Dear Reader

Dear Reader Column -- April 14, 2021

Dear Reader,

Last week when I asked readers to share personal stories from their library, I noticed that several of the libraries mentioned were named, Carnegie. I have a vague recollection of learning in history class that Andrew Carnegie built libraries all over the US., but I decided I needed to know more, so thanks to several Google sites...

Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist who made his fortune in the US steel industry in the late 19th century and is one of the richest Americans in history. His philanthropic interests centered around the goals of education and world peace. Carnegie believed the establishment of free public libraries would make available to everyone a means of self-education.

Carnegie built 2,509 libraries between 1883 and 1929. More than half, 1,689, were built in the US and 660 more were built in the UK and Ireland. He also built libraries for communities in eleven other countries. Nearly all of Carnegie's libraries were built according to "the Carnegie formula," which required financial commitments for maintenance and operation from the town that received the donation. Amazingly, there were only a few public libraries in the world when, in 1881, Carnegie began to promote his idea.

Thanks to Andrew Carnegie, our libraries are a staple of our communities, and I was happy to host a National Library Week party last week at the book club--compete with giveaways. Here are the winners:

Keep Calm and Read Books phone/tablet stand: Gabriele K., Hall County Library System

Shhh, I'm reading, Owl tote bag: Pat R., Jean Rhein Central Branch Library

Handmade Pure Essential Oil Bath Bombs: Alyson N., Harris County Public Library

Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Paula K., Scott County Public Library
Debbie M., Shorewood High School Library
Sharon C., St Petersburg Public Library, North Branch

Winners of my recent book giveaway: Anthony M., Becky Y., Nancy P., Trudy M., Barb W., Nikki G., Martha A., Phyllis S., Hilda L., Reina R. and Sathiya M.

Readers share their (Carnegie) library memories...

"Dear Suzanne, each Saturday my mother and I would walk up the hilly street to the Carnegie library in Easton PA. A family was allowed to check out five books on one card. At first my mother would get two books and I would get three. Soon I wanted more so my mother finally marched up to the children's librarian and asked if I could have my own card. It was an unheard of request, since I was not attending school yet. Mother held her ground, the librarian sputtered and finally checked with her supervisor. Finally she returned and told us that I could have a card if I could print my name. No problem. I printed my first and last name and was given my own card. Later she told me that I was the youngest person to have a library card. I was not four years old yet. We happily marched home with our 10 books." -- Maris S.

"I grew up as a child in the small, northern Ohio town of Bellevue. My mom loved to read and taught my brother and me to love to read also. Our dad died when we were very young, and there was very little extra money in our home at the end of every month. Therefore, the local Carnegie-Stahl Public Library's annual culling sale was a huge event to us. The library would sort out books that were getting too worn or had been damaged, or beautiful books that hadn't been circulating well. These would be put out for a sale on a yearly basis. AND, most importantly (to us, anyhow!), each book was sold for a nickel. A nickel! I still remember the thrill of getting a whole quarter for each of us to spend at each year's sale. FIVE books could be purchased! I still have one of those books from one of those sales with the five cent price on it. And, yes the circle has gone fully around: I now help with the library's semi-annual sale in my own current community." -- Barbara R.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

KIDSBUZZ: It's National Poetry Month - check out A POEM IS A FIREFLY written by Charles Ghigna, a new picture book and "charming ode for beginning young bards" (Kirkus) that gets kids thinking about the wonder and magic of poetry. For a chance to win a free copy, to talk with the author, and more, click here. 

Dear Reader Column 04-09-2021

Dear Reader,

The party isn't quite over. We've been celebrating National Library Week every day with a fun giveaway. Today, for the big finale, I'm ready to bake. If you work at a library, be sure to enter today's Chocolate Chip Cookie Giveaway. If you're one of the three lucky winners, a batch of my homemade chocolate chip cookies will be delivered right to your front door. To see photos of past librarians and book club readers dunking and munching, and to enter, click here.

"Hi Suzanne, my library memory actually spans a number of years, beginning with my mother taking me to story time at my hometown (Carnegie) library. Mrs. McPherson was the children's librarian and I thought she had the very best job in the whole world. My love of library books and reading continued as I got older. I went to the library almost every week with my father, who was always reading at least two books at a time. He instilled in me a deep love of books, and he certainly led by example. Even after I went away to college, I continued going to the library with him when I was home. It was precious father/daughter time. No one (especially my dad), seemed at all surprised when I decided to pursue a master's degree in library science--a decision I have never regretted! Both of my parents are gone now, but their encouragement and love of books will always be with me. Thank you, Suzanne, for prompting this walk down memory lane!" -- Jane R.

