S/O - What completely age-inappropriate books did you read as a child?

[TonFirst]

For me? It was Clan of the Freaking Cave Bear when I was about nine years old.

The next summer? The Shelters of Stone. Or, as a friend called them a couple of years ago when we were discussing how on earth we both read these completely inappropriate books as children, "The Shelters of Porn."

[Cam&Clay]

Forever at 10...even took it with me to a slumber party and educated all of my friends!

Clan of the Cave Bear when I was about 12ish. Snuck Fear of Flying from my mom's room around the same time.

[doberbrat]

I read the Omen series when I was 11ish. the Valley of the horses/Clan of the cave bears didnt come till the next summer.

my family was really strict w/tv watching but I was welcome to read whatever I wanted.

[bubbaray]

Various "adult content" romance novels. Um, yeah, not a great choice.

One I can't remember that was non-fiction and about a plane crash where there was cannibalism. G4 or thereabouts when I read that. I read early and "could" read adult books easily very young. "Should" is a different issue altogether, though.

[MontrealMum]

Forever at around 10 as well (luckily most of it made no sense to me!). That Flowers in the Attic series at around 12? I probably also started in on Danielle Steel around then too. My Great-Aunt used to live with us for part of the year and had rather racy taste in books. Was very permissive. And supposed to be watching me. I loved her alot! :)

[DrSally]

I was really into Steinbeck when I was in 5th-6th grade and read all his books. I think East of Eden was a bit mature for me. I was also really into Shakespeare at that time and remember being scared by MacBeth. I was just reading this stuff on my own, so it wasn't like my parents were talking about it with me either.

[Raidra]

VC Andrews (Flowers in the Attic) books when I was in middle school. My mom offered them to me when I saw her reading them. Inappropriate, sure, but it didn't scar me or anything.

[Clarity]

Steven King novels as a pre-teen, and yeah, the VC Andrew's novels. Those were a bit disturbing, iirc.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Oh my, I have so many. None of them are memorable, not worthy titles that anyone has probably heard of. I just know that there was lots of risque stuff happening in my books that my mom would have had no idea about. They were YA books but dang, they were smutty!

Beth

[kristenk]

Another Flowers in the Attic reader here. Those were disturbing.

I don't remember how old I was when I read Forever.

[misshollygolightly]

Ha! Far too many :-) A few that come to mind are _Atlas Shrugged_ in 8th grade, _Lolita_ in 9th grade, and _Sophie's Choice_ in 10th grade. IMHO, none of those were totally inappropriate at that age or anything, but my mom definitely would have freaked had she known (actually, she did freak about _Lolita_ and confiscated it!), but I have to admit that I won't exactly be encouraging DS to read those books at those ages. In my defense, I nearly always stuck to the "classics" or at least works of recognizable literary merit, but many of them could also be classified as having more "mature" content.

[elizabethkott]

Another VC Andrews gal here!

[Melarina]

Clan of the Cave Bear! Ohhhh I was so traumatized by that book as a kid!

[BabyMine]

Way to many romance novels.

[Fairy]

Add me to the list of "'Forever' at age 10" crowd. I completely understood everything I was reading. What I didn't, necessarily, understand was what some of the words were. Like I yelled down to my dad, "Daddy, what does PEN-niss mean?" (As in writing instrument, a pen, with "hiss" without the "h.") And he goes, "Huh?" And it dawned on me. "NEVERMIND!" "Oh, ok!" Totaly not kidding.

I FLOVED the VC Andrews books, but I got to those in HS.

[Cam&Clay]

One I can't remember that was non-fiction and about a plane crash where there was cannibalism.

That was probably the book Alive about the rugby team who crashed in the Andes Mountains. They also made a movie about it. Great book!

[DrSally]

So, what is "Clan of the Cave Bear" about? I remember it came out as a movie with Darrayl Hannah, but didn't see it.

[ThreeofUs]

For me? It was Clan of the Freaking Cave Bear when I was about nine years old.

