1. The Hobbit
So,
this is more of a memory of a particular time it was read. It wasn’t me reading
it. When I was a kid, I’m going to say about 8, 9 years old, my mother read the
Hobbit to my sister and me. She was like 5 or 6. I think my mother decided that
it was time we learned about the world of the Hobbit and Middle Earth, so she
read it to us. I just remember lying in a warm bed or on a warm sofa and my
mother reading about Bilbo going on adventure and fight dragons. I think she
went onto the Lord of the Rings, but we were a bit too young. I have read it
twice after that, and I love the movie, cause I’m a die hard Tolkien-fan.
2. Harry Potter and the
Philosopher’s stone
The first
Harry Potter book came out in Norwegian when I was 11-12. I was lucky enough to
have a mother who just would buy me books and then look at me until I started
reading it. So, I did that. It is a blessing to have a book-loving parent. I
read this book quickly. It’s the first book I remember reading for so long that
I suddenly looked up and realized it was three in the morning. And then I did
that the next night as well. I was just drawn in and just read it through and
I’ve read it a lot.
3. Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows
Yes, I
think we need to add the last Harry Potter book too, because the series was
such a huge part of my childhood and teen years. I waited excitedly for it. My
mother bought it, my sister took it, and because I got annoyed and didn’t want
to wait I went and bought it, cause that’s what I do. I just, I love it. I
cried and almost threw it on the floor, or grass. I read it in a day. My mom
and dad had a hammock in the garden, it was sunny, I spent an entire day in the
hammock/on our trampoline, and I read the whole thing. My parents pretty much
got nothing out of my sister and me that day.
4. A Memory of Light

Other
than Harry Potter the book series that dominated my teen years was Wheel of
Time, again, mom. She gave me the first book for Christmas one year. And it
took a while before I read it. We were going somewhere on vacation, it was a
big book, I brought it. And I was pulled in and then that book series became
the biggest book series in my life. Yeah, I’ve waited forever for the last
book. When Robert Jordan died I had a moment of extreme self-pity, thinking
what am I going to do now? Then Brandon Sanderson came and fixed it. He’s
awesome. I just wanted to know how it ended. I wanted to know what happened. I
wanted to know how Rand would save the world. I wanted to know everything, and
I was pleased. I was happy with things, I cried about other things, and I think
it was a fitting ending. I’ll have to reread the whole series, but they’re all
big and it’ll take forever, so it’ll wait. But yeah, just the waiting, and the
thinking about it and discussing it with my sister, loved it.
5. To Kill a Mockingbird
There’s
nothing particularly special about how I read it, how I read it? I don’t know
how to make sentences when I’m tired. There was nothing special about the
circumstances under which I read this book. I just wanted to read it, cause
it’s a classic. And I didn’t expect to love it so much, and I still don’t know
why I just went into a haze and thought, I want this book more than anything.
It’s amazing.
6. Matilda
When I
was a kid this was my favourite book. Before I became insane and brought an
entire library with me on vacation I didn’t think far enough into the future to
bring more than one book on a two-week vacation. I also wasn’t fluent in
English at the time (I think I was 8) so I couldn’t just buy another book in
France (which is where I was). Therefore, because I’m weird, I read Matilda
again and again that vacation. I think I read it four times. It’s by far the
most obsessive and weirdest things I’ve ever done. Once I read it in two days.
I have since learned and now overcompensate and I bring an entire library with
me on vacation. I still love Matilda, so it didn’t hurt me to read it four
times in two weeks.
7. Kushiel’s Dart
This
isn’t so much about reading the book, although I do love that part, because I
love that book. When I read it I thought: “my friend is going to love this
book,” so for Christmas I gave her three books I loved reading that year,
because I’m awesome. I’ve continued this, and did the same for her next
birthday. I gave her Kushiel’s Dart and two other books. And I love the fact
that when she saw me next she basically told me it was awesome. And we could
talk about it and gush about it. It’s a spectacular book, it’s beautiful, and
wonderful, and I love that I can share it with my best friend.
8. Are Kalvø

Okay, so
this is a sort of long explanation. Are Kalvø is a Norwegian writer. Yes,
that’s his name, it’s pronounced differently from the English word 'are'. He is also
a comedian/actor/journalist, and he writes books, non-fiction mostly. They’re
hilarious, because he is. The reason I am telling you this is because of a
football game. In 1998 Norway played Brazil in the World Cup, and Norway won,
2-1. Which is amazing, Norway, as an entity, went crazy. Now, Are Kalvø thought
it was a good idea to write an opera about that. And uh, we went to see that,
and for some reason he was there, I don’t know why exactly, it wasn't opening night, or any other particularly special night. I have a sort of
weird worship-y relationship to this man. I want his brain. Anyways, he was
there, and I got his autograph, and he was funny an awesome! And that is good.
I think it’s scary/worrying to meet your heroes, because they could disappoint
you, and I only talked to him for like, say 2 minutes, which was probably a
good thing. He couldn’t disappoint, all he did was be awesome. And I love his
books. And meeting him was amazing, even, or maybe especially, since it wasn’t
in like a book-related event.