"Dear Suzanne, I remember my childhood library like it was yesterday, and it's been 50 plus years since I've been there. I lived in Baltimore and my library was the Northwood branch of the Enoch Pratt Free Library. I would walk there sometimes by myself, sometimes with my younger brother... I could spend hours just looking and loving all the possibilities to explore and read. When I looked up the library to get the branch name, I saw that my walk was 1.1 miles each way, and my mother would let me just go by myself. Since we moved from that house when I was ten, I would have been pretty young making that trip. I'm sure it has been remodeled over the years, but I can still see the card catalog and the rows upon rows of shelving. Thanks for the prompt to bring back that memory. One of my great joys has always been to read with friends!" -- Sincerely, Mary S.

"Dear Suzanne, my hometown library in Cazenovia, NY had everything I needed as a young reader--a room full of children's books, plus a secret back corner where I could sit for hours and read books from the adult area, that the librarian wouldn't have let me check out yet. It even had a mummy upstairs! I lived close enough to walk there, and it was dark and cool inside during the long hot days of summer.

But I am even more appreciative of that same library now, which has grown to include an art gallery and special display area for the mummy. As my parents grew older they became avid patrons, bringing visiting grandchildren to select books, requesting interlibrary loans, and signing up for new releases. The staff of the Cazenovia Public Library have been unfailingly helpful. It's just my mom now, and I'm so thankful to the library for being supportive during her long year of pandemic isolation. When she called to ask about a poetry book that they didn't own, they bought it! She read from it nightly to her grandchildren in Miami and renewed it two or three times. Yesterday when I visited her, one of our errands was to return it.

I have so much admiration and respect for public library staff everywhere, who have stretched their services during this past year to continue to support their communities. Thank you to all of them." -- Jennifer G.

Thank you so much to everyone who shared library memories with me this week. I'll be posting the National Library Week winners next week in my column.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Celebrating National Library Week,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 04-08-2021

 
Dear Reader,

We're celebrating National Library Week this week with special giveaways for librarians and staff. If you work at a library, feel free to enter today's giveaway--perfect after a long day at the library--a tin of Handmade Pure Essential Oil Bath Bombs. To enter click here.

Readers share their library memories...

"I was a latch-key child from about age seven, since both my parents needed to work. I went to the library on my way home from school twice a week. The librarians kept me company, helped me with homework, and suggested wonderful stories for me. I truly think they saved me." -- Betty L.

"As a child I was a weekly visitor to our neighborhood library. It was a magical building which held the wonders of the world for me, presided over by a tiny woman, my librarian Mrs. Gillespie. Each Monday evening my whole family would walk down to the library where each of us would select the books for our week's reading. My two sisters and I would take our children's library cards and our chosen books to Mrs. Gillespie, who would check them out for us, generally talking to us about some of our choices. And when we returned them the next Monday, she would ask us about our experiences with those particular books.

On one Monday evening when I was ten years old, I chose a very different kind of book, one that had no pictures and was much longer than my regulars. It was He Went with Marco Polo and I had somewhere heard of an explorer named Marco Polo. Mrs. Gillespie commented that this didn't look like what I usually selected, and she hoped I would like it. Oh, but I did...I was entranced. The next week when I returned the book, she asked me if I had really read the whole book and I bubbled over. Leaning on top of her desk I explosively told her the whole story. She asked questions from time to time eliciting more and more details. When I finally ran out of words, Mrs. Gillespie asked me for my library card, then magic of magic, she handed me back my Adult library card. Now I could check out books from all parts of the library, not just the children's department. This wonderful lady led me into the truly magic land of reading everything. Thanks for bringing this back to my memory today." -- Judie H.

