Hype or Like Friday: Books That Made Me Want To Read

Hype or Like Friday is a meme created by Larkin, Britt and Jill . Check out the Goodreads group to know more about it and stay up to date with the weekly discussions and book of the month.

September 16th- Books That Made Me Want To Read– Think about what books you read while you were in school that made you want to read. Maybe you were an English Lit major in college because you fell in love with Shakespeare or Jane Austen.

Let’s walk down memory lane today!

My love story with books started in elementary school, 20 years ago *coughs, almost dies at the realization of so many years gone*

Daniel Pennac’s Kamo series taught me how to escape reality with books. I was seven when I read it for the first time. Suddenly, there was a door open just for me, leading to a world created by words and pages, familiar enough not to scare me, but different enough from real life so that I would forget everything and dive into Kamo’s adventures. I learned the magic power of books with a little boy. When I finished the series, I asked for a card to the town library, and I never stopped reading.

But I did not know where books just how far books could take me yet…

Can you guess which stories are hiding behind those weird French titles?

At 9, we were asked to choose a series and write the summary of a story every week for three months. I picked la collection Chair de Poule.

You know those books under their original name: Goosebumps! But in that case, the French edition will always be my favorite. It smells like home, rainy nights reading alone, and sweets. I remember standing in front of the display, my finger tracing the line of the series. So many books! This was when I realized I was in for dozens of hours of reading. I wanted them all. Other kids wanted Pokemon, I wanted scary stories. Goosebumps showed me there was no limits when it came to book.

How can I write a post about books that made me want to read without mentioning Harry Potter? I received The Prisoner of Azkaban first, when I was at the hospital after I got my appendix removed (yes, details are important!) My aunt did not know it was a series, but it did not prevent me from falling for Rowling’s magical world. And take a look at those covers! They are so cute!

Just like Goosebumps, Harry Potter remains a very French memory, from the way I pronounce names to how I watch the movies. This is the second and last exception to my All English All The Time rule. Harry Potter is a 100% British, but I just can’t connect to the story the same way when I read it in its original language. Even I find it very weird. Hogwarts will always be Poudlard to me!

When I started junior high school, I found two authors to help me go through hard times and remind me to never stop reading, despite the assigned reading I hated.

Two very different stories, indeed! 😀

I discovered Stephen King with The Girl You Loved Tom Gordon. I hated the book as much as I loved it. At the time, I really enjoyed being scared, but I still had trouble sleeping after reading it!

Meg Cabot introduced me to my best friend Mia Thermopolis. I bought the first Princess Diary during a vacation in Cannes, when I was feeling lonely even though I was surrounded by family.

I have reread those stories and many others from both authors many times, and they prevented me from getting jaded with reading when teachers were burying us under classics I hated. Who can enjoy their evenings reading La Fontaine’s Stories?

And finally, the book that spurred me to read more, forget about studies, work and chores to go back to my first love. I present you:

Yes, I know, I already declared my love for 1984 in last week’s post. But who’s counting the number of times this book gets mentioned? It’s never enough anyway!

With university and its hectic schedule, it was hard for me to find time to read anything else than manuals. The only reason I’m happy we were forced to take a weird class about books and arts is that the teacher chose to have us work on Orwell. Before I could say “Wow” my brain was recalling how good it felt to read. The familiar but forgotten feeling of freedom was back in my veins. I’ve read 54 books (and counting) in 2016. Because of 1984.

So no falling in love with Shakespeare for me. No big literature discovery that changed my world. My love for books comes from a hunger that has been fed since I was 7.

Which books did school put in your hands? Which books made you want to turn your living room/bedroom into a private library? Let me know!