Nov. 21: List a book you are thankful to have read and how it have inspired you to be better at what you do.
Several years ago I picked up Markus Zusak's I Am the Messenger at a chain bookstore. It transformed the way I view young adult literature. Prior to this I had read several YA novels, but this book moved me in a way I cannot fully articulate. I grew so attached to Ed and his friends. I cried and laughed out loud. In a way the concept reminded me a bit of Amelie, one of my favorite films. Honestly, the book made me itchy to impact the life of the heavily-pierced checkout girl at SummerFresh, to spread some random joy to the Spanish-speaking janitor who washed my board each day, to climb into the skin of my most angst-filled students. Over the span of several weeks, my worn copy became a read-aloud for my 10th grade English students. They, too, were eager to start a new chapter each day, to find out whom Ed would help next. They, too, were enchanted by the working-class voice of these characters whose lives, in many ways, mirrored their own. Like me, they melted when Ed and Audrey shared their dance. This book sparked a fire for reading in many of my most reluctant readers who didn't know that a book like that even existed. I Am the Messenger made us a reading community. When we finished, we sent Mr. Zusak an email letting him know just how much we loved the book, how we thought it would be perfect for a movie version. Their pulsing excitement when he kindly replied to our email was palpable. The flame for reading grew, for them and for me. And I learned the powerful lesson that the right book in the right hands can change the world.
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September 2020
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