"Dear Suzanne, When I was in high school I decided I wanted to start making dinners at my house. My mom didn't have much interest in cooking, and she worked full time, so didn't have the time to cook either. I went to my very small neighborhood library and grabbed as many women's magazines as I could find. I wasn't allowed to check them out, so I brought lined paper and my sharp pencils and sat down to copy the recipes that sounded yummy. The nice library lady (which is what I called her back then), helped me find the magazines and showed a lot of interest in what I was up to. I did this once a week, for I can't remember how long. When I got home, my mom would add what I needed to the grocery list and I would try out the new recipes. I had great fun, my parents could relax a bit while I cooked, and we all enjoyed (mostly) my efforts. I don't have any of those recipes around, but I've always loved trying new dishes and now there are so many sources that I've given up using paper and pencil! Bon appetit," -- Linda F.

If you've had a memorable moment at the library, when you were a kid or all grown up, I'd love to hear about it. I bet the librarians who read at the book club would love to hear about it, too. Email your moments to: Suzanne@DearReader.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Celebrating National Library Week,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 04-07-2021

Dear Reader,

We're celebrating National Library Week this week with special giveaways for librarians and staff. If you work at a library, be sure to enter today's giveaway, for your own "Shhh, I'm reading," tote bag with an adorable owl wearing huge eyeglasses. It's a small token of our appreciation for everything you do. To enter please click here.

This week I'm asking folks who work at a library to share memorable moments and the creative ideas they've been implementing this past year, to keep their library open. Today I'd like to thank Lee and Charlotte for sharing some of their experiences with me.

"Suzanne, thank you for the librarian shout out! In my small town we have been open, closed, open for curbside, reduced hours, closed to the public and fully open; all within less than a year. It's been challenging to continue to serve the public while keeping them AND our staff safe. We're doing it. Programming has gone virtual and is finding a new audience that we normally wouldn't be able to reach. Our staff have remained vigilant and healthy. We still encounter those who refuse to wear a mask or laugh at our plastic barriers. That I don't understand. While we aren't considered essential, we very much feel like we are and find ourselves on the front lines. We are still here but we are also tired, anxious and stressed. So thank you for the recognition. It is much appreciated." -- Lee M.

"Thank you for your column about National Library Week. It's nice to know that our hard work has been seen and appreciated. During lockdown, the administrative librarians including myself took turns answering phones for all seven branches and the bookmobile that we serve. We answered questions, provided various places to go to get the services we normally provided and more. I assisted a lady in the purchase of a Kindle as we had increased our total number of digital materials by double. The following months, we had curbside service. We are just returning to somewhat normal, and thankfully we have done away with late fees on all materials. This was something we had hoped to provide to our customers. It's hard not to get attached to them, and we missed them while we were on lockdown. In August, I left my branch work to take a job at the Service Center where I catalog all of the new items we received and assist in maintaining collections in all branches. I was a school librarian for 18 of my 24 years in education, and I've worked for the public library system for 8 years now."-- Charlotte Nance, MS, Western Plains Library System

To celebrate National Library Week please tell me what creative ideas your amazing library staff has been doing this year to keep your library open. Or share a memorable moment. I'd love to hear about it and I'll share it with our book club readers. Email me at: Suzanne@DearReader.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Celebrating National Library Week,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 04-06-2021

Dear Reader,

We're celebrating National Library Week this week with special giveaways for librarians and staff. If you work at a library, feel free to enter today's giveaway for a black and white, Keep Calm and Read Books popsocket (phone/tablet stand). To enter click here.

If you've had a memorable moment at the library, when you were a kid or all grown up, I'd love to hear about it. I bet the librarians who read at the book club would love to hear about it, too. Email your moments to: Suzanne@DearReader.com

Today's guest author, Dena Douglas Hobbs, is a campus minister, writer and a mom who adores her two teenagers, two puppies, and a dachshund. She lives with her husband and family in the piney woods of middle Georgia. Dena and her husband, Jason co-authored When Anxiety Strikes: Help and Hope for Managing Your Storm.

In When Anxiety Strikes the Hobbs combine Jason's expertise as a therapist, with Dena's experience living with panic disorder to help others learn to manage their own anxiety. The book combines personal stories, therapeutic research, scripture, reflection questions, and practical daily exercises to help the reader heal from anxiety by making small changes over time.

Dena is giving away 5 copies of When Anxiety Strikes to book club readers. Enter the drawing, simply email: denadouglashobbs@gmail.com

Reawakening to Sunrise

Recently I adopted two puppies. Our thirteen-year-old hound dog had died and the hole he left behind was soul crushing. Sensing my sadness, my family took me to meet dogs at a local animal rescue. At first there was no spark. But then we met a puppy that melted my heart...and her sister that captivated my children.

