Influential texts from your childhood?

[303Brit]

For Childhood books it has to be:
The scouting Books from Baden Powell
Last of the Mohicans
an old pre war Encyclopedia with pictures showing Scotts Expedition
National Geographic magazine
Early teens it has to be:
The Jungle is Neutral.
Death in the Long grass
Rogue Male

 

[UKHaiku]

Danny Champion of the World
Jungle Book
Tales of Narnia
The Hobbit / Lord of the Rings
Huckleberry Finn
Famous Five go...

 

[Abbe Osram]

Robin Hood
Tarzan
The Hobbit
Lord of the Rings
Tom Sawyer
Last of the Mohicans

 

[crazyclimber]

Swallows and Amazons
Ray Mears (obviously)
Loads of Enid Blytons (famous five, secret seven, etc)
Jon Krakauer - into thin air, Anatoli Boukreev - the climb, and a couple others on the same subject
Robert Mason - chickenhawk
Andy McNab, Chris Ryan, Peter Ratcliffe et al
Tom Clancy / Dale Brown / John Grisham / Ken Follett are the kind I usually had / have with me in case of being stuck somewhere
Also one other I read quite a few times in school whose title I've completely forgotten. Was fictional (I think) about a guy who escaped from a prison in Siberia and survived the winter in the taiga. Lived in a cave, hunted with a bow and arrow etc... really loved it and if anyone else has read it and can remember the title it would be much appreciated!

 

[fishfish]

if theres one book that instilled the want to runaway and live in the woods its the only one allowed in our house when i was a child.............the bible! no other books allowed in the house at all!

 

[andy_bell]

I had (and still have) a copy of "survival for young people" by Anthony Greenbank I think I picked it up when I was about 11 or 12. Iy mum used to get worried sick that i would hurt myself trying out all the stuff thats in it but it tought me a bit about lighting fires and building shelters, back then it seemed like all there was to know, now of courseI realise it was just the tip of the iceberg that I seem to be spending my life getting to the bottom of one way or another. It led me into an outdoor life that I genuinely don't believe I would have discovered if it wasn't for that 1 book.

 

[Minotaur]

Basically everything that has been listed.

To add some stuff, the Gillwell range, Baden Powell, and scout stuff generally.

Also Jerry Ahern The Survivalist series. Weirdly this has shaped my thinking on a lot of things. I do not like wasteful items, and try always to be preparded.

 

[SOAR]

Enid Blyton the magic far away tree, lord of the Rings, Of Mice and Men to name a few.

Simon.

 

[Yonderer]

I'm afraid I read mostly fiction as a kid. A lot of historical fiction.
With the exception of The Boy Scout Handbook and my Dad's copy of The NRA Guide To Firearms Disassembly.

Off the top of my head.

Lost In The Barrens - Farley Mowatt
Curse Of The Viking Grave - Farley Mowatt
Comanche And His Captain - I don't remember who the author was but I've never forgotten the book. Basically, Custer's Last Stand from the viewpoint of Capt. Miles Keough's horse, Comanche.
Rivers West - Louis L'Amour (I was a huge L'Amour fan, but that was the first of his books that I read)
Zane Grey novels.
The We Were There series of books.
The Hardy Boys Series - F.W Dixon
Mountain Man - Vardis Fisher

 

[Biddlesby]

Had quite a Robin Hood phase, that probably kick started thing.

Maybe not quite in my childhood, but I have just finished reading Ranulph Fiennes' autobiography. That's pretty darn inspiring.

 

[Snufkin]

In no particular order

The Lord of the Rings
The Hobbit (I still have my original copy after 26 years)
The Silmarillion (Probably my favourite of Tolkien)
The Wind in the Willows (Apparently alot of modern versions leave out the chapter "The Piper at the Edge of Dawn" Which was always my favourite part)
The Black Arrow
The Moomin books (obviously)
Stig of the Dump
The Sword in the Stone
The Once and Future King
My side of the Mountain

 

[Grooveski]

Tintin.

 

[falling rain]

Had quite a Robin Hood phase, that probably kick started thing.

Maybe not quite in my childhood, but I have just finished reading Ranulph Fiennes' autobiography. That's pretty darn inspiring.

That's funny Biddlesby so have I not long finished Ranulph Fiennes autobiography.

In fact I've read a few of his books and the autobiography barely scratches the surface, with what he's done in his life, it could have been 5 times as thick. Good read and one of those blokes from the 'old school' that they don't make anymore.

 

[Sleepy Weasel]

Anybody remember a book by Brian Hildreth? I think it was called How to Survive, he was an instructor for the New Zealand air force I seem to remember. I also had the Swallows and Amazons, The US Air Force survival manual for pilots. Bushcraft by Robert Graves.

There was also a series of books about two brothers who went off and had adventures, can't for the life of me remember the name of the author, titles were something like South Sea Adventures, the brother's names were Hal and John? and there was a bad guy called Skink?

Recently given Conn Iggleydens(Iggulden) book on nonPC behaviour for Boys, an excellent book, even for a forty year old boy like me!

Oh, and there was a dog eared copy of Penthouse under the bed as well, does that count as an influential text?

 

[JohnL]

little black sambo?

Not sure about that but recently have read lots of Sharpes by bernard corwell and they are pretty good.

 

[Nagual]

I'm shamed to say that I can barely remember any of the books I read 'back in the day'.. however I do remember a comic which I loved "Warlord" and Eagle of course but not as much. Books weren't interesting to me then, probably because the only books I managed to get hold of were the ones we were forced to read at school, and they weren't the most absorbing in the world.

nag.

 

[Black Sheep]

My first really outdoor book was called “how to be a nature detective” not sure who it was by it was all about tracking animals.

Bush craft type book were Lofty Wisemans’ “SAS survival handbook” and Eddie Mcgee’s “No need to die”.

Still got them some where????

Rich

 

[Tiley]

I remember living on a diet of Willard Price books - "Jungle Adventure", Volcano Adventure", "Cannibal Adventure" and all the others in that series. They charted the adventures of two brothers who were sent to exotic parts of the world to gather specimens and fight off the bad guys. They were a good, basic introduction to natural history and I think started off my interest in adventure/exploration, leading to bushcraft.

 

[ilovemybed]

I loved (and still do) books on natural history and animal behaviour - particularly the books that went with David Attenborough's TV programmes.

 

[irishlostboy]

although not text, but spoken rhyme, this was one of the most influential series of words i remember from my early childhood;

suger and spice, and all things nice.
this is what little girls are made of.
slugs and snails, and puppy-dogs tails.
this is what little boys are made of.

this had a major impact on my life, and i suppose still does....