Why I Read: Katherine Bosley, Youth Services Coordinator

By Katherine Bosley

Somewhere in our library’s many incarnations and remodelings a tiny door was built, and all four feet of it have driven the children of Shelburne to distraction ever since. Discovering what lies beyond that wee little threshold is the fervent goal of many a young patron. The clincher is no one on staff will tell, which is because, until it’s opened, everything and anything lies beyond it. Perhaps it’s a broom closet, or perhaps the Queen of Hearts is back there furiously demanding her roses be painted red.

Here at the library, part of our job is to inspire readers, and reading is about possibility. They say curiosity killed the cat, but I think it also breeds avid readers, and truth be told, cats are not my thing so a universe heavy on readers and light on felines is okay by me. I read, because until proven otherwise, every wardrobe is a portal, every boot a portkey, and no break in the hedge or rabbit hole should remain unexplored.

Why I Read: Marti Fiske, Director of the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library

By Marti Fiske

I wanted to be a reader from a very, very young age. (See photo above.) But once I started school I had problems learning how. The teachers knew that I didn’t have any learning disorder. I would do well in small group work, but not so well in larger groups.  It wasn’t until the school nurse visited our classroom mid-way through first grade for general eye exams that they figured out the problem. I couldn’t see the chalkboards and flash cards in the distance. After my seat was moved to the front of the room and I got glasses my reading skills took off.

I grew up in the small farming community of Fairfield, Vermont (population 1,493 in 1980).  I don’t remember having a library in my school until I was in junior high, and that was tiny. There was no public library in town then. The nearest library was 20 minutes away in St. Albans. My family didn’t use that library because for many years we only had one car and my dad took it to work. My family had to make every dollar stretch. Buying a new book was always a special occasion. Somehow though, there was always reading material around.

My father read the newspaper daily and had trade magazines related to his work. He had a long row of books, mostly history and a few classics, in shelves tucked under the short knee-wall in his den. My mom had a small collection of paperback novels, mostly science fiction, over her side of the bed in a built-in headboard shelf. The school offered quarterly newsletters from which I could order a few inexpensive paperbacks. Every few months we might make a trip to the bookstore in St. Albans. I saved up money from birthdays, my paper route and babysitting. Eventually I would have a small collection of Trixie Belden mystery books. I loved those books so much that I decided to save them for the next generation in my family. My whole collection fit into a brown shopping bag. I eventually passed the collection along to my nieces, but by then Harry Potter and fantasy was all the rage. I’m not sure that they were ever read.

Why I Read: Stern Center Instructor, Shaun Stephens

By Shaun Stephens

My reasons for reading are as varied as the things that I read. I read to learn; I also read not to learn. I read to escape; I read not to escape. A favorite reading material for me is the “how-to” book or article: how to replace a toilet valve assembly, wire a 3-pole outlet, build a treehouse, make a woodcut, throw a boomerang. Most recently, I wanted my apple tree to produce more apples, so I have looked up how to control apple scab, codling moths, watercore, flyspeck, and sooty blotch. Who knew there were so many afflictions on apple trees? There is so much out there to discover. Stargazing, tree identification, orienteering, building a duct-tape wallet: the sky’s the limit! I have to try to corral my sometimes wandering attention.

But I also read not to learn; I want to lose myself in a good story. The latest adult fiction I read was The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker. I loved the combination of magical realism, supernatural elements, historical fiction, and suspense. Run by Ann Patchett was an improbable but fascinating story of families intersecting in the wake of a car accident. The author made the girl protagonist so real I felt I had known her for years. I did not learn any specific things in these stories. I just experienced the pull and the joy of a good story.

Why I Read: Stern Center Communications Coordinator, Allison Provost

By Allison Provost

                                                                                                                                                    Photo by Paodoruvel

            Reading for me has always been about self development and exploration. As I’ve matured, my library has matured with me and has reflected my evolving interests. Throughout my life, books and their characters have acted as constant companions and are as beloved and influential as the friends and family members whom I cherish. I can easily say that some of the individuals I respect the most, fictional or not, I have met purely on the pages of a well written book: Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games series, Pat Summit after reading her biography entitled Sum It Up, Sherlock Holmes in any Sir Arthur Conan Doyle story, and Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird just to name a few.

