To Be or Not To Be… a Wizard or a Princess
"Me!? A princess!? Shut up!" - Amelia Mignonette Grimaldi Thermopolis Renaldo
If you started to find a passion for reading books as a young child, is it easy to pick just one favorite book series? I know that I have many that hold a special place in my heart, but for the blog’s sake (and for all of yours so that I don't ramble for too long), I will narrow it down to just two. Looking back and having these two series stand out the most to me as my favorite gives so much meaning and explanation to the books I currently obsess over. :)
The first series that will always be my favorite, will always hold a place in my heart, and that I will never grow out of is…. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. Who can honestly say that, if you read Harry Potter, it didn’t grasp your attention and make you fall into this imaginary world and wish it was true? I truly don’t remember how I first came to learn about this series, but the first time I read The Sorcerer’s Stone I fell in love with the wonderful world of magic. I dreamed of what house I would be in, who I would be friends with, and what magic I could learn. (Though I wished I would be in Gryffindor… when I took the quiz I was sorted into Ravenclaw. :) ) Each time there was a midnight book release at Barnes and Noble, my dad would take me to pick up the newest book in the series. This usually happened right around the time we would be leaving for vacation and I would have my new book and read it on the car ride to the beach. It holds such a special place in my heart sharing the excitement with my dad. I would be jumping in my seat on the drive to the store and then be eagerly waiting in the line to get my copy. I couldn’t wait to get home and immediately start reading. To this day, I can go back and read each book over and over again, to the point that my original hardback copies have very broken spines.
The second series that I could even to this day go back to and read over and over again is…The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot. Though Mia’s inner monologue and journal rambling would often sometimes have me rolling my eyes… or maybe that is just now because I am older (and I am hoping more mature, or as Lily would say "self-actualized'', LOL). The love story she found with Michael was so precious and endearing to me. To find your love at such a young age, to have growing pains through the relationship, and finding each other again at the other end? Who doesn’t want that in their own life? Add in being a princess - I definitely wanted to sign up!
Take us to today and I still love reading a happily ever after love story. Then throw in some magic? Who could ask for more!? Today’s favorite series (which I can most assuredly write a whole blog or many blogs about because I am so thoroughly obsessed with the Solarian world just like I was with the Harry Potter world) is The Zodiac Academy by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti. The Zodiac Academy has magic, royalty, many love stories…. and I cannot wait for the last book to see how it all comes together!! (Only 9 more months, right??)
Do you think that the series you currently love reflect what series stuck out most to you as a child? Please share! Tell me what series you read as a child and what you are reading now! Is there some parallel there like there is for me?
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