Best Bookish Moments Top Ten Tuesday

A Weekly Meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish

First off, it has been several weeks since I have been able to participate in this meme. It has just been so hectic that I have barely had a chance to write any blog posts, let alone participate in any weekly memes. I have been working on finishing up a couple reviews and hope to do so this week.

Here is my list:

Interacting with authors and publishers on Twitter. Social Media and all its platforms get bad raps and there are without a doubt those who use it for harm instead of good. What I treasure is just being able to connect with authors and publishers through Twitter (@scharle4). It has really changed the way authors, publishers, readers and librarians act with each other. 

Reading to my daughter as a baby and now as a beginning reader herself. The joy I have sharing books with my daughter is something I will never forget or stop doing. I fully admit I have to be careful because I don’t want to push her too hard and turn her off of books. I find it is a balance just like anything else in life. 

My first books I remember getting as a gift. I probably received books prior to this particular memory, but it definitely stands out. My aunt gave me a set of Boxcar children books to me for Christmas when I was in first grade. I devoured them! Probably from then on, I was hooked on reading. 

I have met two picture book authors—Jim Gill and Kevin Luthardt. Jim Gill is without a doubt one of my favorite performers and I just love sharing his book Soup Opera during storytime. My daughter loves the book so much she turned her music teacher onto it at her school. I would love to meet other authors, especially YA authors. I also would love to meet some of favorite adult authors too. I think that is a common dream most of us avid readers have. 

SummerTeen online webinar. I had the pleasure to attend the online webinar hosted by SLJ. Through it I got to interact with authors, publishers, librarians and readers virtually. I had a great time and I hope that it will happen again this year. Anytime I can chat with some many likeminded readers, it is one of the greatest experiences I could have. 

My childhood library. The library was a place of solace for me. I had a rough childhood and my public library and school library (middle school in particular) was a place I could escape to whenever I needed. I would be dropped off and stayed all day/night reading and doing homework. I later started to volunteer in my middle school library and then moved onto my first public library job in high school. I have not looked back since. :-D

Buying my first favorite book of all time. What can I say? I love to buy books. I remember my sister and I walked to the bookstore after my eight grade confirmation. I bought a book, which I still own today. It is one of those defining moments in my life I will never forget. 

The first time I wrote to an author. I actually never wrote to an author as an adult. Despite having loved reading my whole life, I did not reach out to an author until I wrote to Sarah Maclean about her young adult novel The Season. I was thrilled when she wrote me back! 

The first time a publisher sent me promotional materials. I cherish the opportunities to work with publishers, as I cannot help but get excited about promoting great books. 

My number one bookish moment: helping readers find the right book. As a librarian, my goal is always to find the right book for the right reader. There is a book out there for everyone and I relish the chance to help them find it. I remember when I left my last library to move to Michigan with my husband, how sad I was to leave. One of regulars came up to me to tell me how much he would miss me and how much it meant to him that I didn’t give up on him and helped find books he would want to read. It still gives me goose bumps when I think about it. 

What an interesting challenge this proved to be. I had to rack my brain as to what I would consider my top bookish moments. There definitely are some personal, childhood and professional moments on that list. To me, it really shows me how much books are a part of every facet of my life. 

Happy Reading!