A library card for Emma

Today was a momentous day in our household because my 5-year-old daughter got her first library card. She had to sign her name and then excitedly realized she could check out as many books as she wanted. She decided nine was the perfect amount. My husband was with her and she wouldn’t leave the library until she had read at least one of the new books.

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My husband made the mistake of including “Life of Pi” in the books he checked out. I glanced through it, read the first page and unfortunately it really grabbed me. Now I know this probably sounds strange because what is better than finding a good book? The truth is I absolutely love to read but I am very good at blocking out people when I am immersed in a good story. Needless to say, this ability to focus solely on what I am reading drives my husband crazy. When I was in elementary school and middle school, when asked what I liked to do most, I would always say “read.” I loved entering another world created by a writer and even as a young child I remember being completely moved by books. In the fifth grade I sobbed for hours over the plight of Sara in “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was a good kind of sad and I love the fact that books have always moved me.

I am sure that many of the Moms reading this are thinking, “How does she have time to read?” The truth is, since having my daughter and having my stepsons for weekends, books have become very few and far between. I started reading more magazines with shorter stories. The New Yorker is great for that because I can carry it around all week and read the articles and short stories in waiting rooms or during my daughter’s ballet class.

My stepsons are great readers and their Mom periodically declares “no Screen” days where no TV’s or computers are allowed, but you can read as much as you want. I remember when one of the new Harry Potter books came out, my husband and I stayed up until midnight to get one of the first copies. Michael was thrilled to see how psyched the boys were over a new book. After noticing a lot of adults in the bookstore lines, we both read J.K Rowling’s amazing books and soon realized what all the fuss was about. We will get our own copies at midnight, as well as one for the kids, when the latest installment is released. Both boys are great students and we know this has a lot to do with their love of the printed word.

Emma is just learning to read and it is wonderful to see her thrill over successfully sounding out sentences in her easy-reading books. I want to instill in her the love of reading but I am afraid that if I push her, she will get turned off. So for now, we read books each night and hope the library card will continue to inspire. Currently, her favorites are the Beatrice Potter books and each night we cuddle up in her bed and read. These are some of the nicest moments I experience as a Mom. I think “…am I getting teary over the antics of Peter Rabbit or perhaps from this intense love I feel for this small person listening with such enthusiasm?” It is probably a little of both.

Here are some of my favorite books. Let me know some that you like too.

• Wild Swans …Chang
• Poisonwood Bible…. Kingsolver
• Guns Germs & Steel… Diamond
• Brave New World … Huxley
• Little Women…. Alcott
• Exodus….Uris
• The Source… Mitchner
• Little House Books… Wilder