Top Ten Tuesday - Books I Wish I'd Read as a Child

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme for bloggers who like books and lists.  It's awesome and is graciously hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week the topic is a freebie so I thought I'd talk about the books I wish I had read as a kid.  I am always looking at the YA and kid's books of today and bemoaning what was available to me when I was under 18 back in the 70's and 80's.  I was in for a surprise though because as I made my list and did some research it turns out almost all of the books on my list were available to me as a kid.  Upon that realization, my first thought was what were my parents thinking?  They should have thrown all of these my way!  The answer however is that they were mostly letting me make my own choices so the only person to blame for my Sweet Valley High obsession is me.  Other favorites weren't so bad like Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary.  Still, it's sad I didn't experience any of the following as a kid:

First the books/Authors that were available during my childhood but which I never encountered.

1) Anne of Green Gables Series by L.M. Montgomery

I have read this series since but instead of reading it as a kid I was obsessed with the mini-series. 

2) Little House book by Laura Ingalls Wilder

This is another series where I was obsessed with the TV show but apparently made no effort to seek out the books.  I just read the first in this series last year.

3) Dianna Wynne Jones' books

I thought for sure most of her publishing was done after my childhood was over but in fact Howl's Moving Castle was published in 1986 when I was 13.  I have yet to read any of her books but it's high on my reading To Do list.

4) The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

I was never required to read this for school and most of what I hear about it these days is that it may not be as effective of a read for someone over 25.  I think I will still try to read it some day but will be bummed if I don't like it because I can't identify with Holden Caulfield.

5) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Despite the fact that as a teenager I really liked and sought out classic books, I am the only American woman who did not read this book as a kid.  I still haven't read it but its on my 100 Books Project list.

6) Roald Dahl's books

I've still never read anything by him even though I have really enjoyed all the movies made from his work especially Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder which I have seen upwards of twenty times. I have Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on my 2015 TBR.

7) Tamora Pierce's Books  

This is another author I assumed had started publishing after I was an adult but nope.  The first book in the Alanna series was published in 1983 when I was 10 years old.  I just read my first Tamora Pierce last year and oh how my younger self would have loved these adventures. 

8) Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

I have still not read this one but plan to at some point in the future.

The Books that came after I was old so I can feel less guilty about not having read them as a kid.

9) Gail Carson Levine's Books

It looks like Gail Carson Levine's career really started with the publication of Ella Enchanted in 1997.  I read this book within the last couple years and it was really amazing and I look forward to reading more books from her in the future.

10) The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

How jealous I am of the kids that got to grow up right along with Harry Potter!  You lucky dogs you!

Making this list was really quite cathartic!  There were a few on here I was embarrassed to reveal but now I can get over my shame and start to heal and read, ha ha!  One trend I noticed is that I was very fond of a number of these stories in other forms (Movies and TV) but apparently felt no desire to seek them out in their original form.  What can I say but shame on me!  I'm glad I'm older and "wiser";0)!

So do you have any books you regret you didn't experience as a child?