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What my second grade teacher said: “Connie reads as fast as a little red fire engine.”
My earliest favorite book that I still love: The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes by Du Bose Heyward.
 The story of a small country bunny with a big heart who aspires to be one of the Easter Bunny’s helpers. This book was written in 1939 (WAY before I was born) but remains in print today.
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My brothers’ favorite book that I liked too: Ol’ Paul: The Mighty Logger by Glen Rounds.
I have six brothers and we all grew up in Minnesota—Paul Bunyan country. My brothers enjoyed stories about Paul and his blue ox, Babe. So did I! I liked them so much I studied the genre of tall tales and wrote a thesis about them while I was at Vermont College getting a master’s degree in writing for children. Another favorite tall tale writer of mine is Sid Fleischman. I think his Farmer McBroom books are hilarious.
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My sister’s favorite book that I liked too: Owls in the Family by Farley Mowat.
Besides six generally wonderful brothers, I have one sister—YAY! Her favorite kid’s story is about two pet owls that cause lots of funny things to happen. My sister is an artist and an avid bird watcher. Sometimes she takes me on birding adventures. Our best outings have been to view hundreds of trumpeter swans on the Mississippi River and to see dozens of great gray owls during an “owl irruption” in Northern Minnesota. |
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Farm books close to my heart: My Antonia by Willa Cather, Tractor Day by Candice Ransom, A Year at Maple Hill Farm by Alice and Martin Provensen and Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
   
I spent some of the best times of my life on my grandmother’s farm near Red Cloud, Nebraska. Because this is the same area where the novelist Willa Cather grew up, and my great-grandparents were homesteaders, I read My Antonia more than once. This quote from the book describes how I feel about Nebraska: “Sunflower-bordered roads always seem to me the roads to freedom.”
The picture book, Tractor Day, captures the simple and exuberant joy I felt riding tractors, climbing haylofts, and exploring endless acres of fields and pastures with my family. These lines from E. B. White’s Charlotte’s Web (see next section) apply to the author of Tractor Day, Candice Ransom. “It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.” Candice is both, too. Check out her website at www.candiceransom.com
I didn’t discover A Year at Maple Hill Farm until I was an adult and read hundreds of picture books for my master’s degree. The rich detail, sly bits of humor and sensory features make this book a treasure.
All of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s books were childhood favorites, but the words of Little House on the Prairie came to life like no other book because of my experiences on the farm. |
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 A book I love to listen to: Another farm story—Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White. However, it was Stuart Little, also by E.B. White, that totally captured my imagination as a kid. I admired Stuart’s pluck and panache. Probably because I was short, scrawny and quiet as a mouse! Besides being a great story, Charlotte’s Web is well worth analyzing for construction, character and language. I especially like listening to the audio version read by the author. And did I mention I collect pigs? |
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Books Sarah, Renee and Phill (my children) couldn’t put down: My children are grown now, but these are books they’ll never forget, nor me. Sarah’s favorite is Cricket in Times Square by George Selden, Renee’s is Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright and Phill’s is The Truck Book by Harry McNaught.
  
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  A great dog story: The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford.
I’ve always liked dogs—need I say more? My dog’s name is Jo. Look for her in one of my future books, she’s a fishing dog. |
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  A book for the love of trees: The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
When I was growing up I liked to read in an elm tree in my backyard. It was quiet and pleasant there. Wherever I go I am interested in the trees. The Great Kapok Tree reminds us what a world without trees would be like. |
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An aha! book for me: Castles and Dragons is a collection of fairy tales my mother gave me when I was a child. In the book is a story written by Walter Hackett called The Swans of Ballycastle, which is based on an old Irish tale called The Children of Lir. It is a sweet and sad story about three children that are turned into swans by an evil stepmother. The setting is a seaside town in Northern Ireland, called Ballycastle, and the swan children swim to an island named Rathlin for refuge. Years later while driving the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland, I passed through the small town of Ballycastle. The story instantly popped into my head. I looked out across the bay and said, “That must be Rathlin Island,” and sure enough, it was—just as I remembered it from the story. What a magical moment to be in a storybook place that once seemed so exotic and far away!
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 Books for reading the West: Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson and Cowboy Bunnies by Christine Loomis.
Because I have two new granddaughters who live in Montana, I’m spending a lot of time there. Hattie Big Sky is a wonderful historical novel that takes place during World War I.
The book is part romance, part history and part adventure story set in Montana.
For much younger readers, Cowboy Bunnies is a day in the life of rabbits that play cowboy. It’s my favorite book to read to my granddaughters.
Well, that’s me by the books—up to now, anyway. Who knows what will strike my fancy next? The only sure thing is—there will be more great books to discover!
Heading to the library for more books!
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