Soon we had two 12-week-old puppies in our home. At first it was all cuddles and puppy kisses and love. The girls even went right to sleep in their crate that first night. But when the clock struck five the puppies were wide awake and needing to go outside. "Who gets up at five in the morning?" I asked my husband. I saw his sigh in the frosty morning air. "Puppies. That is who. And now we do too."

For the first couple of days, I grumbled my way through the five o'clock potty time. And the 5:30 after breakfast walk and the 6:30 "just to be sure" stroll around the yard. But as I adjusted to our new schedule, I began to wake up to what was around me. I marveled at the gorgeous full moon shining down on us. I traced the Big Dipper and Orion in the sky. Then I began to hear all the birds waking up around me. Their calls put a song in my own heart.

Before long I found myself looking forward to experiencing the day dawn each morning. I relished the crispness of the air, the beauty of the sky as it came alive, and the sounds of life stirring. The rising of each morning mimicked the rising of new life in me. Those puppies running around my feet were healing my heart and the daybreaks were healing my soul.

The funny thing is, I used to know the wonder of a sunrise. For several years, my job allowed me to watch the night turn into day. But somehow, I forgot how important this ritual is to my wellbeing. I forgot that marking the rhythms of the day and seasons helps keep my mind, body, and soul in tune.

So now when the puppies start whining first thing in the morning, I wipe the sleep from my eyes and prepare to greet the day. As we stand under the morning stars together, I reach down and pet the pups in gratitude. For they have reminded me that after darkness falls the sun always rises anew and that after every dying eventually there comes new life.

-- Dena Douglas Hobbs

Email Dena, denadouglashobbs@gmail.com, and welcome her to the book club, when you do you'll be entered in her drawing for one of five copies of When Anxiety Strikes: Help and Hope for Managing Your Storm, a book she co-authored with her husband, Jason.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 04-05-2021

Dear Reader,

It's a week-long celebration, National Library Week!

I grew up in a town of 2,000 people and the only librarian in town lived kitty-corner from us. Sadly, I don't remember her name any longer, but I do remember how helpful she was when I needed to find something at the library.

When you think about it, it's pretty amazing, especially in this day and age, and even with COVID, that you can walk into the library, and walk out with an armful of books to read--no charge! (Unless you're late returning the books--but even now some libraries have done away with late fees.)

This past year has been especially difficult for libraries and the dedicated library staff who have struggled to maintain operations during a pandemic, opening for drive-through service or having to shut down completely.

If your library is open, please take a minute to thank the librarians in your city. Drop off a handwritten note to any librarian and ask him/her to share it with everyone. Send an email, bake chocolate chip cookies, deliver a balloon along with a thank you note, or simply walk into the library, "bump-elbows" with a librarian and say, "Thank You. Happy National Library Week!"

If you've had a memorable moment at the library, when you were a kid or all grown up, I'd love to hear about it. I bet the librarians who read at the book club would love to hear about it, too. Email your moments to: Suzanne@DearReader.com

To celebrate National Library Week, I'll have giveaways for librarians and their staff. But today we are starting out with a chance to win a great collection of books and more from Penguin Random House. To enter the sweepstakes, click here.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Celebrating National Library Week,

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

Dear Reader Column 03-22-21

Dear Reader,

A reader at the book club, sent me a lovely email after reading last week's column, "Sometimes it's better to wait a day." I found her words the perfect inspiration to start the new week.

"Suzanne, one of Felicity's (now three and a half), more recent behaviors is being bossy. She will ask for something and we will say 'In a minute' or 'Please wait' and she will go on to say she needs ____ now and 'No, you should not say that!' My gut reaction is to yell at her or to instantly become very angry. Then I remember she is three. Felicity is testing us, testing her boundaries, testing what we will do, what she can get and when; figuring out her place in our little family.

I am not a patient person by nature, but I have learned the value of 'taking a minute'. Taking a minute means not yelling at my three year-old when she asks me the fourth time for something in two minutes. Taking a minute means thinking of my next step, taking a minute is the difference between a happy dinnertime, and one that ends in tears.

It is a little step that makes a big difference.

