The Reader’s Sketch
Many people take reading for granted and it is an important part of their lives. Some people turn to a book in their free time for relaxing and information. I don’t think I am alone in this, but as a child, I was never one who turned to a book for relaxation. I loved playing outside with friends. I liked watching TV and playing video games. I especially liked playing with my trucks and toy vehicles, and daydreaming about things happening in my make believe world. Reading on my own was something I did not do much of.
Our house was full of books when I was growing up. I often received books as presents at Christmas or on my birthday from well meaning grandparents, aunts and uncles, and always one from my parents. I am the third of three boys in our family so I got the benefit of all of their books in addition to my own collection. On the front cover of many of the books there is an important looking sticker that says, “This Book Belongs To: ________________” Sometimes my name was filled in, or often times one of my brother’s names would be filled in on the sticker. I remember when I received a book as a present, I would smile and say thank you, but I was wishing it would have been a truck. Despite my priorities, I certainly enjoyed the books that I had growing up.
One of my earliest favorite memories of reading was when my parents read to me. Many times I sat in my dad’s lap and he read different Dr. Seuss and Curious George books to me. Reading was usually at night so I was often in my flannel pajamas, and always had socks on my feet. I would curl up in his lap and follow along as he read to me. I do not know who liked the Dr Seuss books better, me or my dad. We always laughed at the silly things that happened in the books. I would have him read the same books over and over again. One year before Christmas my dad read me The Night Before Christmas. He got the idea that we should memorize the poem. He made me read it over and over, and we learned the poem together.
If it was late, I would crawl under my down comforter in my bed and my parents would take turns reading to me at night. They would sit at the edge of my bed with just the reading light on and read a story to me before I began to fall asleep. I loved being read to by my parents. Their voices were soothing and comforting and provided a perfect atmosphere to fall asleep to. I looked at some books on my own but my first choice was to be read to.
I remember spending a lot of time looking at Where’s Waldo and the I Spy books. I would sit with my mom and we would race to see who could find Waldo or the items in the picture riddle books. It took a lot of concentration to find each item. I was competitive and I would race to try to beat my mom. We would be next to each other focusing on each page and yell out when we found an item or Waldo. Sometimes I would torture my mom and not show her the item when I found it. I think I still have three or four I Spy books. They are like complicated crossword puzzles each with a different theme. One might be all pages of scenes at a circus, or another is all pages of toys, or foods. Buried in the pictures on each page are smaller pictures of everyday objects. At the bottom of each page would be the names of the small hidden objects you were supposed to find buried in the pictures. Each time a page was turned, the race was on.
There is a bookshelf that surrounds my bed and goes from the floor to the ceiling. It is full of books. I have almost every book written by Nancy Carlson, however, I do not have any of her books from the past ten years. Nancy is a local children’s book author and illustrator. When I was little, my mom read to me from books written by Nancy. One of my favorite books was Harriet and the Roller Coaster which was written in 1982. I can’t remember exactly when I actually understood it, but Nancy was a friend of my parents, and she was the author of the books I read. My parents knew her because she was my Aunt Mary’s college roommate. In fact, Harriet and the Roller Coaster was dedicated to my Aunt Mary. I was in awe whenever I saw Nancy. I thought it was very cool that I knew the person who wrote and drew the pictures in the books I liked. Nancy came to my grade school to speak, and she naturally knew who I was. Other kids in my class were amazed that I knew her. In all of my Nancy Carlson books, Nancy wrote something to me on the front page, like “To Alex, eat your carrots!”, or “Alex, always brush your teeth!” She would then sign her name. Because I really liked Nancy I liked reading her books. I have many happy memories reading her books because they were funny and colorful.
One of my favorite books growing up was the biography, The Pact. The hurdles the main characters overcame as they stuck together to become educated and successful in life have stuck with me. As I have become older, reading a book is still not my first choice for something to do to relax. I am not sure I will be a lifelong reader. I spend a lot of time on the computer reading short subjects, news articles or messages from friends. I also read the Sun Current and parts of the newspaper but not many long books. I believe and hope that I will start to appreciate books more as I get older and take more time to relax and enjoy what can be gained from reading.
