| I love to read. It's been a passion of mine | | | | harder these days to find a fiction writer |
| since the fourth grade and I owe it all to | | | | that I really like. And last week I found a |
| Mrs. Crabtree, my childhood next door | | | | new one -- at least new to me though he's |
| neighbor. My mother, brother and I moved to | | | | been around for many years, but somehow our |
| Raleigh NC about a year after my dad passed | | | | paths had never crossed.In our local |
| away from a sudden and unexpected heart | | | | library's foyer, there is a small bookcase |
| attack. It left us all pretty traumatized. | | | | where they keep a steady stream of used books |
| I remember the first summer we moved to | | | | for sale for the outrageous price of 25 |
| Raleigh, I was driving my mom crazy. Not | | | | cents. That's where I found MATILDA by Paul |
| knowing anyone in the neighborhood, I kept | | | | Gallico. I picked it up a couple months ago |
| bugging her to be my playmate.Evidently, Mrs. | | | | figuring one day I'd get around to giving it |
| Crabtree noticed this and took pity on my | | | | a try, which I did about a week ago. Bear |
| mom. As the children's librarian for the | | | | trap time again. I found the storyline to be |
| Raleigh library, she knew the solution. One | | | | quirky, humorous and refreshing. (Matilda is |
| day there magically appeared in our living | | | | a kangaroo who becomes an amazing |
| room a tall stack of books. My mom | | | | middleweight boxing champion.)And the best of |
| encouraged me to give them a try, but I had | | | | all good news! Gallico has written at least |
| no interest in reading at that point, so they | | | | 18 other books.I borrowed THE MAN WHO WAS |
| sat on my bedside table for about a week. | | | | MAGIC from the library this past week and |
| Finally, desperate for something to do, I | | | | finished it in less than 48 hours. Tonight, |
| picked up the top one. It was like a bear | | | | I'm going to give MANXMOUSE: the Mouse who |
| trap snapping closed on me. In over 45 years | | | | Knew No Fear a try. In my 5 minutes of |
| it's never let go. Mrs. Crabtree knew what a | | | | research -- ( that I did to write this |
| young boy would love, and provided me with a | | | | personal reflection, I learned that Gallico |
| steady stream of books -- Danny Dunn and the | | | | died in Antibes on 15th July, 1976, just |
| Homework Machine, Black Beauty, Tom Swift | | | | short of his 79th birthday. A couple other of |
| and...Well just about anything related to Tom | | | | his well known books include THE SNOW GOOSE |
| Swift I loved.I share this now because one of | | | | and MRS. 'ARRIS GOES TO PARIS. No doubt I'll |
| the things I most love is to discover a new | | | | get to those in due course.)Thank you Mrs. |
| author, fiction or nonfiction, it doesn't | | | | Crabtree, wherever you may be. You started |
| matter. I love all of it, but it seems | | | | me on a habit over which I'll never get. |