What’s one story from your childhood that still gives you that warm, magical feeling? - Win cinema vouchers

[EllieSmumsnet]

Some stories stay with us forever. They’re the ones that sparked our imaginations, introduced us to unforgettable characters, and made us believe that extraordinary things could happen in ordinary places. Long after childhood, those tales still carry a sense of comfort and wonder.

Now, as The Magic Faraway Tree makes its journey from beloved book to the big screen, arriving in UK & Ireland cinemas on 27 March 2026, it’s the perfect moment to celebrate the stories that shaped us.

What’s one story from your childhood that still fills you with that warm, magical feeling and why? Was it a book you read again and again? A character you wished you could meet? A world you imagined so vividly it felt real?

Share your memory with us by 22/04/2026 for your chance to win a £200 VEX voucher and cinema vouchers to see The Magic Faraway Tree with your family (T&Cs apply).

Ylthe patchwork cat by Nicola Bayley. Beautiful story and the illustrations are so lifelike, you really believe in Tabby. I still say good morning, good yawning to my kids now.

@HarryVanderspeigle I adore the Patchwork Cat book! I had it in childhood, and tracked down a copy recently.

"We have done some snatchwork on your patchwork. We have thrown it out because it is so very dirty, and we will buy you a basket."
Tabby does not want a basket. She will do some angry scratchwork on it if it comes.

Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton Porter. Got my husband to buy me the unabridged version from a second hand bookstore recently. Heart rending story of a girl growing up with a grief stricken mother. Also such a different understanding of the natural world.

The Narnia books. Malory Towers. Famous five books.

Oh gosh. I loved Enid Blyton growing up (and still have lots of books in the loft). For me it was Mr Gallianos circus by Enid Blyton. The story of a boy who joined the circus and got to travel and meet all kinds of extraordinary people and animals. I always loved the escapism and the friendships made. My first bear teddy was named after Bobbo the bear from these books.

I loved the Teddy Robinson books, so many mishaps and Pippi Longstocking, a bit unconventional.

Following

@Neuronimo I like the Teddy Robinson books too.

I’ve mentioned this one on other threads: a fond memory of being sat in a chair which my parents lifted up, and told me I was flying high, with the tiny scenery below being described. I learned later that I was only a few inches off the ground - I didn’t know that because I was blindfolded, so it really felt like flying! Really magical.

Oh wow that sounds wonderful!

Myself, my brother and our friends cycling home in in 1978 after watching the film Convoy. We were about 13 or 14 living in a small boring village in the Uk. The film, shown in our local “Fleapit” was fantastic, giving us American culture, rebellion, a catchy theme song and the fanciable Kris Kristofferson! And after the film, cycling the five miles home in the dark the six of us laughing and shouting to each other “Pig Pen this is Rubber Duck, we got our selves a convoy!” Nearly 40 years on and my brother and I still reminisce about that night!

The Incredible journey - an old dog, a younger dog, a cat finding their way home in the wilderness always stayed with me

so so many books here that I have loved.

Miss Happiness and Miss Flower had a huge impact on me. I bought a copy for my daughters when they were little and re-read it. I loved it just as much again.

My Granny used to have a shelf full of old hardback Enid Blyton books - all well thumbed, with the pages beautifully tanned with age! I'd look forward to going to bed whenever we visited, so I could choose a pile of them to stack up beside me in bed & read until I fell asleep. I can still remember them now - Brer Rabbit, Mr Pink-Whistle, The Naughtiest Girl in the School.. among them, of course, was The Enchanted Wood, The Faraway Tree & the other books in the series. My favourite though was The Adventurous Four - a rip-roaring tale of 4 children who get stranded on an island after a boat trip goes wrong - thankfully, it all comes good in the end!

I watched Convoy with my Dmum in a double bill with Sweeney-2 (perhaps a bit near the knuckle and not certain I should have been let in😆).
It was a matinee performance and we actually saw Convoy twice (my poor mum!) by watching Convoy, then Sweeney-2 and by not leaving, saw Convoy again.😆