As a countdown to our 1st ReaderCon, I'm joining the other Pinoy bloggers in doing this Filipino Friday meme. Every Friday, we're asked to share our answers on different questions, and this week, we're revealing who/what influenced us to read.
I grew up surrounded by books. My mom used to be an English teacher at an all-girls school along Katipunan and she taught me to read at an early age. When I graduated from picture books, my mom would buy me the Ladybird editions of Greek myths and classics like The Wind in the Willows and The Last of the Mohicans. When I was in first grade, she bought me my first Nancy Drew books, a collection which I cannot part with now. Her youngest sister was the one who encouraged me to appreciate literature. Some of my earliest memories are of my aunt reading The Little Prince, Hope for the Flowers, and To Kill a Mockingbird out loud to me (I was about eight or nine when we took on that last book). We still have the battered copies of the first two books, which bear a lot of my doodles. The copy of the Harper Lee classic was eventually lost and replaced, but I recall quite clearly how much I wanted to be Scout and Jem's friend.
My mom and my aunt were very patient with me as they helped me understand what I was reading and appreciate each book. What's funny is that as I write this I realize I don't recall ever thanking them for this amazing gift. I really can't imagine my life without reading and it's all thanks to them. Reading takes me to lives I would never have, places I haven't seen. It makes me see, page by page, how rich the world is.
The ReaderCon is presented together with Vibal Publishing House, Inc, and sponsors Primetrade Asia, Flipside Digital Content, and Scholastic.
10 comments:
When I was writing my answer to this meme, I was trying to remember what edition the classics my mom bought for us too. We had the same ones - the Ladybird Editions.:)
You're lucky you still have that Nancy Drew collection and those other books. I think all of the books I enjoyed during my childhood are all gone now.:(
Do you still see the Ladybird Editions around? I felt a real rush of nostalgia while I was trying to recall the stuff I had -- I think I had two volumes of Aesop's Fables! I still have the Nancy Drew books, but I haven't seen the earlier stuff around. They must be in such a sorry state now. :(
Nope, I don't think I've seen any Ladybird Editions lately - or maybe I just haven't been looking closely? I know what you mean, after reading through some posts, I suddenly remembered those other books that I really enjoyed back then.
How are your Nancy Drew books holding up? Have you tried reading them again?
I think those old bookshelves are in the maids' rooms... haven't checked in a long time! My next two sisters read the Sweet Valley series but I don't remember them picking up my older books. CJ's the only other bookworm in the family but then there were 17 years between us so those old books were really set aside. But the Nancy Drew stuff are still golden! I read a Nancy Drew-Hardy Boys nonfiction piece last year that got me unearthing my old titles. :P
Are these the Nancy Drew hardcovers? Because, yay! I think I kept a tattered Secret of the Old Clock and gave away the rest.
Yup, Mina, I have the hardcover editions, but my collection's missing about 10-12 titles, including Secret of the Old Clock! :D I followed it until the Case Files editions. I really have a soft spot for Nancy Drew mysteries that I even played a lot of the PC games when I was in college!
You know what, I still had a collection of those Ladybird children's books until last year! When I discovered them, I passed them on to my inaanak because he loves to read. I think my mom got a little mad that I did that because she wanted to save them for her own grandkids. Um, not going to happen anytime soon, Mom. LOL. The Ladybird books are still available in local bookstores because I remember I bought a bunch of those (also for my inaanak) recently.
Haha, that's great news, Chachic -- not like I have any kids of my own to buy these Ladybird Editions for either! :P
Question: IF you had kids, what would you pass on?
There was a time when I wanted to collect the Nancy Drew books, too, but I thought I'd save the allowance for SD titles. Haha. I gave away those Nancy Drew books already for more shelf space. :)
Oh so many! My old favorites, of course. Dr. Seuss, Ladybird Classics, children's editions of fairy tales and some of those Batibot books. There are also some great children's books available in local bookstores now that have both English and Tagalog text. And then I'll move on to Newbery books when the kid gets older. :P
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