A book is like a garden, carried in the pocket--Chinese Proverb

"Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and all the nooks." -Dr. Seuss

Dr. Laura Zaidmen, who lost her battle to breast cancer in 2005, is responsible for my discovery of the beloved Harry Potter series. I was taking a Children's Lit Class from her at the University of South Carolina Sumter and we had to write a paper on a controversy found in Children's Literature (i.e. banning books, or scary messages, etc.). She suggested I look into the uproar in the Bible Belt surrounding Harry Potter, so I started reading articles on the topic and was amazed to see such venom from parents and communities about a book! I thought, "What on earth could be in THIS book?" Once I picked up the first one, I could not put it down! Once I started writing the paper, I couldn't get my thoughts out fast enough and I wondered many times if any of the people calling for the banning of those books had even bothered to read them. The conclusion to my findings was two-fold: books that inspire so many children to fall in love with reading are more magical than any wand or spell could ever be; and censorship can be a very dangerous thing.

In the Harry Potter series, which I devoured as fast as I could read them, I found a new love for reading and the strongest message I took with me from them is that we all have light and dark inside of us. The real importance is what we choose to do with them that matters. If we choose the dark, we become misshapen and twisted and devoid of love. If we choose the light, there is no obstacle we can't overcome and no fear we can't conquer.

As I dove into The Hunger Games series with my students, I was struck with how deeply the message of standing up for what's right even when it's difficult, potentially dangerous, is worth living, fighting, and dying for. And later, with the Divergent series,I was delighted to find messages of compassion, tolerance and love woven into the words on nearly every page. Courage, bravery, and intellect are important, but meaningless if we lose our humanity and our ability to love those like us, as well as those who are very different. What great messages to send to our youth! May we, as adults, remember to live in a way that exemplifies these messages, so that our lives reflect these values.

To Little Man, who has great taste in books:
If I were your teacher, I'd tell you how delighted I am that you have learned at such a young age the joy and magic of reading. If I were your mother, I'd say you are surrounded by love. Let the love that shines inside of you touch all that you do, all that you say, and all whom you meet today, tomorrow, and always. Mark the moments in your life that are special because no "thing" will ever fill you with joy the way an amazing experience can. Hold those lessons tight, and when the time comes, you will know what a good man is and how to become one.

---