The next summer? The Shelters of Stone. Or, as a friend called them a couple of years ago when we were discussing how on earth we both read these completely inappropriate books as children, "The Shelters of Porn."


Oh, yeah. Those. Steamy!

I read literally anything I could get my hands on; this included "The Sensuous Man/Woman/Etc." series as well as the Heinlein books that should have come with an X rating.

Um, *not* recommended but I surely got an education.

The very idea of a DD of mine reading such things at 8 sends off every "EEK" in my mind, lol.

[ett]

I read a whole bunch of the VC Andrews books too. Can't remember when I read them but I was definitely too young for them.

[Drag0nflygirl]

Um..."The Happy Hooker"! :bag
They left it on a shelf with a bunch of other junk books. I guess it was educational, but it also gave me alot of incorrect ideas about sexuality.

[s7714]

Not a work of fiction, but I secretly read through all of Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex but Were Afraid to Ask at like 10 or 11. My parents had a copy stashed away in their room and I found it one day. :innocent:

[mom2binsd]

And look how great we all turned out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Combine the books we read and the TV/movies we watched in the other thread and wow...it's amazing we can all function (lol)

I think it's so interesting reading threads like this, it seems our parents didn't worry nearly as much about exposing us to TV and books that were inappropriate, I think maybe they were confident in their parenting and in our ability to handle it all (or were oblivious)...yes things have changed a lot in the last 25 years, the world is a different place but I think we shouldn't beat ourselves up too much if our DC's watch a cartoon or movie occasionally that may not seem ideal.....I know DH is often telling me to lighten up and there are times when I catch myself thinking that I sometimes overthink things.

Threads like these are great to also see what others did as kids (and it brings back fond memories!)

[gatorsmom]

Another "Flowers in the Attic" reader here. Those were some weird books.

[thomma]

My friend and I had a conversation about this very topic a few days ago. We were laughing at the books we read at earlier ages (most of them mentioned in this thread!). I pretty much secrectly read all of my mother's and grandmother's castoffs...way too mature for a 8-11 year old! There are so many choices now for preteens...far more than 30+ years ago when I was that age.

Kim
ds&dd -6!

[carolinamama]

My parents didn't seem to restrict reading content in our house so I picked up various books that they read. One I remember was Gold Coast by Nelson Demille. I read it again when I was an adult and wow, I missed alot of the meaning since I wasn't mature enough to get it. And the romance scenes were very explicit. I also read more than my fair share of adult romance novels before I probably should have.

I also remember several of us reading VC Andrews when we were 11-12 years old.

[Naranjadia]

What a trip down memory lane!

Forever at 10, Wifey at 12, VC Andrews early, totally forgot about Clan of the Cave Bear!

A house we rented when I was 10 or 11 had a book called "Will I Like It?" - it was the mature sequel to Where Do I Come From? but with full color pictures of foreplay, etc. I snuck it into my room several times.

I also snuck Anais Nin's erotic short stories out of my Dad's study when I was 14 or 15.

[Gena]

This isn't as inappropriate as what some of you were reading, but I read my parents' child psychology books and parenting manuals when I was about 9. I thought "Child Psychology" meant it was writen for children, not about children. After reading those I took great pleasure in pointing out to my parents what they were doing wrong.

[Sillygirl]

Lots. I had read everything Stephen King wrote by age 10. VC Andrews, Forever, and The Key to Rebecca by Ken Follett which is really trashy. My parents figured if I had the interest to read it, I was mature enough to handle it. I think books are quite different than visual media like TV - the reader is in much more control. So I will not restrict my sons in what they choose to read, but I will continue to be very strict about movies, TV and Internet.

[elephantmeg]

harliquen romances when I was 9/10.
what to expect when you're expecting and other medical type stuff at about that age
flower in the attic in 9th grade-still disturbs me.
Some of the Daphne Demourier books were a little more freaky than I wanted at that age (I'm a total wimp when it comes to horrer). I had read a book of hers, the glass blowers and really liked it so I checked out some of the others. Ugh.

