At dinner this evening, I read aloud from Guys Read: Funny Business by Jon Scieszka, specifically the entry by Kate DiCamillo & Jon Scieszka entitled "Your Question for Author Here." My three teenage boys' interest piqued quickly as Joe Jones's straightforward, if not perfunctory, letters revealed a boy reluctantly responding to a teacher's assignment. Fictitious author Maureen O'Toople's witty responses soon had them laughing aloud. They quieted when I read Joe's haiku poem and gasped when his teacher gave him a C- on the author research assignment. The boys needed to leave for an event, but we were so close to the selection's end. "There are only four pages left," one pleaded. I kept reading till the end. As Maureen encouraged her new writing pal Joe to continue writing his book, the boys' satisfaction in a story well-told resonated around the table.
What a moment...gotta love a family where reading to the end of the tale is a perfectly good reason for being late for an event.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read FUNNY BUSINESS yet, but I will have to get it from the library, if for no other reason than to read the story you cited (DEAR MR. HENSHAW is one of my all-time favorite books). I have a collection of my favorite author letters over the years, such as the one that ends "You are absolutely the best author I have ever met in my entire life! Actually, I've only met one author, and that would be you."
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