Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish back in June 2010. It is currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and, as is stated on the blog, it was “born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.”

Hello, readers!

I’ve been a pretty voracious reader since I was a child. I devoured books left and right! Between my brother and I, my parents must have spent a boatload on books to keep us entertained, heh. Although, I was much more of a re-reader when I was a kid. I would fixate on a book or series and just read them until they fell apart in my hands! Which means there are quite a few books from my childhood that I simply missed because I was too busy reading The Westing Game for the fifty-billionth time.

Which brings me to the topic of this week’s Top Ten Tuesday! This TTT is all about miss opportunities from the past. This list is comprised of books I wish I had read as a child. Let’s jump right in!

---

• Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl: I read quite a few Roald Dahl books when I was a kid, but I somehow missed this one. Probably because I was re-reading Matilda, The Witches, and The B.F.G. over and over again. I’ve always been a fan of the worlds crafted by Dahl and I’m sure I would have loved this book. It’s still on my TBR so… one day!
• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis: Okay, so, I have read the first book in this series, but I wished I had bothered finishing it. Honestly, I don’t think I even knew it was part of a series when I was younger. When I found out later in life, I remember noting the information and doing nothing with it, lol. I now own all the books and am planning to read them soon.

• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White: This was actually the first book I thought of when I saw the theme for this week’s TTT. I absolutely adored the movie this book inspired when I was a kid! I am ashamed to admit that I didn’t know there was a book until I was well into my twenties. I probably would have devoured this as a young girl if I had any inkling it existed. Still, I would like to read it at some point.
• The Giver by Lois Lowry: This is one of the books that I feel everyone else was made to read in school but never crossed my path. I’ve always been interested in the concept, though, and would like to read it eventually. I don’t think it’ll have the same impact on me as an adult as it would have back in the day. Still, I think it will be worth the read.

• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum: Here’s a fun fact about me: I hated the movie The Wizard of Oz when I was a kid. Absolutely detested it! Honestly, I’m still not a fan. So, even though I knew that the movie was based on a book, I refused to read it. Now, as an adult who tends to prefer books over the movie when it comes to adaptations, my curiosity has grown about this novel and the others that follow. Now I’m just intimidated by how many there are!
• Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie: I think this is another instance where I had no idea that the movie was inspired by a book. Though Peter Pan was never my favorite Disney movie, I did love the concept of a mysterious land where there was no adult supervision. And being able to fly sounded pretty alright, too! Again, this book will probably hit differently now that I’m an adult, but I still want to read it.

• The Neverending Story by Michael Ende: The Neverending Story was one of my favorite movies as a kid. And, yet again, I had no idea that it was based on a book! For a kid who read as much as I did, I was woefully ignorant of a lot of stuff out there. Still, I think I would enjoy this book as an adult, as well. I’m still a fan of whimsical tales and books within books is one of my favorite things!
• Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers: This is a book I actually knew about as a kid. I think my family may have even owned a copy of it. Yet I never read it. I don’t know why! I was probably on another Enchanted Forest binge and just forgot about this book entirely 😅 I would love to give this book a go, even if I may no longer be the target audience.

• A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin: I honestly don’t know how my fantasy loving younger self didn’t find this series. It sounds like it would have been right up my alley! Sorcerers and dragons and magic? Sounds amazing! Seeming as this was first published in the 60s, I do wonder how it has stood up to the test of time. Still, I do plan on at least reading this first book, hopefully sooner rather than later.
• The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander: This book is another one that I’m surprised I didn’t discover until recently. It’s a fantasy and it has a quest: young Kerri would have eaten this up. I didn’t discover the existence of this series until I was in my 30s, though. This is another one that was published in the 60s, but I’d still love to give it a go.

---

What books do you wish you had read as a child? Did you participate in this week’s Top Ten Tuesday? Let me know in the comments!

And, as always, happy reading!