As many other bookworms I know I started obsessing about books right from my childhood. I can not remember how and when I started reading books in English, and as it is not my mother tongue the books that were available at home were very limited. This meant I had to make do with books that my much much older cousins had on their shelves.
Hey I am not complaining, because this actually led me to reading Pride and Prejudice, The tale of two cities, Oliver Twist and other classics before I turned a teen. And of course I loved them, but.
Yes, there is a but.
But this also meant I never got to read books that were meant to be as a middle grader or a teen. I know it is not a big deal and I may have not lost much. That is what I thought until I read a few of those middle grader books that everyone loved but me.
Five Books I Wish I Had Read As A Middle Grader
Let us talk about some of those books, shall we?
5. A Wrinkle in time by Madeleine L’Engle
I didn’t read this book until I turned 27, and that might be the reason that I didn’t enjoy it at all. I kinda tried to ignore the strong religious undertone and even then the plot was kinda over simplified, character super unrelatable and dialogue repetitive.
4. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume
When I started this book I never knew it was a middle grader book. Soon I was sucked into the period trouble and bigger bust goal of the twelve year old Margaret. I liked her relationship with God, but I was sad that I was not able to connect with the characters, again may be due to the age difference.
3. A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
I am yet to find a reader saying they don’t like this one. I had to read this before I could watch the Netflix version starred by Neil Harris Patrick. In fact I didn’t even know about the book before I saw the ad for the show. Of course, I liked it but it was obvious that I was not among the target audience. I loved the show though.
2. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
I was probably 25 and I enjoyed it enough to continue reading the series. I didn’t dislike it, rather it seemed to be again repetitive and sorta preachy. And that seems to be the theme for all the books of that age, I guess. Again I might have loved it if and when I was 8 – 10 years.
(Does anyone else think the Netflix version is too sad and less endearing?)
1. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Oh I love Little Women and I am not gonna complain about it. Except for the fact that if I had met the March sisters especially Jo and Laurie when I were a pre teen, they would have been my heroes. Well that didn’t happen and I hate that I missed it.
I am kinda sure I would have loved these book if I read them when I was supposed to have read them. While I didn’t hate them, I could not fall in love with them and that maybe attributed to my ‘older’ age. Sigh. Well, I tried right?
Do you have any such regrets related to your reading choices? When did you start reading? Tell me some books that you missed reading when you were younger and did you regret reading them now? Let us chat.
I have read all of those books!!!!!! AND THEY ARE ALL GREAT!!!!
Yay, you are awesome.
SAME. I mean, English is my first language (thanks, Singapore education system), but none of these were the books we grew up with. The only one of these books I’ve read is Little Women, and that’s because a friend was reading it and I borrowed it. Other than that, somehow I never ended up reading any of these others, and now I feel like I missed out on something.
I read them very recently and how I wish I had read when I was younger!
A Series of Unfortunate Events is one that I wish I had read when I was younger. The series is one I actually didn’t get to until around the time the movie came out.
I read that only before the series came out too.
I can totally relate to this post. I was never a reader since my childhood, as opposed to other bookworms so naturally, I have missed almost all the children and middle-grade classics. I am yet to read all these books mentioned here among many other popular ones.
It is alright, you have enough time to catch up!
Honestly I still haven’t read A Wrinkle in Time or any of the others except A Series of Unfortunate Events. I was very much a Percy Jackson and Harry Potter reader in my middle grade years. 😅
I keep forgetting Harry Potter was written for Middle graders.
The only one I haven’t read is Little Women. Which based on everyone’s comments I’ll have to read ASAP. But I love the rest of those books! Gotta say that Anne of Green Gables and Little House on the Prairie series were my favorite middle grade series 😉
I have not read Little House on the Prairie yet, and that is why I had not included that in my list.
Yes, I think reading A Wrinkle in Time might have felt very different reading it as a kid. I also didn’t like the religious undertones, but what can you do, the book was written a while ago. However, I am often able to just revert back to being a kid, so I guess that’s why I must have enjoyed it xD
I did like Anne of Green Gables though. I don’t know if it’s a kids book originally, is it? It just made me feel so good about everything. It’s such a calming book!
But I could not stand Little Women xD now THAT is a preachy book 😀
You have a gift, girl and I seriously envy that. Little women could be a bit preachy, no doubt.
Great post, I absolutely love middle-grade books now and I am in my mid-to late 30s but I totally understand why you don’t love middle grade books now and that is absolutely alright. Because not every readers are going to love the same books that I love, thank you so much for sharing your awesome post.
I wish I told these words to myself more often.
I’ve only read the first two, and both as a middle grader. Little Women is on my TBR list!
I hope you will get to read it soon.
Great books. I’ve read three of them.
I hope you enjoyed them better than I did.
Little Women is my favourite! I also loved Anne of Green Gables and all of Just Blume’s books were fab. I would still love to read A Wrinkle in Time too, watched the movie recently. My son is reading Lemony Snicket too, we loved the movie x
I loved the Netflix version of the Unfortunate event better than the book.
I really love Little Women. It was one I read by choice from a young age.
I wish I had read it sooner as well. I love it too.
Anne of Green Gables is amazing! I loved both the books and the tv series while it was on. Now Anne with an E is on netflix and my oldest can’t get enough of the series.
The Netflix version of Annie is too dark for my taste. But I am hooked.
I am sure I had to read Little Women in school, but I don’t seem to have a memory of it. I should read it again.
I definitely missed out on reading that at high school.
Oh goodness, I’m so sad you weren’t able to grow up with Little Women! I know for myself, it definitely helped give me someone to look up to in Jo
I love Jo as well. But I do regret not meeting her earlier.
I can relate with this post so much!
I started reading at the age of 7 and continued it ever since. Though, I mostly read local stories in my native language. I only started reading english books in my teen years 😅 Just like you, I wished I had read Anne of Green Gables and especially Little Women when I was in Mid Grade. It’s not like I can’t read it now but I think it’s just not my type of read right now.
Great post, Elgee! 🌸
I read books that were not MG then and I totally missed out these books.