As a new school librarian, my friends assumed that I was incredibly well-read - all genres, age levels, topics, etc. - one of the many myths perpetuating the stereotypical librarian - albeit not a negative or derogatory one.
This led to a conversation about an article in the Chicago Tribune. Had I seen this book review that gave a glowing account of this new children's author who was writing an amazing series about a young boy wizard? It's supposed to be the next "big" thing.
October 18, 1998 I purchased my first for $15.25 on Amazon. I was living in Oak Park, IL and I had just finished my library degree 3 months earlier. Working with high school students for the first time, I immediately had a connection, a commonality that bridged the divide between teacher and student.
I was there when it started. Parents wanted me to remove it from the shelves, or not let their child check it out. I saw people from 4 to 84 get tuned it and turned on to reading. Family members thought it was evil. A masterful reading of the tale, the audio version with Jim Dale narrating taught me how to pronounce the spells and place names and start my love of audio books. I went to a midnight first viewing of the movie with my students. I have a partner that I met in 2006 who is an equal if not slightly greater fan than I.
July 16, 2011 - I have Gold Class Tickets to the last "first time" of this series. It will always be in my life. What a treasure.
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