Students in Ogdensburg, NY, are book doctors, librarians, and consistent readers thanks to a district-wide reading approach that encourages them to explore nearly any topic from books available in their classroom library. Their teacher builds the lessons around the books students choose. […]
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Born to an Afghan father and American mother, Tamim Ansary navigated the complexity of identity from an early age. When the worlds of east and west collided in the deadly terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, his unique perspective was called upon to help make sense of culture in the midst of tragedy. […]
A result of decades-long chain migration, Lowell, Massachusetts, has one of the largest Cambodian refugee populations in the United States. Their front, back, and side yards are filled with lush, productive gardens. Along with those seeds, they are planting the story of their survival. As the crops grow and the refugees harvest, Phakdey Yous and Kristin Strobel gather the stories of what the refugees endured and why these crops are so important. […]
Can reading books cure what ails you? Perhaps not the flu or the common cold, but people have followed a “books as medicine” mantra for centuries using a technique called bibliotherapy. Dating back to ancient Greece, the practice has evolved for the modern age, helping children cope with strong emotions and learn empathy and allowing adults to explore their own inner worlds in a way that is as simple as reading a story. […]
Poetry is the perfect companion for readers struggling to find the commitment and capacity for lengthy reading. It is a calming, accessible, and digestible choice. Readers can sample poetry in a mere seventeen syllables or feast on an anthology. Poets have a special way of making meaning from the mundane and inspiring mindfulness. Poets Kelsi Folsom and Nicole Gulotta have both pursued reading and writing poetry as a grounding practice and offer suggestions for timeless literary nourishment. […]
There are many, varied methods of organizing home libraries: decorative and colorful, aided by a digital system, bins for easy access by young readers, or cataloged by author, alphabet, or call number. What is your favorite way to organize and display your book collection? What does your preferred style say about you? […]
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A good book is an excellent vehicle for exploration. Literary journeys offer an array of imaginative destinations, from the realistic to the fantastic. In this edition of Reader’s Write, we asked readers to tell us about their favorite places to visit in the pages of a book and to describe how authors create these enjoyable and believable literary locations. […]
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The books we read often change the way we view ourselves and the world around us. What better year than 2020 for clarity of vision, and what better way to achieve clarity than by reading good books? In this first Readers Write of the new year and new decade, readers talk about books they found to be eye-opening and transformative, in a variety of genres from self-help to children’s fiction. […]
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