Why I Love A Series.

At an early age, I became a fan of the children's book series. Among my favorites were The Baby-Sitters Club, Sweet Valley High and Anne of Green Gables. I felt even then that the best part about a book was getting to know the characters. For me, these fictional characters were friends I could visit any time I wanted without ever leaving my house and I still find the same is true today.

There are some excellent stand alone books out there- I've even reviewed some on my blog- but I love it so much when I can revisit the same characters over and over again in a new way. Admittedly, sometimes I read the first book in a series and love it, then go on to the next ones and feel disappointment because they failed to be as good as the first. It's sort-of like watching a movie sequel that fails to live up to the same standard of the first film. Sure it's great to see the familiar faces, but it lacks that spark produced the first time around and the same is true for literature.

Lucky for me, the number of book series I like has grown at a rapid rate over the last several years. A few that comes to mind are Harry Potter, The Sisters Grimm and my new love, the Charlie Bone Series (which I will talk about at a later date).

I think the trick in doing a series well is to have the characters strike a chord with readers in some way. What I like might be different then what someone else enjoys, but the trick is in getting someone to love the character, and continue to love them enough to keep reading. Plus, each series book has to be exciting, interesting, and have a good plot.

What really makes a series work, is that if the book had to, it could stand on its own. Take the Sisters' Grimm series, you could read any story in that series and understand what is happening because the author explains what's happened in past books to the reader. The author makes it easy to read the book on its own, but usually uses a hook at the end to bring the reader back for more.

I also love getting to see the characters grow and change throughout a series of books. That's how it is in the Harry Potter series. Each book is one year at Hogwarts. Harry changes from a sad, lonely boy into a man. The changes are gradual and sometimes difficult, but as readers, we get to grow up with Harry.

The same is true for my childhood love, Anne of Green Gables. I still have the original copies of my books. The pages are yellowed and falling out, but I can't seem to bring myself to replace them. For me, those yellowed pages represent a friend who, however old and worn, is just as dear to me as any flesh-and-blood friend I've ever had.

That is the true reason I love books, especially book series. Someone might carry them with them forever, just like me.