I read insatiably throughout my childhood. My fare was eclectic and I was interested in just about everything. I read every Nancy Drew mystery, all the Terhune and Farley classics, H.G. Wells, Asimov, Grimms, Andersen, Kipling, DeWohl, and then I discovered romance. Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, and Mrs. Mike left lasting impressions uponn me because of their style, subject, and substance. The characters were well-drawn, the story lines were fascinating, and I felt as if I had truly walked beside the heroines and experienced their worlds.