Books have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My love of books was no doubt helped along by the fact that I was the product of two teachers who enjoyed reading and learning as much as I did.
While I was attending elementary school in Claremont, my school on Sumner Avenue had an annual book fair. This fair provided the opportunity for students and their families to review and purchase not only newly published children's literature but used books as well.
I remember going to the book fair one year when I was quite little, maybe 3rd or 4th grade, and being amazed by the sheer volume of books available and all the different worlds that they opened up. All the books were laid out on long tables in the school auditorium, table after table after table, waiting for little fingers to pick them up. I saw all the tables and thought I was in heaven and suddenly had this insatiable urge to read them all. Lucky for me, my parents indulged me. I sought out and found a very large, lonely box lying around at the school, just waiting for a purpose, and started filling it up with all of the books I wanted to read. Biographies - fairy tales - stories about animals - stories about other countries - I wanted to read them all.
That day, I filled my box and took home all of my newfound treasures. I still remember how happy that made me. Eventually, before I left elementary school, I would devour every biography on the shelves in the library.