My Favourite Stories and Books

08 Jun

Marjorie Day Uncategorized 21,760 0

In order to discuss my most beloved stories and books that have affected and inspired me throughout my life I would have to start as a child because I always have loved reading.

Fairy tales were my favourite thing at one point but mostly the old original Andersen and Grimm’s tales I found in my grandmother’s house which was filled with books. These fairy tales were really meant for adults when written and would not have been considered suitable today for kids. My eyes would grow big as I would read them and I was utterly intrigued.

Wolf stories and books such as those written by Joseph Lipincott and Jack London were my next passion. And The Adventure Series by the then popular Enid Blyton had me completely besotted. Those were tales of English children.

As a teen I had discovered a hidden copy of Lady Chatterley’s Lover in my mother’s dresser drawer. I secretly read it and later found another treasure, Fanny, hidden in the same place. After that I would try to find similar romantic and somewhat controversial novels at the library. I have to say that D.J. Lawrence was definitely an influence.

In my mid to later teens, high school novels had some influence, but I was getting into inspirational and self-help books as well. Although not religious per se I had a deep interest in spirituality, religion and mysticism so in my early twenties I read a lot of books on religion. I found romance to be a mystical experience.

I found the work of an English author by the name of Joan Grant who wrote fiction novels about reincarnation; former lifetimes which she believed to be her own. These were called her Far Memory Books. Winged Pharaoh and Eyes of Horus were 2 of them. I read all I could get my hands on. When I couldn’t find more, I was at the library one day and frustrated that I could not find any more of her books to buy or borrow when I went to the library shelf and randomly picked a book. It was by a Dr. Denys Kelsey. When I opened it up and read the dust jacket, I found that Denys Kelsey was a psychiatrist who had married an author called Joan Grant and he regressed her in hypnosis so that she could experience previous lifetimes and write about them. The name of the book was Many Lifetimes.

In a way, similarly, author Taylor Caldwell wrote many novels about previous lifetimes; one of my favourites was Dear and Glorious Physician. Most were quite far back in time in periods like Roman times and the time of Christ.

Later on, I read a number of British historical fiction novels, but probably my favourite authors were Catherine Cookson and Daphne DuMaurier.

Catherine Cookson’s novels were multitudinous and I read most of them. My favourites may have been The Rag Nymph, The Mallen Streak, The Tide of Life, Justice is a Woman and Fanny McBride. I would say that she influenced my writing as to style and content more than any other writer. Her stories were typically of poor innocent girls in 18^th century Britain who went through trials and tribulations in life but generally came out fine in the end, improving their lot and finding happiness.

Daphne DuMaurier’s novels were very mysterious in nature though not quite as numerous. My favourites were Rebecca and Frenchman’s Creek and Jamaica Inn. It is said that her novels had an overtone of the paranormal. I do like to include mystery and the paranormal in my writing so perhaps on a subconscious level she influenced me in this way.

In more recent years I have come to appreciate the work of Ruth Rendell, a British writer who writes in approximately the 1930’s to 50’s time period in Britain. Her books are written through the viewpoint and experience of constables in small town rural England. They are murder mysteries and are quite suspenseful without being too graphic in their descriptions of any grisly discoveries which is to my liking. Her novels include amusing situations, lots of colloquial expressions and descriptions of day to day life. Some titles I enjoyed are End in Tears, Road Rage and Adam and Eve and Pinch Me.

Another murder mystery author I loved was Maureen Jennings who wrote about old Toronto and whose books have been made into the TV series’ Murdoch. Two novels of the several I read are Does Your Mother Know? and Let Loose the Dogs.

I have to mention one author who I discovered – Jane Goodger who is seemingly a standard romance novelist featuring standard type novel titles and cover artwork. But I was astounded by the quality of her writing! This woman is talented. I believe it was the novel Anything for Love that most impressed me. She also wrote Dancing with Sin. Did I ever enjoy her writing!

Now to come to an amazing author that is current and well-known and who is one of my absolute favourites. The wonderful Diana Gabaldon with her Outlander group of books which are now being televised as the Outlander series. My favourite one is probably Dragonfly in Amber. She is brilliant, talented and her historical research is astounding. Very large, long books, most of them exceed 800 pages. Her main theme is that of time travel. And it is very believable in the context of her writing.

I would be remiss if I did not mention Dan Brown’s book, The Da Vinci Code. I was totally enthralled with this book and believed the whole premise when I was in the throes of reading. I found the movie disappointing. I think this is a case where it is difficult to impossible to translate a book into a movie.

Catherine Cookson’s books were successfully translated to film as were Daphne DuMaurier’s and Maureen Jennings’s. I am a huge classic movie fan and I always think of books in terms of movies. I think so much so that while writing my book, The Belle of Collingwood, I, in a sense, was also writing a movie script.

In closing, I would like to mention my love of the works of Charles Dickens. I love the time period he writes about and the voice and tone. The 1700’s to me is fascinating historically and in the day to day lifestyle of the period. There were some wonderful things and some awful things about it and like in the story of Oliver Twist, it makes fascinating reading. And the work of Dickens translates beautifully to the stage or the screen.

My Favourite Stories and Books

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