Ernegirl Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Did you end up loving any of the set texts you had to read at school?I still cherish my copies of A Town Like Alice, To kill a Mockingbird, Jude the Obsecure and The Great Gatsby. I also loved The Splendid Journey, it was based on the true story of siblings whose parents died while they were migrating on the Oregon Trail. The reference to the Little House books on the 'what are you reading ' thread just reminded me about it.I have vague memories of other stories when I was a younger student. You often felt the book was going to be boring but you'd always be sucked into the story Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seayork2002 Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Hating Alison Ashley and Harp in the South Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolly_F Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Playing Beatie Bow - it’s one of my favourite books! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Girl Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Bridge to Terabitha, loved it, cry every time I read it. Plus Brother In the Land, gave me nightmares for months but it stuck with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Montana 1948 was really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darryl Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Of Mice and Men. It's never left me."I can still tend the rabbits, George? I didn't mean no harm, George." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seayork2002 Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 There lots of books I did not like as I kept on being told, on giving my opinion, that I was wrong 'no the author was not saying that but this' so I gave up.the one that stands out was To kill a mocking birdI am thankful in a way I never did Shakespeare as I don't think I would have got what I was meant to on thatI know why schools have to teach a certain way when it comes to books so not saying they were wrong it is just I did not interpret the books the way I was meant too which means I did not like them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaLittleEd Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Like [mention]Jolly_F[/mention] I loved Playing Beatie Bow.Also Tom Stoppard's Arcadia.Hated Heart of Darkness with a passion. Wasn't overly keen on To Kill a Mocking Bird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Rebecca and Blue Fin were my favourites in the younger high school years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaLittleEd Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Oh, I loved Goodnight Mr Tom. Wasn't a school book though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooguru Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 The three that stand out in my memory are:Fortress by Gabrielle Lord. Read it in one night, couldn't put it down. MacBeth I don't know if love is the right word but I appreciated it. The Lord of the Flies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seayork2002 Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 The three that stand out in my memory are:Fortress by Gabrielle Lord. Read it in one night, couldn't put it down. MacBeth I don't know if love is the right word but I appreciated it. The Lord of the Flies Yes that one also, I went to a talk with the author thanks to loving that one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Bicycle Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 The Cay by Theodore Taylor. It was the first book I had really " dissected" in class. It was a lovely warm tale with a sad ending but with hope. I am glad I read that book first before being subjected to Lord of the Flies 2 years later. ( similar story of a boy/ boys stranded on a deserted island). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bereckii Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Playing Beatie Bow - it’s one of my favourite books! LOVE LOVE LOVE!Absolutely devastated that my book-loving DD (who otherwise is always on the same page as me with book interests) was very "meh" about Playing Beatie Bow. Meh? How? Seriously, how?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hills Mum Bec Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Being forced to read a book usually meant I ended up hating it no matter how good the book was. There were a few that I really enjoyed - Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt (I read all the following books in the series because I loved it so much) & When The City Stopped by Joan Phipson, I think this was my introduction to my love of dystopian fiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twit Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 The one that had the most impact on me was The Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson. It was a real eye-opener as a 14yo and I couldn't put it down. I should read it again as an adult. I'm sure it wouldn't have the same impact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pigeonpairplusone Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Playing Beatie Bow was my favourite! I also loved Hating Alison Ashley, Bridge to Terabithia & The Outsiders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverstreak Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Playing Beatie Bow was a favourite, but we never did it at school. I did like Pride and Prejudice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fruitmincepies Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 The Merry-go-round In the Sea by Randolph StoweJane EyreLots of the poetry we did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Segundo Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 I loved Goodnight Mr Yom and Homecoming too. I had to reread an old favorite for a library assignment at Uni and it was such a disappointment. For me, Goognight Mr Tom didn't stand the test of time. I have other books from my teens which I still reread and enjoy. I think the emotion of GMT was greatly reduced because the situation wasn't shocking for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Bonny Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 I loved Playing Beattie Bow as well but never formally did it for school. It was featured in primary school library class, so I borrowed it.The one I studied in school which changed the way I thought about the world was Ursula Le Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea and thus began a major intellectual crush. She is one of those rare writers who is both a knife and a torch. A torch to shine a light in the dark corners we don't look at and a knife to cut to the heart of the matter. I became a lifelong fan and a bright star went out of the sky when she passed, for sure.The other author I discovered via school was a local author Thea Astley. We did an anthology of her short stories called Hunting The Wild Pineapple which were all themed around people, prejudice and the way the landscape and history impacts people in an endless feedback loop.. A Kindness Cup and The Multiple Effects of Rainshadow by her are also a great read. She is emotionally challenging though and very good at holding up a mirror to our ugliest truths so not the best escapist author. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feebi Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Two of my favourites that I read over and over again as a teen are:Playing Beatie Bow. I fell in love with the name Abigail after reading the book but exh would never agree to using it as a baby name.One more River - a Canadian Jewish girl's family move to Israel to live in a Kibbutz. The live on the border with Jordan???? And she falls in love with? Makes friends with a boy who lives over the border - they are separated by a river - must have been quite narrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daffy2016 Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Lots listed above that I loved but didn’t have to read at school.Probably the only ones I loved were To Kill a Mockingbird and Macbeth. My school was terrible at picking the most middle of the road books possible.Also didn’t like Playing Beatie Bow... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schnook Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Looking for Alibrandi and 1984 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaudiaCosette Posted April 27, 2021 Share Posted April 27, 2021 Oh, I did Looking for Alibrandi at school. I'd forgotten that (it's still on my bookshelf now). The Harp in the South and its sequel, Poor Man's Orange, stand out for me. And To Kill a Mockingbird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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