Slice of Life: Confessions of a Book Lover!

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice" 

to the Tuesday Slice of Life (SOL) community.

Thanks to Stacey, Betsy, Dana, Beth, Kathleen, Deb, Lisa, and Melanie

                    for hosting this meeting place each Tuesday and nurturing our writing lives.

I couldn't believe it! The first time I visited my son and his wife in Virginia I discovered that their apartment was just around the corner from a public library (and he hadn't been there).  The next time I visited, I told him that one of the things I definitely wanted to do was to check out that library that was just around the corner from him.  Time got away from us and soon I was leaving without that visit to the library.  During my recent visit to their place after Teddy's birth, four of us visited that library just around the corner  - Stefi, Blake, Teddy, and me. Blake got a library card.  I was thrilled to discover a wonderful children's collection and an event for young families occurring during our visit.  

As the four of us stepped into the elevator with another family of four (mom, toddler, and two sisters), I couldn't resist asking the girls what they were reading this summer.  The mom smiled and said, "That's why we're here.  They are supposed to find some good books while I go with this one to story time."  

As we stepped off the elevator, my son gave me a look that said, "Mom, leave those girls alone."  He headed off to the adult section and I stepped into the MG/YA section.  They had a wonderful selection of new books, and I couldn't resist pulling a few off the shelf to share with the two girls I'd met in the elevator.  By the time we left, we had talked about several books they had read, and I left them with several possible good reads for the summer.  Their names?  Amran (a 5th grader) and Absi (an 8th grader).  Absi mentioned that she loved The Fault in Our Stars.  I just finished a book she might enjoy, Swing Sideways, by Nanci Turner Steveson.  Amran left with Wonder, a book highly recommended by her sister.   Other titles I recommended:  The Penderwicks, Summerlost, The Lions of Little Rock, One for the Murphys, The War that Saved My Life, and The Honest Truth.  

And even though we were very busy getting acquainted with Teddy during our visit, I managed to sneak in a visit to a wonderful indie bookstore, Hooray for Books, that I discovered on a previous visit.  I must admit that Teddy already has a healthy book collection, but I wanted to add another title or two from Grandma's first visit.  After much consideration, I came home with Jerry Pinkney's beautifully illustrated board book Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and This Little President:  A Presidential Primer, published in 2016, the year of Teddy's birth.  One of the presidents highlighted is (of course) Theodore Roosevelt.  

And there you have it, three ways I promoted books during my recent trip to VA.  And that doesn't even include #4:  a Face Time visit during a Books, Brownies, and Beyond summer book club meeting (more about that next week).