Illustrated by Steve Wood
Published by uclanpublishing
Welcome to my stop on the Blog Tour for Unicorns in Uniforms: Dragon Inferno, the start of an exciting new illustrated chapter book series for younger readers of 5+ who will love learning about the work of the emergency services through this magical world of unicorns, dragons and witches. You can read my review here.
Today, I’m excited to share a post from author, Tracy Curran, talking about the books or authors that influenced her as a child.
Five Books or Authors that influenced
me as a Child …
Tracy Curran
Spot by Eric Hill
I was so young when my mum read these books to me and I just remember them
being completely joyful to read. Lots of them were interactive, with flaps to lift and
great page turns. Spot was my first introduction to a loveable and relatable character,
while his friends, Helen the hippo and Tom (I think) the crocodile, felt exciting. The
storylines were simple but reflected my own life at the time: making friends, going to
playgroup and finding lost things.
The Magic Faraway Tree and The Famous Five by Enid Blyton
I remember my Year 5 teacher throwing scorn on Enid Blyton books but, even though
they are very dated in their attitudes now, it was her books that I truly fell in love with
as a child. The Magic Faraway Tree is my all-time favourite series ever and, for me,
nothing has ever rivalled the unique characters and the immersive world-building. I
genuinely felt that Moonface and Silky were my friends and spent hours dreaming
about visiting the Land of Goodies or sliding down the slippery-slip.
As I got older, I discovered a love of adventurous mysteries and devoured The
Famous Five series. I was incredibly close to my cousins when I was growing up and,
as we spent the school holidays together in Cornwall, these characters really resonated
with me. My cousins and I would have adventures by day and curl up with the books
at night, before diving into a midnight feast!
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S Lewis
I still have my child boxset of this series but, as well as reading the books, I was a big fan
of the BBC TV adaptation. As with most people, I found The Lion, The Witch and The
Wardrobe the most iconic, with the White Witch and her Turkish delight but I also loved
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair. I read all of the books with my
mum, except perhaps The Horse and His Boy, and I was aware of some of the analogies
that existed between the stories and The Bible. Having said that, I think The Last Battle
went over my head and I’d like to re-read it one day.
The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy
I couldn’t decide whether to include The Worst Witch or Stig of the Dump by Clive
King here but, although they were both iconic reads, I think The Worst Witch had a
bigger lasting impact on me. In fact, I recently read the original book again and loved
it as much as when I was in primary school. Mildred and Miss Hardbroom were
iconic characters for me – a girl who didn’t quite fit in and kept on getting things
wrong versus a strict and severe teacher. Mildred was a loveable ally and made me
feel better if I messed up. The animals also added an extra layer of fun and delight.
The atmospheric setting and descriptions definitely inspired my love of witch stories.
The Classics: A Little Princess, Heidi and Pollyanna
I often attribute my love of reading to my dad but I actually owe a big thanks to my
mum for reading the classics (and lots of other stories) to me. I’d forgotten how much
we actually read together and she opened my eyes to a lot of stories that I probably
wouldn’t have managed to read by myself. The ones which have particularly stayed
with me are A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Heidi by Johanna Spyri
and Pollyanna by Elenor H. Porter. All of these are wonderful stories and the three
heroines – who each go through some very tough times – greatly influenced my
outlook on life. Their strength, outlook and positivity really struck a chord with me
and I still sometimes find myself playing Pollyanna’s ‘Glad Game’ or finding ways to
talk myself through difficult situations like Sara. Also, the descriptions of the Alps and
the thick slabs of cheese and creamy goat’s milk in Heidi are just dreamy.
Thank you so much to Tracy for sharing her favourite books and authors that influenced her as a child.
Do check out the other stops on the Blog Tour:
Book Craic 