I have two, read as a child in Ukraine: Lesnaya Gazeta ("Forest Newspaper") - this was an old book that either my parents or grandparents had to stitch togethe

I have two, read as a child in Ukraine: Lesnaya Gazeta ("Forest Newspaper") - this was an old book that either my parents or grandparents had to stitch together countless times after it kept falling apart. It was in the format of newspaper articles and contained things like short stories and poems about nature, guides to identifying animal tracks, interesting tidbits about forest animals, etc. Most of my memories of it are from my grandparents' house and dacha, since I lived there until I was 5 and that's where it was given to me. My most early memory is getting up before everyone else in the morning and going out to sit on the couch and read this book. The first poem I ever learned was from this book - a long saga about a rabbit. I think it helped me develop a love and curiosity for animals and nature. Narnia - the first series I have ever read, the Russian translation. I would lay in my bunk bed for entire weekends reading these stories. Only in recent years have I learned that people consider this to be a religious book. It was never presented to me that way and I didn't associate it with God or religion at all when I read it. I think this was the first "real" fantasy story I read and it inspired me to keep devouring more fantasy books over the years. Both Lesnaya Gazeta and Narnia kindled a type of curiosity and fascination of the world in me that I don't think will ever go away.