I believe that as long as we are attentive and thoughtful enough to take advantage of them, opportunities exist all around us that help us learn more about ourselves. As Glinda the Good Witch sang in the musical Wicked, “I've heard it said, that people come into our lives for a reason, bringing something we must learn, and we are led, to those who help us most to grow, if we let them.” The same goes for books; they are meant to teach us. However, they are not just intended to teach us about the vastness of the universe, the creatures that lie beneath the ocean’s surface, or which general did that thing, on that battlefield, that one time, in 1779 in Georgia. Books are meant to teach us about ourselves, and I find great reward in that.

            In my early years, I read a lot of fables. Reading a story with a moral lesson (not to mention adorable animals that could talk) always interested me and helped me shape my set of beliefs as a child. To this day, The Boy Who Cried Wolf still comes to mind when I think about how dangerous lying can be.

As I grew up, I increasingly noticed myself finding value in certain character traits and challenging myself to identify my stances on certain issues. I try to use stories as a way to improve my critical thinking skills, exercise empathy, and discover what character traits I value in others, as well as what traits I strive to exhibit myself. Therefore, I find that many of the characteristics I identify as important to me in a book character tend to align with the characteristics of people I wish to befriend. In addition, I observe certain unfavorable character traits in a book that I may see in myself, reflect on them, and work on remedying the situation. Often when reading a book, I find myself wondering, “What would I do in this scenario? Would I do what the protagonist did or would I change the storyline?” I do everything I can to make every story, even an unrealistic fictional story, applicable to my life and my personal growth.

As easy as it is to become complacent with a book and read it purely for its entertainment purposes, which is fine to do sometimes, I would also challenge readers to take the time to find personal value in the message. Even that lighthearted, silly story about a girl and her dog offers an opportunity to learn something about oneself. Every time you turn the page you get a little closer to understanding your own mental memoir. So have fun, keep reading, and keep growing! 

Allison Provost is the Communications Coordinator at the Stern Center. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Communication & Social Interaction from Oswego State University in New York. She lives in Ferrisburgh and enjoys hiking, kayaking, and snowboarding.

Why I Read: Abi, Student Assistant at the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library

by Abi, Student Assistant at the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library, Age 16 

Pedro Ribeiro Simoes

As part of an on-going blog series, Why I Read, we are asking people in our Stern Center community why it is that they love reading? How did they get started? Why is it so special to them? This week, we have the story of one of our local public library's student assistants. She talks about why being a reader is important to her and how the library has helped expand her love of books.

Whenever I think of a calm relaxing day, I think of sitting on the beach with a book in my hand. Books tend to be a great temporary escape from any stresses in my life. I read because the action in a story is exciting to me and often gives me a chance to think of what I'd do in similar situations. Whenever I read, I feel at ease. Sitting down to read a book is also scientifically proven to make people more engaged in their life. The National Endowment of the Arts did a study that says that those who are avid readers tend to be engaged in current events.

Why I Read: Stern Center Instructor, Sandy Boyer

by Sandy Boyer

Photo by Geralt

Marcus Pfister's book, The Rainbow Fish, Sam McBratney's Guess How Much I Love You, and Shel Silverstein's poetry book, The Light in the Attic, are three of the favorites that my now 16-year-old teen recalls as his favorite reads as a young child. Rainbow Fish shares his scales after much hesitation and as a result, becomes the happiest fish in the sea. Little Nutbrown Hare poses the question, "Guess how much I love you?" to Big Nutbrown Hare to make sure his parent is listening. The poetic lines of Wild Strawberries, "Are Wild Strawberries really wild? Will they scratch an adult, will they snap at a child?" consider possibilities of taming your wild strawberry in a most figurative manner. 

Reading is a most fun and creative way to communicate, share life lessons, investigate and question, and just spend time having fun with young children and older ones, as well. It is these special times which begin to nurture and develop the confidence that is needed to grow and succeed.

Is "Thingy" a Word?

by Jenn Proulx

Remember the days when you had to thumb through the pages of a dictionary to find definitions as part of a homework assignment? I remember filling a notebook with words and meanings, but had no concept of how to use them in regular conversation. Ever heard of the phrase, use it or lose it?  

