Created for LIBM 305
Children's and Young Adult Literature
Black Hills State University
Summer 2012

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The more you read,
The more you know.
The more you know,
The smarter you grow.
The smarter you grow,
The stronger your voice,
When speaking your mind,
or making your choice.
-Author unknown

Reading has always been an integral part of my life.
My mother read to my brother and I more than any mom
I know. As a toddler, I remember feeling deprived
when she would continue reading through her yawns
after long days driving tractor on the family farm,
because I couldn't understand what she was saying.
I would insist she stop and reread the previous sentence
for fear she she had left out an important piece of the plot!

My mom tells about how I got off the bus
after the first day of kindergarten saying this,
"Well, kindergarten was ok, but I DIDN'T LEARN
HOW TO READ TODAY. I better learn tomorrow!!"

During the winters, we went skiing every weekend as
a family. While driving several hours to and from the
ski run good ol' Mom would get reading duties. Our
favorite series were The Box Car Children, The
Wizard of Oz, and Encyclopedia Brown, and Little
House On the Prarie.

Our county branch library's summer reading
program was always a highlight of the year.
There has always been fantastic community
support,which means outstanding prizes.

When I was in second grade, I won the
top reading prize for my age group.
This meant getting to take a
hot air balloon ride over our town!
WOW! My little second grade mind had
never realized how neatly all of the blocks
and streets were organized until then.

When I graduated from high school, I joined
the US Army. "Hurry up and wait" was the
motto during my time serving, so a book
was always tucked into the pocket of my
BDUs. During this time, I began enjoying
James Patterson's mystery novels, and then
Piers Anthony's fantasy world in the Xanth
series. Luckily, books got me through this
time of loneliness, as I was almost aways a
long way from my family.

Soon, however, the birth of our first daughter
changed my taste inliterature again. We
began reading Eric Carle's extensive collection,
David Kirk's Miss Spider series, and Maurice
Sendak's wonderful work.

We are so blessed to live in north western Wyoming
where we are able to camp, fish, ride four-wheelers,
hunt, ski, and ride snowmobiles from November
until July!