Our Lives in Books

When you remember favorite books from your childhood, it's like revisiting an old, beloved friend. If you think about it, we have stories about the stories we've read! 

When I was in high school, I read Gone with the Wind.  In three days. 

That book is the size of a brick!  No small feat.  Plus, I read it in the car on a road trip from California to the Canadian Rockies.  My dad was so ticked at me, "Lorrie, we've driven all this way and you're not even looking out the window!"  

"But, Dad!  You just don't understand!  I can't bear to tear myself away from Rhett and Scarlett!"

You see, I've got a story about reading a story that reminds me of a specific time and place.  While I was writing this post, I found the copy of Gone With the Wind that made the journey from the California to the Canadian Rockies.  I opened the front cover and saw this:

My guess is that my brother crossed the imaginary line in the middle of our Volvo station wagon back seat so he could annoy me in some way.  You see, he got carsick very easily and couldn't while away hours and hours with reading diversion during a time of no electronics.  After a while, his only option must have been annoying me, and I had to retaliate by calling him a DOPE in a stealth way that avoided my parents' detection.  

See, yet another story about reading a story. (2021 UPDATE: I’m not going to erase my adolescent love of this book that’s become quite controversial. One of my TO DO projects probably needs to be a reread of this book to see what I didn’t see before.)

I love it, and I love hearing other people's stories about reading stories.  I feel deeply connected to people who love similar books.  And even if we don't love the same books, I still love hearing stories about your reading lives.

And that's why I think it's important to share personal reading histories in our classrooms, at meetings, or around our dining room table. One way to do this is with one of my favorite writing recipes (disguised as a reading/art project) called Literary Timelines.

Another way to do this is checking out My Ideal Bookshelf by Jane Mount.  It's also got a bookshelf template in the back that can stand in as a quick template for a literary timeline conversation without a lot of fuss.

Talking about books brings life and passion into conversations.  And that sets the stage for loving reading which sets the stage for loving writing.  

Happy reminiscing about your life in books.

Always writing (and reading!),

Lorrie