First of all, let me tell you that I’ve been reading books for a long time, since I was 4-5 years old. I began reading really kiddish books (what do you expect?) and gradually with time began reading
from other authors too. From the beginning of my attachment to books, I’ve always had a few authors whose books I love even now.
Enid Blyton and her detective stories as well as the short tales about enchanted lands with pixies, dwarves, elves were the first proper book which I read. I don’t know whether I would like them if I read them now, but at that time, Enid Blyton was my favourite. These are the best you can get for small kids. If they wont like Enid Blyton then they wont like anything else either in my opinion.
Robin Hood, one of my top 5 favourite literary characters of all time. I had read a couple of abridged versions about Robin Hood and his Merry Men. I know that if I read them again (the abridged versions) I will still like it. This was the time when I started reading legends such as Hercules, El Cid, Achilles and other Greek legends.
Then some comics such as Asterix and Archies which I read even now when in the mood. They barely cease to make me laugh. Each new comic is a new adventure in itself. Asterix, by far, is my favourite comic’s character ever.
Then I also began reading other comics such as Phantom, Flash Gordon, Batman, Mandrake etc... but I never really got addicted to any of them.
It was around this time when I was really into comics that I got hold of The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien, which, in my honest opinion, is the best children’s book ever. It takes you to imaginary lands and imaginary races of people in such a manner that it doesn’t take much imagining from your part. It feels so real, the way Tolkien writes it.
Then came the period of influence of my elder sister. Nany Drew, Hardy Boys, Enid Blyton’s girly books such as ’’Malory Towers’’ but it didn’t last long for me. I quickly started to... well... dislike them.
When I was 13 years old, I started reading Sherlock Holmes short stories. And at that time, my ambition was to be a detective and nothing else. Sherlock Holmes to this day remains my favourite character. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle really created a legend.
From the success of Sherlock Holmes adventures, I was drawn into other detective stories. Agatha Christie’s Poirot, Satyajit Rai’s Feluda, and another Bengali writer’s (i forgot his name) Byomkesh Bakshi were all part of my life at that time.
I then read Ruskin Bond, C.S.Lewis, Harry Potter, Paulo Coelho. C.S.Lewis, in my opinion, is the best out of the lot. Though, Harry Potter is more popular among kids. Harry Potter is also quite decent and I would recommend it highly to all people of all age groups. But I never really loved it. Of course, I enjoyed it but, in my opinion, it lacks some thing... In any case, its a great book for all age groups, especially children.
Looking into the books my father had bought for himself over the years, I also discovered Edgar Alen Poe and Erle Stanley Gardener and some lesser known authors. Perry Mason was also one of my favourites at this time.
After being convinced by my sister, I started reading classics too. Charles Dickens’ ’’David Copperfield’’, ’’Great Expectations’’, ’’Christmas Carol’’ ’’A Tale of Two Cities’’ were some of the good books I read at this time. I also read ’’Little Men’’ and ’’Little Women’’ and liked them.
Then I started William Shakesphere’s stuff. ’’Julius Ceaser’’ and ’’Hamlet’’ being my favourites.
And then gradually started reading novels by Jeffrey Archer, Jack Higgins and that type. Of course, they weren’t as high in my lists as JRR Tolkien and P.G. Wodehouse.
So rating all these books in the order in which I would have liked to have read it as a child -
1. Enid Blyton
2. C.S.Lewis
3. Harry Potter
4. The Hobbit
5. Robin Hood
6. Comics
7. Detective Stories (Holmes, Poirot)
8. Ruskin Bond
9. Lord Of The Rings