book and the Yellow Book, and I remember checking these books out repeatedly to lose myself in the tales of animals, kings and queens, and witches. I always have a place in my heart for this genre, and it led me to The Once and Future King, about King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone.
• Miss Hickory by Carol Sherwin Bailey - This was a random book I checked out many times, and I found it a couple years ago at a bookstore going out of business sale. I instantly remembered the cover, and couldn't wait to read the book again. But then I remembered, it's such a crazy book! The main character is a stick doll who gets her nut-head plucked off and eaten by a squirrel! Check out the link to the book, it's a really funny review by someone who obviously read this book and remembered the quirkiness in a rosy light, just like I did!
• Shel Silverstein poetry books - Who didn't love The Giving Tree, Where the Sidewalk Ends or A Light in the Attic? I read these books many times with a reading light late at night. Some of my favorite poems include Jimmy Jet and his TV Set, Hector the Collector, Sick, The Crocodile's Toothache, Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout Would Not Take the Garbage Out, Melinda Mae, The Meehoo with an Exactlywatt, It's Hot, Little Abigail and the Beautiful Pony, Twistable Turnable Man, Deaf Donald, Skin Stealer, Ladies First, and Almost Perfect. Silverstein's drawings are unforgettable and add so much to the silly poems.
• Berenstein Bears books - My favorites were Too Much Junk Food, Get the Gimmies, The Truth. Good morals, characters I could relate to, and you could even meet them in person at the amusement park Cedar Point! Berenstein Bear Country was open from 1985-98, and how now been replaced by Camp Snoopy, an even more wonderful cast of characters.
• Matilda and The BFG by Roahl Dahl - Dahl's books are magical. I know a lot of people probably loved Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or James and the Giant Peach more, but my favorites were these. The books are empowering to children, full of interesting characters and zainy storylines. I have even read some of his adult stories, including Henry Sugar and Six More and Boy. He's a gifted writer who takes us away from normal life and into a fantasy land. The drawings added so much to the story too, that is exactly how you envisioned the story taking place.

So that's the list. Any one else fall in love with these books? What are your favorites?