As I drink my coffee this morning, I once again travel to Sarasota and imagine you and I are sitting at the kitchen table with warm mugs in our hands, [taking a minute] and having a lovely conversation. There is an image to carry you through the day."

Tess C., Public Services Librarian
Lane Public Library

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

This month's Penguin Classics book is Unsung: Unheralded Narratives of American Slavery & Abolition, by The Schomburg Center. Start reading and enter for a chance to win a copy.

Dear Reader Column 03-16-2021

Dear Reader,

Layla AlAmmar is a writer and academic from Kuwait. She has a master's degree in creative writing from the University of Edinburgh. Layla was the 2018 British Council international writer in residence at the Small Wonder Short Story Festival. Her debut novel, The Pact We Made, was published in 2019. She is currently pursuing a PhD on the intersection of Arab women's fiction and literary trauma theory and her new novel, Silence Is a Sense highlights these subjects.

Please welcome today's guest author, Layla AIAmmar. You can reach her through her website: https://www.layla-alammar.com/contact

Layla has 5 copies of Silence Is a Sense to give away to readers. To enter the giveaway, send an email to: libraryteam@workman.com

Winters are fleeting in my home country of Kuwait. Springs, even more so. The desert nation sees temperatures between 90-120 degrees for most of the year, with winter lows getting to about 50 degrees (if we're lucky). So, when the temperature drops and the harsh gritty winds of summer give way to gentle breezes, Kuwaitis (who are extremely sociable by nature) really ramp up their gatherings.

Winter is for congregating around the duwa, which is a cart with a fire pit that we use for heating pots of tea spiced with saffron and cardamom or roasting chestnuts. It's for going on a keshta, a camping trip out into the desert where we lay out thick rugs and blankets and light a fire pit and talk and laugh and listen to music. Winters are for nights on the beach, hugging mugs of coffee and hot chocolate, lighting a fire...and well, you get the idea. Having spent the previous nine months avoiding the outside and moving from one air-conditioned space to another, we spend as much time outside as we can during those fleeting weeks.

As we head into our second year of the pandemic, in and out of lockdown, I fear these traditions may die away. Kuwait is quite no-nonsense in dealing with the virus, and lockdowns typically include curfews, which means that outdoor gatherings and mixing of households is strictly verboten. The restrictions have taken their toll, both individually and as a community. These rituals are important in our culture: it's a way for family and friends to maintain strong bonds; it's where news is shared and connections are made; it's how the fabric of society remains so tightly woven.

That the pandemic has changed things is inarguable, but in the collapse of all the things we thought we could depend on, new creative possibilities can and do emerge. Virtual calling means we can at least maintain visual contact with our loved ones. Online chat "rooms" allow us to reach out to people we might not have otherwise encountered. The focus of our attention has expanded outwards even as our personal spaces have constricted.

We're being forced to rethink the way our world is structured and perhaps, from that, new kinds of communities can come into being.

-- Layla AlAmmar
Enter Layla's book giveaway, you could win a copy of her new book Silence Is a Sense, send an email to: libraryteam@workman.com

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

* This month's Penguin Classics book is UNSUNG: Unheralded Narratives of American Slavery & Abolition, by The Schomburg Center. Start reading and enter for a chance to win a copy.

Dear Reader Column 02-24-2021

Dear Reader,

Reading your emails, readers, they always make my day. Thank you so much for writing. If you were one of my February Chocolate Chip Cookie winners, I sent the cookies yesterday. So watch for your 'tasty' delivery.

"Hi Suzanne, I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your Thursday, February 18, 'What's the Point' column about rescuing the squirrel. For some reason it struck a chord with me and certainly brightened this gray winter day! And also for some reason, it reminded me of a meme that I re-posted this morning (attributed to an author named Lynn Miclea):

"You drop something when you were younger, you just pick it up. When you're older and you drop something, you stare at it for a bit contemplating if you actually need it anymore."

I think it is another way of asking "What's the point". I think you do a great service to the reading public with your thoughtful and often amusing columns. I order adult fiction for our library and I will often order the [books you feature] books for our collection. Stay well and keep writing and sharing!" Sincerely, -- Beth S.

