Books, Books, Books

Last week was Literacy week at my kids elementary school. I help out, and it is a truly amazing week. Our goal 4 years ago started with trying to get a new book into the hands of every child at the school. Since then it has grown to where we can usually give out 2-3 books to every child. Every day at lunch there was a drawing for books, as well as teachers handing them out in the classroom on Friday. My hope is that every child has the opportunity to discover that magical world you can enter when you read.
All the books given out were excellent, authors I love to read. To tell the truth, I read youth oriented books more often than I read books specifically for adults. There is so much talent in the publishing world, without having to worry about language, or suggestive situations. Right now my favorite author is Shannon Hale, with Stephanie Meyers running a close second, and the classic Avi in third. But of course it changes weekly. Shannon Hales books are fairy tale based, a classic genre that harkens back to the earliest attempts at narrative, and yet they have a strangely modern feel to the emotions dealt with. Deep in the forest, beside babbling streams of astonishing clarity, with magic in the very air, Isi, the main character in Goose Girl struggles with discovering her innermost self, and emerging from the stifling expectations of a suffocating mother. And yet it is still a light and enjoyable read. Stephanie Meyers deals in shimmery vampires, overprotective werewolves, and bloody quests for vengeance, and yet at the heart of things her Bella is just a normal teenage girl, dealing with life and everything it throws at her. And Avi, well, his books deal with everything, in almost every genre, and yet almost all are a voyage of self discovery, where the hero does not have all the answers, but things work out anyway.
Pick up a book. You'll enjoy it. I promise.