top ten tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Wish I Had Read As A Child

This week I’ve decided to take part in ‘Top Ten Tuesday’ again hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s topic is ‘books I wish I had read as a child’. I’m going to slightly expand this list to include books I wish had read as a teenager and as a child!

The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan

I know, I know, it’s kind of a reading sin that I haven’t finished this series yet! I think I read the first two books and I remember enjoying them but I’m not sure why I never carried on with the rest of the series! I definitely want to read this whole series and I’m sure I’ll enjoy it, but I wish I had read them as a kid when everyone else did so I could join in discussions and also have that experience as a child.

The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave

I was so excited for this book last year and even preorded a signed edition because I was that confident I was going to love it – and then I didn’t and I know exactly why this was a disappointing read for me. As I’ve got older my reading tastes have changed and all the things I wanted this novel to be about were glossed over or rushed through, and all the things I would have loved reading at 13 or 14 were heavily focused on. So I wish I had read this as a young teenager – I’m sure it would have been one of my favourites!

The Selection by Kiera Cass

I can’t remember how old I was exactly when I read this, I think I may have been sixteen but even then I remember hating it. It was so cheesy and I hated the protagonist – especially her name, god it’s so stupid! I was left feeling really disappointed because everyone else seemed to love it, and I know if I had read this when I was 12 during the final days of my Twilight phase I would have adored this too.

To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

I read this when I was 19 and it just wasn’t for me. I didn’t really enjoy any of the characters or the cheesy plot line. However, I know if I had read this when I was about 14 or 15 I probably would have loved it. It had cute romances and love interests YA readers seem to go crazy over, and as a young teenager I probably would have felt the same way.

Magyk by Angie Sage

Okay so this is a little embarrassing, but I only picked this book up because when I was eleven the guy I fancied loved this series so I read the first book. It’s a bit cringy looking back but oh well. The truth is though I really enjoyed the first book in the series and I wish I had carried on with the rest – I think I stopped reading when I realised he had a crush on a different girl. I’m not sure whether or not I should try the rest of the series or not or let this book be a distant memory of schoolyard heartbreak.

Are there any books here you guys wish you would have read as a child? Or have any of your ever read a book for a crush like me? (Be honest!)

26 thoughts on “Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Wish I Had Read As A Child”

  2. Aw, I love your story about the last book. You’re not alone! I read Sugar Isn’t Everything in elementary because I overheard the librarian recommending it to my crush, who had just been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Unsure if he ever read it, since it was about a girl, but I sure did. Learned everything I needed to know about diabetes, which only made me swoon over the guy and what he had to put up with more*, and actually thought it was such a great book that I’ve fondly remembered it ever since. Even held up to a reread as an adult (mostly).

    *by odd coincidence, my boyfriend also has type 1 diabetes. He did not read this book, alas.

    And while not based on a crush per se, there was a girl I thought was really cool in high school, and because I wanted to be like her/hopefully join in book discussion, I read Wicked and The Mists of Avalon. These were…very Adult books I was not ready for, to say the least. But I am kinda proud now that I tackled them.

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    1. haha wow those are some great stories! I’m glad I’m not alone in my misguided efforts as child to get someone to notice me! It’s sweet how all these years later there’s a connection between that and your boyfriends:)

      I haven’t read either of those but I bet that was somewhat of a nasty shock for you!

      Even though we sometimes read books for dubious reason, sometimes you’ve find really great books by doing that!

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  8. Great list! I definitely would’ve loved to read the TATBILB series in high school. I think it would’ve made such an impact on me as an Asian to have a story–a love story no less–be focused on someone who looks like me. I wish I Nevermoor had existed when I was a kid because I would’ve definitely loved to read that too 😀

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    1. thank you! I’m sorry you didn’t get to read it in high school, hopefully someday an author will give you a romance series you can enjoy for those reasons in your adult life! I haven’t read Nevermoor but that’s a good pick! I would still love to pick it up though:)

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  9. Oh man, I should have included Percy Jackson on my list this week. I read the first couple of them, but by the time they were published I was an adult and so wasn’t the target audience. I still enjoyed them, but I think I would have loved them (and devoured the whole series) if I’d read them as a kid or a young teen. Great list!

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    1. Thank you! I totally think they defy age ranges and target audiences, but also there’s no denying that reading them as kids would have been fun and far more engaging!

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