Growing up, I was surrounded by books, by writers. My parents not only read to me but were (and are) avid readers. It made sense that I followed their lead. Even as a kid, I had my favourite authors; some of them are still inspirations today:
Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was an early favourite. His books introduced me to simple words, rhyme & rhythm, and nonsense, too. Green Eggs & Ham remains one of my favourite books; I read it to Kiddo so often that I made a video for her of my reading. I also remain a huge fan of Horton Hears a Who with it’s message of personhood for kids, “A person’s a person, no matter how small.” That Seuss was able to wrap some subversive messages in rather silly packaging is the reason he’s high on my list.
Enid Blyton‘s Magic Wishing Chair books inspired me to write my first fan fiction. In grade one, I penned my own Magic Wishing Chair adventure. I still have that story. Unfortunately, the Wishing Chair books are squarely aimed at a young audience and really aren’t an enjoyable read as an adult but I am still thankful for the inspiration.
Donald J. Sobol introduced me to mysteries, sleuthing and even forensics through the Encyclopedia Brown series. Sobol is still writing at age 87; the 26th book int he series was released last year. From Encyclopedia Brown, I moved on to Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew and, eventually, to adult series like the Kay Scarpetta novels by Patricia Cornwell. Sobol’s gift to me was the understanding that a reader who pays attention can find clues and answers throughout a story.
Roald Dahl added some darkness and depth to my world and when I rediscovered his work through his (very dark) short stories as an adult, I began to re-read his children’s books. I found that there were plenty of dark corners in the kids’ stories, too, from the fate of the other children touring Wonka’s Chocoalte Factory to James’ child abuse at the hands of his aunts before the Giant Peach comes along. His works may well have been the first to really influence my love of the macabre. If you haven’t read his adult fiction, a good place to start is Skin And Other Stories
If you’d like to learn more about or buy any of the kids’ books I’ve mentioned here, I’ve built a section of our Amazon Store for Childrens’ Classics that includes these and many other children’s books I love; there’s a growing teen and young adult section, too. If you do buy from there, Mike and I get a small kickback.
Photo credit, “Dr Seuss – 1970” by Sarah Kennon.