My earliest memory of reading is of my mother reading to me every night before bed, which she did for years. I always enjoyed that so much; it was a sort of bonding time between her and I. It instilled a deep love for books in me which I still have today. Two of my favorite books as a child were Where the Wild Things are, by Maurice Sendak and Are you my mother?, by P.D. Eastman. I think the second one was one of my favorites because my mom read it to me and it was about a little bird trying to finding his mother. I bought both of these books as an adult and read them to my little girl before bed along with many more of my favorites. As a child two of the book series that I loved and read were the Junie B. Jones and the Ramona sets. As an adult I tend to read and enjoy books that are in a series rather than books that are a singular work. Some such books are Steven King's Dark Tower series, Orson Scott Card's Ender series, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, and Charlain Harris' Southern Vampire Mysteries. As a child and in adulthood reading has always been a relaxing hobby of mine that I love and cherish; it has always been a joy not a chore. My teachers read aloud in school often but I can not remember many specific books being read aloud other than The Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle, Harold and the Purple Crayon, by Crockett Johnson, and The Neverending Story, by Michael Ende. I think most of the teachers I had either read from textbooks or expected us to read things on our own. Books make a huge difference in my life. I've always been able to sort of "escape" into a book, imagining myself as the characters or off in those far away fanciful lands such as what is found in The Neverending Story. I read for pleasure everyday; I bring books to work and read at home before bed. When someone asks me what my hobbies are, reading is always high on the list.