For example, I remember sitting down for lunch at school one day and before I started eating I removed all the meat from my sandwich. It was at this point when someone tapped me on the shoulder and asked, “Are you a vegetarian?”  

I thought vegetarian was the same as veterinarian so I responded with, “I would like to become one when I’m older.” Luckily, the person simply walked away confused. I’m sure vegetarian was probably one of the hundreds of vocabulary words filling my notebook, but I rarely used it.

Why I Read: Diagnostics Intake Coordinator, Greta D'Agostino

by Greta D'Agostino

“If you remain calm in the midst of great chaos, it is the surest guarantee that it will eventually subside”

― Julie Andrews Edwards, The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles

 

In first grade I remember being the only kid in my class that couldn’t tell my left from my right, couldn’t write the entire alphabet and couldn’t read. I even recall my teacher asking me at one point, late in the school year, “What is wrong with your brain?” When I came home from school that day, sobbing yet again, my mom sprung into action.

Within weeks my mom had me independently evaluated; it was the best thing that could have happened for me. The evaluation revealed that I was not only a capable learner, but gifted. My potential was high, if only I was taught in the right way for me, and given some time.

I began private instruction several times a week, which continued for the next few years. The fall of my second grade year brought a new teacher, who was much more patient with me, and was willing to provide some accommodations, despite the fact that I didn’t qualify for any services. She let me take longer to complete the books the class was reading and shortened writing assignments. I started out that year in the lowest reading group, and by the end of second grade I was in one of the middle reading groups.

Why I Read: Communications Coordinator, Suzanne Loring

by Suzanne Loring 

I was quite a skilled eavesdropper by the time I was 13. You see, growing up in my house meant that each night before bed a story was told to each child in his/her own bedroom. It was a special time alone for each child with my mother at the helm of a book. Unbeknownst to my younger brother I used to sit in my bedroom doorway, well before my bedtime, and listen to his stories being read to him by my mom. It was in this doorway that I took my first and only wild ride in a giant, magical peach, and then traveled through a magical wardrobe and was introduced to the White Witch. 

Even though sitting in the doorway was magical, I couldn’t wait until it was my turn and my mother would read my story to me.With an open book and a voice as her only tools, my mother would transform my room into Orchard House in Concord, MA during the 1800s and the wonderful attic where my inspiration, Jo March, would write short stories.Or sometimes we found ourselves deep in the Ozark Mountains where the fate of two Redbone Coonhounds, Old Dan and Little Ann, changed my perspective on reading forever. This was the first time I cried when reading a book.

Why I Read: Founder and President, Blanche Podhajski

by Blanche Podhajski
 
I love literacy because of precious memories. My mother and big sister worked in beautiful stone buildings that housed the libraries in my home town. I remember them bringing home treasures of books they would read to me as a preschooler. 

That’s probably where my love of language began. Curious George, Madeline and Babar became as close friends to me as Ruthie who lived down the street.
 
Learning to read when I entered Kindergarten couldn’t happen fast enough. But I was disappointed just reading sight words like run, jump and Spot which characterized instruction in my educational era. I was so much more excited when Miss Avery taught us about “magic e” in first grade and then showed us how to rhyme by changing initial letter sounds. I was off and really reading!

I remember curling up into a chair a few years later with the entire Freddy the Pig series. I felt especially proud that I could decode the title of Freddy and the Ignormus. I enjoyed talking at the dinner table about what an “ignormus” might be.

Why I Read: Development Director, Ed Wilkens

by Ed Wilkens

Last night at our weekly dinner and chess rendezvous, my father handed me a scrap of yellowed vellum with the quote, "Richer than I you can never be. I had a mother who read to me"―Strickland Gillian, written in my great Aunt Josie’s hand.
 
“Because you inherited Mom’s love of reading and have made it your life’s work,” he said. “First with your own girls and now with their children, books always have mattered so much.”

I know raising a strong reader is much more than merely displaying and sharing a love of books, but I do believe that is how it begins. So, indulge me if you will, as I reflect on what that has meant to me. I’ll leave the technical and scientific accounts to those more knowledgeable and skilled than I, but I will claim both a love for reading and a mission to help others develop the same appreciation.