Some refer to it as interactive fiction, others call it the gamebook format. But in their heyday during the '80s and '90s, these beloved books were known by their series title: Choose Your Own Adventure. Told in second-person point of view, the reader becomes the protagonist. At various points in the story, the reader must choose between different paths, following a web of possible plot turns and varied endings. This interactive narrative style was conceived by Edward Packard while telling bedtime stories to his two daughters about a character named Pete. When he couldn't come up with the next plot turn, Packard asked the girls what they would do in Pete's shoes. Sometimes they gave different answers, and he would continue the story down both paths. Noticing the kids enjoyed having a hand in the outcome, Packard saw potential for the concept to be a unique genre and wrote his first book, Sugarcane Island.
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