Blog Tour: Angie Smibert's "Into the Past"

Welcome to the fantastic Angie Smibert- author of the fabulous new dystopian novel, Memento Nora! She's here to talk about some of her favorite books growing up. Are any of your favorites on there?

What were your favorite books at ages 5, 11, 16 and 20? And if there are any

books released in the last few years, especially within YA that you would have loved having back then, you can talk about that too!

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Hmmm. I don't remember what my favorite book was when I was 5. My favorite story, though, was one my Dad made up. (Or at least he told me he did.) He would tell me Sinbad stories before bed time. (No, not the comic. The sailor.) My favorite was Sinbad and the Isle of Helios (or something like that). Sinbad and his sailors were shipwrecked on an island of helium balloon people. That's about all I remember of the story, although, now that I think of it, I do recall something about Sinbad making puncture-proof vests for the inhabitants.

At 11, my favorite book was probably Wuthering Heights. I was precocious dork in middle school. The summer I turned 11 I started at one end of the classics section in the town library and worked my way through the shelves. And I kept a list of books I'd read. I loved the gothic, romantic feel of both the book and movie Wuthering Heights. (I’m also still into classic movies.)

In high school, I discovered science fiction and fantasy. So, at 16, my favorite book was either Dune by Frank Herbert or the Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien. By college, I still loved science fiction, but I went through a mystery phase. I devoured Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, and Dorothy Sayers, among others. So I might go for Gaudy Night by Dorothy Sayers as my pick for age 20.

My dorky 11-year old self (as well as my older selves) would have probably loved a lot of the YA science fiction and fantasy that's out now--which is probably why I, in my still-dorky 40's, love it, too.

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Thanks so much for stopping by, Angie! My review of Memento Nora will be posted later this week. Be sure to stop by Angie's website for more info on her and Memento Nora!