When Alice Ozma was 9 years old, her father made a promise to read to her every night without fail for one hundred nights. One hundred nights passed, and not wanting it to end, they agreed to make it 1000, and then to keep it going for as long as they possibly could. The reading "streak" as they called it lasted 3,218 nights, ending on her first day of college. Alice was so profoundly changed by this experience, that she made a commitment to spread the word about reading, and the importance of a reading promise.
Sometimes when I'm surfing the web and looking at blogs, I come across a review or an article that piques my interest. A few days ago, I stumbled upon an article featuring this wonderful book, and it's the kind of story that will especially resonate with anybody who loves books, and with anybody who ever enjoyed being read to. I was reading on my own at a very early age, but I still looked forward to the nights when my father would sit down on my bed with me and read me a bedtime story. I don't really remember how old I was when this ritual stopped, but after reading this book, I was suddenly nostalgic for those times.
Sometimes when I'm surfing the web and looking at blogs, I come across a review or an article that piques my interest. A few days ago, I stumbled upon an article featuring this wonderful book, and it's the kind of story that will especially resonate with anybody who loves books, and with anybody who ever enjoyed being read to. I was reading on my own at a very early age, but I still looked forward to the nights when my father would sit down on my bed with me and read me a bedtime story. I don't really remember how old I was when this ritual stopped, but after reading this book, I was suddenly nostalgic for those times.
This memoir is such a beautiful and uplifting tribute to the joy and value of books and reading in a time when the news is so riddled with stories of cuts to school library budgets. It is also the story of a wonderful bonding experience between a father and a daughter, and how reading together made them closer.
Alice is a terrific storyteller, and her warmth and passion for her subject is infectious. She talks about her father with tremendous affection, and it's clear that in her eyes, there could be no bigger hero. Being an elementary school librarian was not a job- it was a calling, and he sees nothing more valuable than sharing books with children.
In this series of humorous and touching vignettes, Alice celebrates both the extraordinary man who instilled in her a lifelong love of books, and the books that have contributed to making her who she is. Whether you write for children, work in a library or have ever had a special relationship with a parent this is the kind of book that will remind you of everything that you love about books, and make you want to grab your children and read to them right away. (Grown up or not!)
If you would like to know more about starting a reading streak and making a reading promise, visit the author's website- http://www.makeareadingpromise.com/.
Alice is a terrific storyteller, and her warmth and passion for her subject is infectious. She talks about her father with tremendous affection, and it's clear that in her eyes, there could be no bigger hero. Being an elementary school librarian was not a job- it was a calling, and he sees nothing more valuable than sharing books with children.
In this series of humorous and touching vignettes, Alice celebrates both the extraordinary man who instilled in her a lifelong love of books, and the books that have contributed to making her who she is. Whether you write for children, work in a library or have ever had a special relationship with a parent this is the kind of book that will remind you of everything that you love about books, and make you want to grab your children and read to them right away. (Grown up or not!)
If you would like to know more about starting a reading streak and making a reading promise, visit the author's website- http://www.makeareadingpromise.com/.
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