"The point is, Suzanne, that the Universe gave you an opportunity to be kind [to the squirrel]. You did not turn away and make excuses. That would have been easy. You enlisted your husband to also be kind. Then you were able to share your kindness with all of your readers. Perhaps it will have a ripple effect. Thank you." -- Sandy

(Readers reply from the 2/19 column.'Call me strange. I don't mind being labeled just a little bit crazy.')

"Suzanne, thank you for [writing your column], now I know I am normal. I so enjoy your emails and you make me feel like a person." -- Peggy

"Hello, Suzanne! Loved your email this morning!! My family has described me somewhat like what you wrote today. I'm 'really out there, odd, Bohemian'--but I've never taken offense. I like me (mostly). The only way I'm not quite spontaneous is in my writing. I'm usually serious and obsessive, searching for perfection in what I write.

As a result, it's sometimes tiresome and so I don't write as much as I really want to. But I recently read an article that has inspired me to be more free. Yes, it's about poetry writing, which I've delved into occasionally, but never with such fun. I sent it to my daughter who writes poetry and now she and I share back and forth as 'The Spirit moves us.' Thanks for letting me read with you. It IS good to read with friends!" -- Annmarie R.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

* Congratulations to the winners of Burying Daisy Doe by guest author Ramona Richards: Mildred A., Beverly D., Zada G., Pat H. and Virginia T.

Warmest regards,
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

Dear Reader Column 02-02-2021

Dear Reader,

Today's guest author, Ramona Richards, managed to turn her dreams of being a writer and editor into reality, publishing her first article at seventeen. She's the author of 11 books, including her recent suspense novel, Burying Daisy Doe, about a woman trying to solve two decades-old murders that destroyed her own family. Ramona lives outside Birmingham, Alabama. She'd love to hear from you. And when you email, you'll automatically be entered in Ramona's book giveaway. She has five copies of Burying Daisy Doe to give away to readers. You can reach her at: ramonarichardsauthor@gmail.com

The Lure of Imagination

I grew up before the advent of video games. In fact, I didn't see my first one until I was in college, and that was a bulky machine in the back of a gift shop. Asteroids. I found even that simple game--line drawings of a spaceship, missiles, and stars--fascinating because it sent my mind tripping through all the space opera novels and films I'd loved as a kid. Even as I tried to shoot rockets and protect my ship, I floated light years away into another universe.

Imagination is one of our most powerful intellectual tools. Dreaming of the "what ifs" fires up our ambitions and fuels innovation. It not only spurs novelists and other writers into action, it triggers actions that lead to inventions ranging from an ink pen to space exploration.

Imagination carries us far beyond the great inventions as well. While this past year has been rough (more so for some than others), I've witnessed great bursts of imagination as teachers innovated new ways to reach and engage students. As exhausted parents struggle to balance working from home, learning from home, and everyday tasks such as cooking meals and mowing the lawn. And it's not just necessity being the mother of invention--people are finding exceptionally creative ways to re-form their normal.

When I was six, my father--who was a long-haul trucker--brought home a wooden telephone cable spool, the kind people turn into tables. But for me, this monster in the backyard was just that--a monster to be defeated with swords made from tree branches or cannons created from wrapping paper tubes. It was a magnificent palomino to be ridden across the western plains or Amelia Earhart's red Lockheed 5B Vega. They were dreams of what might be waiting in my future, dreams fueled by books that sent me searching for yet more books.

Of course, after standing on that spool, the wind thrashing through my hair as I sped across the ocean in a clipper ship, I had to climb down and go inside to set the table and do my homework. But I never stopped dreaming. It drove me to study a wide variety of subjects--and eventually to becoming a writer.

And I found--as so many of us have this past year--that when life is at its most difficult, it is our imagination and innovations that keep us striving toward a hopeful future.

-- Ramona Richards

Email ramonarichardsauthor@gmail.com and when you do you'll be entered in her drawing for one of five copies of her new book, Burying Daisy Doe.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.

CHERISH ME (Fiction) by J. Kenner

This is a special story. A holiday tale that I admit I based on one of the movies we watch every Christmas season in my house. There's danger and romance, and without a holiday miracle, Nikki may never get to tell Damien the secret she's been saving to tell him during this special holiday. Win one of five copies I'm giving away. Click on the link to Authorbuzz and the book jacket to enter.

Go to: AUTHORBUZZ click on CHERISH ME to read more and to email author J. Kenner, you'll get a reply.