Favorite books as a kid

I used to devour books when I was a kid--I loved reading many, many different kinds of stories--horror (esp. Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine), romance, historical, mystery, family drama, etc. I don't know if I can think of one book in particular that stood out as an all-time fav, but here are a few that are still very memorable for me:

Homecoming by Cynthia Voight. I distinctly remember this one because the kids are traveling by themselves to reach a relative after their mom abandons them. And they have to ration their money by living off bread and peanut butter. I was riveted!

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. I cried and cried and criiiiiied about those dogs. Seriously, I was a mess. That one scene stuck in my head for a long time.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I distinctly remember when I was reading this that I was drawn to Rochester. I couldn't help it--he was magnetic, and I loved and hated him for how he treated Jane. And I wanted poor Jane to finally get something good in her life. I loved all the crazy twists in the story!

Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. I remember being horrified that this was a real person's story...it moved me to hear about the trials and struggles she went through, hiding from the Nazis.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson. Another tear-jerker. I guess I was into those. But I was so caught up in the story, and the death totally floored me. I was NOT expecting it.

There are many, MANY more books I adored, of course, but right now I wanna hear from you. What were your favorite books when you were growing up?

Favorite Things

Hey, lookie there--it's my day to blog. Obviously, you can see I'm super-prepared, so I'll be pulling a topic out of my hiney today. haha. So, here's a seriously random list of a few of my favorite things (I could go on and on, but that would be super boring). Please feel free to post your own list of fav things in the comments--the more, the merrier!!

--raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens (okay, I had to say it. LOL)
--warm, chocolately pop tarts, fresh out of the toaster
--the sudden burst of inspiration that makes my story gel on a whole new level
--my family and friends
--jeans that fit perfectly and look fabulous
--no traffic on the highway when driving to work in the morning
--Twitter (this is a totally new fav thing of mine...BTW, you can follow me HERE!)
--finding extra money in my pockets, on the sidewalk, etc
--sushi (yummmmmmmmm)
--watching a super fabulous movie or TV show
--a delish glass of reisling wine
--reading a book that totally draws me in
--writing "the end" on a novel
--making someone laugh, hard
--the words "dude" and "uber"

Okay, your turn. What are a few of your favorite things?