[Snow mom]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who read the VC Andrews books. That was the first thing that sprung to mind. I read them when I was in 6th or 7th grade. Actually checked them out from the library which makes me wonder if they will just check anything out to a little girl (and boy did I look little at that age.)

[justincase]

I was really into Steinbeck when I was in 5th-6th grade and read all his books. I think East of Eden was a bit mature for me.
:yeahthat: I was a voracious reader and my dad turned me loose on his bookshelves the summer I turned 10, when he could no longer keep up with taking me to the library or bookstore. Like PP have said, he figured if I was old enough to be interested in it, I was old enough to read it. I read East of Eden (and the rest of Steinbeck) that summer. So much in there I didn't understand but I knew enough to know that if my mom heard me asking about it, I wouldn't be allowed to go through dad's bookshelves anymore, so I kept my mouth shut and tried to figure it out from context.
Another Clan of the Cave Bear reader here, too. And Flowers in the Attic at a friend's house at a sleepover party. Funny how we all have these same ones on our lists.
Other favorites of my dad's that I read way too early: everything by Tom Robbins (*way* inappropriate!) and Kurt Vonnegut. And I loved Crichton's Andromeda Strain but was terrified by it at the same time!

[alexsmommy]

Gosh this is bringing back memories.
Another Clan reader, also Forever, um I also read "The Happy Hooker". I had TOTALLY forgotten about that until I read the pp's post. V.C. Andrews. I was a voracious reader and would read anything I could get my hands on. Also some book about doctors and nurses and one of the characters obtained an illegal abortion. To my mom's credit, when she found out about it she used it as an opportunity to discuss abortion and her ethical stance on it.

This thread makes me a little sad for our kids. Though inappropriate, we were also shocked because our culture was not as sexualized as it is now. "Forever" was shocking because prior to that many of us had no idea about what a sexual relationship really entailed. Now MTV tells all. You couldn't even show a bra in a bra commercial. Kids pass far more racy info than what we were reading on their MySpace and FB accounts. Sad.

[elektra]

The Flowers in the Attic series.

[Pennylane]

"Endless Love" when I was about 10 or 11. My sister had it hidden under her bed!

Ann

[Naranjadia]

I thought "Child Psychology" meant it was writen for children, not about children. After reading those I took great pleasure in pointing out to my parents what they were doing wrong.

This is very funny. ;)

[kransden]

I read tons of stuff. My siblings were so much older than I was. The only thing that stands out was a very disgusting book that I thought was a southern romance. I got from a friend's older sister. It wasn't, it had any type of horrible imagery you could imagine and lots of it. I actually didn't finish it because it was so stomach turning. As an adult I am horrified that this book was laying around. This was hardcore porn/S&M etc., and normal people wouldn't be reading it. I am very open minded btw. It makes me wonder what her parents liked ick!

[MommyofAmaya]

What a great thread! This is a common subject in our house. I read my father's copy of The Hotel New Hampshire (John Irving) when I was 9. It has a has very controversial subject matter (including rape, incest, homosexuality, prostitution, terrorism). It is still one of my favorite books and films of all time.

When my Dad remarried he changed so much that when I sent my 13yo brother a set of Goosebumps youth horror stories, he returned them via "return to sender". :hysterical:

Another vote for VC Andrews and I can't forget about The Exorcist at 10yo.

[hollybloom24]

VC Andrews
Wifey by Judy Blume
Smart Women by Judy Blume
Forever by Judy Blume

Oy!

[MCsMom]

I also snuck Anais Nin's erotic short stories out of my Dad's study when I was 14 or 15.

I SO remember that book and sneaking it when I was about 9 or 10. I was a little traumatized by one of the stories there. I also snuck my parent's original "The Joy of Sex". Those illustrations were groovy, man!

