|
Alex's Trip's thread reminded me of this book I read when I was younger, one that has for some reason remained far more prominent in my memory than most of the other books I read (and I was a serious book geek even as a kid).
I read "The Thief of Always" by Clive Barker when I was about ten or so, and to this day I am entranced by that book. It's fantastically entertaining, yet touches upon concepts far more complex than you'd find in any children's book.
Many of you have probably read it, so I won't give a tedious account. Essentially it's about this young boy who, bored one rainy day, wishes for some fun, and is magically escorted to another dimension of reality. He is taken to live, amongst two other children, in this magical 'holiday house' where each day encompasses all four seasons of the year, and he can have anything his heart desires. He then finds out (after discovering that age-old lesson of having too much of a good thing) that the power behind Holiday House is evil, and attempts to thwart it.
ANYWAY
I can read this book even now, and still be mesmerized by it. I'm not even sure there was anything THAT extraordinary about it; it just, for some inexplicable reason, will be burned into my memory for ages to come.
What books did you read as a child that particularly affected you?
|