The Well-Read Woman

I've traveled the world twice over,
Met the famous; saints and sinners,
Poets and artists, kings and queens,
Old stars and hopeful beginners,
I've been where no-one's been before,
Learned secrets from writers and cooks
All with one library ticket
To the wonderful world of books.
~ Anonymous ~

I believe that reading was bred into me. Some of my earliest memories are sitting in my pajamas, pink curlers in my hair, listening with my siblings as my dad charmed us with the poetry of Nursery Rhymes. I started Kindergarten at age four, because I was already reading and my mom didn't want me to be bored. I loved to breathe the wonderful smell of a new book and often exceeded our limit of books at the library. Even now, one of my favorite treats is to know that I have a couple hours of uninterrupted reading ahead of me....especially if I have a good snack to munch on. I married into another reading family. We are now teaching a love of reading to our children.

Nathan and I recently read a book called the Thomas Jefferson Education which promotes the philosophy of teaching from the classics. We have started incorporating this philosophy in our homeschooling, and I have found myself learning in a new way. It is a thrill to re-read the stories of my youth to my children, anticipating their reactions. Almanzo proposed to Laura tonight, and my boys were a touch uncomfortable, but Nicole was thrilled.

There are a few books that I would consider all-time favorites because of the impact they had on me:

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

The Living by Annie Dillard

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

and The Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner

I love to read about relationships and how people interact. Psychology has always been fascinating to me. I love a book that makes you chew on a new concept for several weeks and sometimes for several years. I like a book that stretches me and even that I disagree with if it just gets me thinking. I'm glad to see my kids stretched out on the couch with a good book in their hands. I like discovering a new author who grips me.

I love discussing books almost as much as I love reading them. I've been part of a bookclub since before Brandon was born and have read a book a month just as part of those groups. There is even enjoyment in disagreeing over a book.

It is a privilege to be born into a society with a multitude of books at my fingertips.

I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.
Jorge Luis Borges