[Naranjadia]

I SO remember that book (Anais Nin) and sneaking it when I was about 9 or 10. I was a little traumatized by one of the stories there. I also snuck my parent's original "The Joy of Sex". Those illustrations were groovy, man!

Oh yes, the Joy of Sex!! That was a little traumatizing, too. And "Our Bodies, Ourselves."

I remember my parents have an argument about whether I was old enough at 13 to read Voltaire's "Candide" - I really only wanted to read it because Duran Duran mentioned "a scene out of Voltaire" in a song. LMAO. As it turns out, my mom was less concerned about any sex than she was about the violence.

[nrp]

Yet another VC Andrews reader here. I think it reached its zenith around 4th grade. Those books were whack.

[DrSally]

I thought "Child Psychology" meant it was writen for children, not about children. After reading those I took great pleasure in pointing out to my parents what they were doing wrong.

:ROTFLMAO: I could see myself doing something like that.

[m448]

Dude, I overdid the inappropriate and since my reading material was in English and I was a voracious reader my parents really didn't know. In early middle school I also discovered all of the VC Andrews books (she's a twisted soul), The Thornbirds, Isaac Asimov, Robin Cook and Stephen King. On trips to visit my family back in DR I would find cases of bodice ripper "novellas" from my aunt's collection that spurred me to read in Spanish for all I was worth.

Then I stumbled across two books in an aunt's library that were way out of my league - Wifey by Judy Blume and The Pearl (and no, not THAT book, a totally different pearl). Ummm, Wifey was all about the liberation of a housewife type in the 70s and the Pearl was a collection of um very grown up short stories.

That was all before I got my own library card from the public library vs. the school library and then the flood gates opened.

[MamaMolly]

Mine is positively scandalous :bag and my only excuse is that I was 9. I got into my father's stash of Penthouses and read the Forum section on each and every one. I thought the photos were GROSS but the letters were fascinating. Needless to say it kinda warped my ideas of s*xuality for a while.

No permanent damage, DH jokes that I'm a closet prude. :)

[frgsnlzrds]

I read the VC Andrews Flowers In The Attic series and My Sweet Audrina in 5th grade. They were given to me by a relative.

[TonFirst]

So, what is "Clan of the Cave Bear" about? I remember it came out as a movie with Darrayl Hannah, but didn't see it.

It's about woolly mammoths, if you know what I mean... and I think you do.

[TahliasMom]

clan of the cave bear and the sequel taught me about sex! lol.

VC Andrew's novels and then stephen king in my teens, thanks to my brother.

those herquline novels..

then my gf brought her uncles pornos over in middle school and we would look at the pics and giggle...

[zag95]

Clan of the Cave Bear series
VC Andrews Series
Danielle Steel books
Thornbirds
A Woman of Substance series (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
I think I read some of those racy Judy Blume books also......


And for the PP who wanted to know about Clan of the Cave bear..... it is a very detailed account of a non-flathead girl- found by flatheads..... it has everything- a little sex, rape, birth, menstruation..... all while discovering her "identity" .... I think there are 4 books- and they are really long- more than 600 pages (I want to say 1000 but I may be off)

You know ladies- the reason we read these quality pieces of literature, was because we didn't have "teen" or young adult lit, like we have now.
Some of the YAL books are provocative in their own way- with issues such as teen parenthood, sexual identity, and drug use covered.... it was just a different time!:boogie:

[tylersmama]

It's about woolly mammoths, if you know what I mean... and I think you do.
:hysterical:

I didn't read the Clan of the Cave Bear series until just a few years ago, but I totally would have when I was younger had I known about them!

I started sneaking my mom's Harlequin novels probably around 3rd or 4th grade. Some of those were *quite* racy, and I had NO clue what they meant for several years!

I remember taking out all of the North and South books from the library one summer, I couldn't have been older than 5th or 6th grade. I'm kind of surprised the librarian even let me now as I grew up in a VERY small town and she probably should have at least told my mom what I was reading! :p Then again, my mom was a librarian, too (at the school, not the town library, though) so maybe she thought that it was encouraged or something.

