Published on 12, July, 2020
What books have subtley influence you, ones that you read as a child? For me it was Alan Garner's The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, as well as being a good adventure story, it introduced me to a whole world of folklore and what I call mystic Britain. You have the history of Britain and then you have the mystic history, the Britain of the things seen from the corner of the eye, the things that you know are there, that you can sense and feel, but can rarely see and other people think you're being daft for caring about. As well as all the strange rituals and folk customs around the country, the fertility dances of Morris Men, to the Hobby Horses and corn dollies. The pull of ancient sacred places, stone circles, holy wells, some very ancient churches, a whole sacred landscape that we're only just rediscovering through the use of such technology as LIDAR. Some customs that cross continenets and generations, throwing coins in a wishing well, these places have often been in use for thousands of years.
That one book set me on a journey thats still ongoing.
I loved Heidi as a child, I still have the book. I also loved later in my teens are you there God it's me Magreat.. I don't think it was popular in my house from memory? Also, there was other Judy Blume books. In my later childhood I loved Flowers in the Attiic. That was so popular in my school. Did anybody read that?
When I was in my late teens, there was a woman I babysat for who insisted I read her copy of 'Flowers in the Attic'. I remember I enjoyed it, but that is all I can remember as it was more than 30 years ago.
Yes, I seem to recall that 'Flowers in the Attic' was part of a series of books by Virginia Andrews. I'm sure that I've seen the film too.
The Flowers in the Attic was a complex book. There was a woman from memory who used to keep all her children locked up in the attic for years. There was a film i remember I recall as well, but as you wrote it was a so long ago as well. I usually stay away from fantasy, but a few books creeped in like that.