When we meet and I discover that we have read and loved the same books, we are instant friends.

I am a reader, a flashlight-under-the-covers, carries-a-book-everywhere-I-go​, don't-look-at-my-Amazon-bill. I choose purses based on whether I can cram a paperback into them, and my books are the first items I pack into a suitcase. I am the person who family and friends call when they need a book recommendation or cannot remember who wrote Heidi. My identity as a person is so entwined with my love of reading and books that I cannot separate the two.

Failure is not an option, so why talk about it?

Our children shouldn't have to wait for adulthood to become wild readers. For many, it will be too late.

Students need to make their own choices about reading material and writing topics.

Exposing students to lots of books and positive reading experiences while building a network of other readers who support each other provides students with tools that last beyond the classroom setting.

When we meet and I discover that we have read and loved the same books, we are instant friends.