I never did get into the VC Andrews books. I think I tried reading Flowers in the Attic once, but just didn't like it all that much.

[MCsMom]

Mine is positively scandalous :bag and my only excuse is that I was 9. I got into my father's stash of Penthouses and read the Forum section on each and every one. I thought the photos were GROSS but the letters were fascinating. Needless to say it kinda warped my ideas of s*xuality for a while.

No permanent damage, DH jokes that I'm a closet prude. :)

I got into my Dad's own stash about the same time I read their copy of "The Joy of Sex". The photos messed me up but I couldn't stop looking of course. I thought I was being slick but the stash disappeared without warning one day.:ROTFLMAO: "The Joy of Sex" and the Anais Nin books stayed.

[maestramommy]

Forever was passed around when I was in 7th grade. My dad took it away, then gave it to my teacher with a note! She had a talk with me and the friend who loaned it to me. We were both so embarrased! (for different reasons).


ETA: Goodness how could I forget about VC Andrews? PP who called her (him?) twisted is right on. One of my friends was a Stephen King fan, so I read a bunch of his books too. I think I read The Shining shortly after the movie came out. Somehow I think the movie would've been scarier. I didn't understand the book.

[lmintzer]

I read all the VC Andrews books. My mom never said anything, but then again, I don't think she knew what they were about. I sneaked "The Thornbirds" off her shelf. There were probably others too, lol. Oh yeah--read all the Clan of the Cave Bear books. Those, my mom read first and then gave to me, lol. But I was in early high school then, so maybe she didn't think that was a big deal.

[DrSally]

It's about woolly mammoths, if you know what I mean... and I think you do.

:hysterical:

[Corie]

I *accidentally* found my parents Kama Sutra book and was thoroughly
grossed out when I saw what was inside.

[trales]

My mom wrote a sex ed book and "hid" all of her research in the basement, where we could find it. I read "The Joy of Sex" "Kama Sutra" and others around 5th grade. Apparently, she did this on purpose.

[AnnieW625]

I read Forever when I was 11. I never got into Flowers in the Attic. I also secretly checked out a book on sex ed the summer I turned 12 from our local library.

[jenmcadams]

By 10 or 11, I had read most of the VC Andrews books, Wifey, Forever
All of the Clan of the Cave Bear books, etc.

At 11, my 6th grade teacher pulled my parents aside (I was kind of a slacker in school in 4th - 6th) and told my parents they should be monitoring what I was reading ... at the time, I was mad, but in retrospect, the lists of (great) literature he suggested really jump started my interest in school and that year was a turning point for me academically. Up until then, I'd never really knew or thought about whether or not I was smart.

In any case, I don't regret any of the early reading...I still love reading a good mish mash of junk and good literature

[mommylamb]

When I was a young teenager I read all the Anne Rice vampire novels, which are a bit riské tp begin with. Then I found some other books she wrote under a pseudonym. When I bought the first one, I didn't realize what it would be, but it turned out to be basically soft porn... so of course, I had to go back and buy the rest of the series.

[ilfaith]

I remember going to a small local bookstore to buy Forever when I was in 5th grade...the woman who ran the store insisted I bring a note from my mother saying it was okay for me to read it.

Around the same time I read a bunch of Norma Klein's YA novels, which had similar themes. It seem there were quite a few novels about teen sex published in the 1970s...all very "Afterschool Special"

I don't think those VC Andrews novels were appropriate for anyone. Ugh.

As for the Joy of Sex...there sure was a lot of hair back then. I understand in the updated version people are a bit more groomed.

[BelleoftheBallFlagstaff]

The whole Flowers in the Attic VC Andrews series, between 9-10.

[NN317]

Flowers in the Attic series, Carrie by Stephen King, Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow, and Ragtime by E.L Doctorow, all during the summer before 6th grade.