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glassortwo Thu 03-Jul-14 19:43:30

My favourite childhood books were Enid Blyton The Circus series, it came at a time in my childhood where the idea of running away with the circus was very desirable.

Purpledaffodil Thu 03-Jul-14 19:25:25

Five children and It. By E Nesbit. I loved her stories and didn't realize until I was grown up that they were Edwardian. I also enjoy rereading her books now which is a sign of a good children's book I believe.

lucid Thu 03-Jul-14 14:28:15

I read lots of Enid Blyton books but my very favourite was 'Brer Rabbit'. I loved the stories - especially Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby. I loved the way that Brer Rabbit outsmarted Brer Fox.

Greenfinch Thu 03-Jul-14 14:18:33

I didn't have a favourite book but my daughter's was "Dogger" by Shirley Hughes and it was published in 1977 a year before she was born .It is about a boy and his stuffed dog which gets lost. It shows how much the loss of a toy can mean to a child and was relevant to my daughter because her favourite toy was a dog which also got lost.

Galen Thu 03-Jul-14 14:05:02

The Bi le. It had lots of words I didn't understand in it , like begat and harlot!

annodomini Thu 03-Jul-14 13:47:49

Orlando the Marmalade Cat by Kathleen Hale. There was a series all of which were beautifully illustrated and I named my first ginger cat Orlando.

MiniMouse Thu 03-Jul-14 13:39:24

"I Capture the Castle" by Dodie Smith. I loved the idea of such an eccentric lifestyle and how Cassandra matures. Still haven't managed to achieve it myself - work in progress . . . I named our cat after Cassandra! "Wise young judge", still resonates with me.

LucyGransnet (GNHQ) Thu 03-Jul-14 13:01:12

Me and my granny (book giveaway)

Being the granddaughter of a successful author isn't always easy, as Ottilie Kark knows. Through her grandmother, Nina, Ottilie enjoyed a privileged look into the world of publishing, and saw the on-screen creation of Nina's most famous book - Carrie's War.

Ottillie Kark

Me and my granny

Posted on: Thu 03-Jul-14 13:01:12

(257 comments )

Lead photo

Nina and Ottilie on a family holiday.

My granny, Nina Bawden, and I were not always close. When I was six years old I lived with my grandparents in their Islington home while my mother was on tour as a stage manager in Australia and Japan for six months. As I was so close to my mother, being abandoned and left to live with my grandparents made me a very angry little girl.

My granddad would spoil me rotten but my granny was strict and made me brush my teeth and hair. After one big row I stormed upstairs, stomping on each step as I went. I got to my room, which was the very top room, slammed the door and wrote in the biggest writing I could ever do, "Granny is a pig!". I stuck it on my bedroom door and slammed the door extra hard.

A few moments later, granny came up and stood outside my room laughing. I said in a very cross little voice, "What you laughing at?". She then pointed out that the sign I had written actually said "Granny is a pag". Not pig! We laughed a lot about this small mistake and from that moment on we became closer and we started writing a book together called "Granny the Pag". I was very lucky to be so close to my granny in her later years. We only lived twenty minutes away and I would see her nearly every weekend and talk to her every day.

Growing up with an author as a granny you get the privilege, but also the embarrassment, of having them asked to come into your school to talk to your classmates.


Growing up with an author as a granny you get the privilege, but also the embarrassment, of having them asked to come into your school to talk to your classmates. Everyone used to find it exciting that I was related to someone famous, but I would find it embarrassing when she would tell stories about me in assembly... Though looking back on this, it was rather cool! It meant that I was lucky enough to be part of book launches, press nights and, very excitingly, I was able to see the filming of Carrie’s War.

When my mother was growing up she went with my grandparents to see the filming of the 1974 television series and then in 2004 me, my granny and her evacuation friend Jean went to see the filming of the latest version. It was wonderful to be able to see the process and to feel part of this really amazing story has not only lasted for generations, but is also part of my own family history. For Jean and granny to revisit one of the places they were evacuated to, is something I am so pleased to have shared with them.

From Charlotte’s Web to Goodnight Mister Tom, Watership Down to Tarka the Otter, we have a full set of Puffin's 20 beautiful A Puffin Book children's stories to give away, as well as five individual books, all with newly designed covers and previously unseen extras. To enter into the draw, just let us know your favourite childhood books below. Giveaway will end on the 15 July at 5.30pm.

By Ottillie Kark

Twitter: @PuffinBooks