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Learned to Read
I learned to read from reading poetry. The words felt extremely complicated and I had extreme difficulties. However, I did eventually get through it. -
Met Ruth Heller
I don't remember when I began to love reading. My first favorite author was Ruth Heller. I got to meet her at a field trip and had my favorite book signed by her: The Egyptian Cinderella. -
STAR Reading Assessment
I had my first punishment: no recess. I had not been doing any of my STAR reading tests. I felt they were undermining my abilities (by 4th grade I was in a 7th grade reading level). After a parent teacher conference my teacher agreed to let me read an advanced book, take 1 test, and be done for the year. -
Harry Potter
I have already thoroughly loved reading by now. I love(d) going to new worlds. I was rebelling against the mainstream, however I fell into the Harry Potter universe, and have been a member since. -
Shannara Series and Lord of the Rings
After watching the first Lord of the Rings movie, I was inspired for a new genre: high fantasy. My dads friend gave me a copy of The Sword of Shannara. I read it over a summer, and it became my forever favorite book and series. -
A Dream within a Dream
In 8th grade I became depressed. Bullying was common place for me, and I was on numerous medications for my health. Edgar Allen Poe was studied in this year, and poetry was brought back into my educational experience. After being told to select a poem to share, I chose this one as it spoke to me. I felt that this poem literally explained all my thoughts and fears. -
Manga
Starting in 4th grade I got into anime (not truly understanding what that meant or was). I never talked about it with anyone, for fear of giving people another reason to bully me. However, by my junior year I didn't care what people thought about of my interests. I finally dabbled into collecting manga rather than just sticking to their anime counter parts. Fruits Basket was the first to be added to my collection, and I also head to learn to read backwards, as is Japanese style. -
Grendel
The first time I read Grendel (9th grade), I loved the book. There weren't many books I was forced to read that I enjoyed, but this one I very much so did and was the first school book I bought to keep. Since school I have read it many times over. However, in 2005 I hated the book. This year I had eye surgery. I had many accommodations that needed to be met because I had to relearn how to read and Grendel was the subject. My English teacher refused to meet my needs and failed me on the unit. -
New Discourse with Crime and Punishment
Due to my reading level, I ended up skipping 3 years of English classes. In my senior year of high school I took ENG 101 instead of the regular course. I struggled, solely due to lack of interest in the book selection. Crime and Punishment changed that, and opened the door to psychology. -
The Kindle and beyond high school
To help support my love for reading, while saving up on space, my husband got me a kindle for my birthday. I am now up to 12,000 books for my kindle, and 200 or more physical books I have collected over the years.
