The tag was started by Jen Campbell. For a lot of these books I will twisting the "place" part of this tag to mean the place I was at in life, what sort of things I was going through which made them so special to me and with the others it will be literal places.
1. George's Marvelous Medicine - Roald Dahl
This is the first book I ever read, start to finish by myself and it started me off on my love of Roald Dahl! I remember reading this at my Nana's house in the summer holidays sat in her garden by the pond. She had to check on me a few times as she said that it made her "nervous" when I was quiet :) it was one of the best summers of my life and I felt so proud when I finished it. It was the book that made me realise I wanted to be a writer when I was older and from then onward I saved all my pocket money and would only ever spend it on books or stationary!
2. The Suitcase Kid - Jacqueline Wilson
I remember reading this when I was 9 or 10. It's a charming little story about a girl whose parents are divorced, she spends one week with her mum and one with her dad and all she wants is to go back to the place they all lived together. My parents weren't divorced but I did feel like I could relate to this book - It was the first book I'd read that dealt with hard subjects, of course some children's fantasy books deal with hard topics but this one was realistic, something thousands/millions of children deal with on a daily basis. I loved reading this book it wasn't patronizing it was just very real and it was a great comfort to me, even though I wasn't dealing with the same situation it still helped me a lot. This was the first Jacqueline Wilson book I ever read but it certainly wasn't the last.
3. Holes - Louis Sachar
We had to read this for English my first year of High School so I'd have been about 11 or 12. This is the only required reading I actually enjoyed! The story itself isn't overly remarkable but it was funny and interesting and just what I needed at the time. I'd gone from a Primary School where I had loads of friends to a High School where I knew no-one and I really loved this book because I could relate to how he felt a little hard done to and a little out of his depth. I remember sitting in the classroom thinking how I was also out of my depth and really struggling to grasp onto anything to give me a bit of hope that there was light at the end of the tunnel.
4. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
We skip forward a few years now to the Winter of 2005 when I'm nearly 16. My Mum and Dad had taken me to the Village where the Bronte sisters had lived a few months before a place we'd gone a few times as kids but I didn't really appreciate it till that year. My mum brought me a copy of Jane Eyre and got herself a copy of Wuthering Heights (her favorite Bronte novel). That winter I devoured Jane Eyre, in my bedroom I had a cabin bed which had a pull out desk, me and my brother used to pull the draw out and crawl underneath (so we were hidden) with a torch and a book and just read in this little den.I used to love reading this one in our den it felt like it was just and Jane and I could relate to her in so many ways. Sadly when I was nearly finished with Jane Eyre my dad passed away and this book was so powerful for me that it really helped me handle things better than I think I would have done without it. Jane Eyre is the only book I own more than 2 copies of and it holds a special place in my heart and always will.
5. Guilt - Hillary Norman
I found this book in a bargain book shop at the seaside one holiday. This was the first thriller I ever read and I loved it! I was so captivated by the darkness and mystery of it that I couldn't put it down, I remember taking it upstairs to read and being so curious about what would happen next that I stopped half way up the stairs and read it there and then. It is not a very well known book but I really recommend it to anyone who loves a dark story.
6. Change of Heart - Jodi Picoult
This was the first Jodi Picoult book I ever read and started me on a bit of a Picoult phase. I remember many a lunch break spent reading this book. In my first job I was left alone a lot while everyone else was in meetings and there were no shops nearby so I always read a lot and I think this one only took me a couple of lunch break sittings. This book always reminds me of my first job and how far I've come since then.
7. Wicked - Gregory Maguire
This book reminds me of summers getting home from work, setting myself up in the garden and just reading for hours! I really loved this book at the time and it quickly became a favourite. I haven't read it again since the first time but I'm thinking of refreshing myself this year if I get chance.
8. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman
I picked this one up when I was in a bit of a dark place emotionally and this book really helped pull me round. I loved the concepts and the lyrical language I felt like I was a part of the world Gaiman was describing and I never wanted to leave. This book is another book that pulled me out of a dark time and I still think about it today.
9. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
At the risk of sounding a little repetitive this is another book that pulled me through a difficult time in my life. I remember summer days finding a quiet place away from everything and everyone being consumed by this book. I have re-read it a couple of times since and I just love it so much I can really relate to a lot of the characters in the book.
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