\u201cReading books is an opportunity to try on the challenges of what it means to live a human life.\u201d<\/p>\n
-Sarah M. Zerwin in Point-less: An English Teacher\u2019s Guide to More Meaningful Grading <\/em>(p. 21)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 3, and my parents would read books to me at bedtime. (Love You Forever<\/em> by Robert Munsch)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 4, and I learned how to read my first book. (Ten Apples Up on Top<\/em> by Dr. Seuss)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 7, and I was still hiding behind mom\u2019s leg in the library staring at the shelves. (Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus<\/em> by Barbara Park)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 8, and I was able to pick out my own books, even though sometimes my mom had to steer me in the right direction. (Stink and the Incredible Super-Galactic Jawbreaker<\/em> by Megan McDonald)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 9, and my brother and I would swap books. (Captain Underpants<\/em> by Dave Pilkey and Diary of a Wimpy Kid<\/em> by Jeff Kinney)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 11, and things about my body started to change. (The Care and Keeping of You: The Body Book for Girls<\/em> by American Girl)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 14, and my friends and I would talk incessantly about every dystopian book we had our hands on. (The Hunger Games<\/em> by Suzanne Collins)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 15, and I discovered I was a feminist. (Girls and Sex<\/em> by Peggy Orenstein)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 19, and I got my heart broken for the first time. (It’s Called a Breakup Because It’s Broken: The Smart Girl’s Break-Up Buddy<\/em> by Greg Behrendt)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 19, and I began struggling with Generalized Anxiety Disorder. (Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle<\/em> by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 20, and I was isolated in my room because my parents had COVID. (The Handmaid\u2019s Tale<\/em> by Margaret Atwood)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 20, and my grandpa died. (Sorrow and Bliss<\/em> by Meg Mason)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 21, and I was thrown back into college life, still amidst a pandemic. (Olympus, Texas<\/em> by Stacey Swann)<\/p>\n Books were there when I was 21, and I was diagnosed with Binge Eating Disorder. (Body Kindness: Transform Your Health from the Inside Out\u2014and Never Say Diet Again <\/em>by Rebecca Scritchfield)<\/p>\n Books were there for every moment of my life, whether it was seemingly fleeting or consciously monumental. Books were there.<\/p>\n Books will be there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Katherine Christensen \u201cReading books is an opportunity to try on the challenges of what it means to live a human life.\u201d -Sarah M. Zerwin in Point-less: An English Teacher\u2019s Guide to More Meaningful Grading (p. 21) Books were there when I was 3, and my parents would read books to me at bedtime. (Love You… <\/p>\n