A Meme for Me

(Did you ever notice how narcissistic the word meme looks?)

I’ve been tagged by Carla (who seems to read just about the same number of novels that I do) for a book character meme. I read lots of novels as a child and on into young adulthood. Then I had to quit, because once I started a novel, I felt compelled to read it until I finished it. Straight through, that is, without breaks. You can imagine what kind of a mother I was while I was reading a novel. 

True story: One day I found myself sitting on a rocker that I’d pulled into the kitchen next to the fridge so I could reach over without looking up from my page, open the fridge door, grab a snack, and toss it at whatever child needed my attention. That’s when I realised that I needed to give up novels while my children were young. Once I got out of the habit of reading novels, I just never went back to them.

I did read a lot of novels to my children, so if my choices of book characters seem childish to you, now you know why. 

Name three characters (from books)…

1). You wish were real so you could meet them.

• The mom in Little House on the Prairie. Okay, she was real, but I would like to meet her, so I could ask her how she did what she did.
  
• Aslan from The Chronicles of Narnia.  Who wouldn’t want to meet him?
  
• Eeyore.  I’d like to see if I could get him to crack a smile.
  

2). You would like to be.

• When I was a girl, I wanted to be just like Caddie Woodlawn.
  
• Tigger.  It’d be fun to enjoy life moment to moment like Tigger does, although I’m not sure I’d want to be Tigger permanently.
• I’m coming up short here. If I think of anyone else, I’ll come back.
  

3). Who scare you.

• Injun Joe from Tom Sawyer.
• When I was a little girl I was terrified of the wicked witch from The Wizard of Oz. The movie, not the book. I couldn’t bear to read the book if she’s in it, and I’ve never watched the movie again and never will.
• I’m going to have to come back later for this one, too.

If you want to be tagged, let me know. I’m coming in on the tail end of this meme, so I’m not sure who’s done it already and who hasn’t.

Comments

[Ellen B.]

I forgot all about Injun Joe but he was scarey. I was the same way with novels when my kids were little I had to give up reading them. Too frustrating to be interrupted. Didn't want to become the wicked mother of the West!

[Debbie Reese]

I invite you to consider CADDIE from a critical stance that examines the ways that American Indians are presented in the story. I've doing this myself, over at my blog:

http://americanindiansinchildrensliterature.blogspot.com

[rebecca]

Debbie,

I already have. It's a historical novel, which means the attitudes represented are the typical attitudes of many settlers at that time. That doesn't make them right, but it does make them accurate. Why would anyone want to read a historical novel where the depictions of people weren't accurate ones?

Caddie had spunk. As a child, I admired that spunk and wanted to be like that. Please don't read more into my answers than is intended.