Autobiography of a Reader

What’s Next?

SHOWTELL

Autobiography Scene 1

The carpet was red and round. At least twenty of us sat there, Indian style, as we called it back then, waiting for Mrs. Reinert, our round and smiling librarian, to introduce us to her latest selection.

Today, boys and girls,” she began, with a sugary enthusiasm that would have sounded insincere coming from just about anyone else, “we are going to read about a boy whose name is sooooo long, it creates big problems. Just wait until you see what happens! His name is Rickytickytembonosorembocherriberriruccipipberrypembo. Can you say that name with me?”

We did. It was the longest multisyllabic word we had ever uttered in our seven-year-old lives, and we loved it. It had the rhythm of a song and the absurdity of a circus. It was the first time I realized that words could do that, and authors could created orchestrated sounds out of words that could make us smile, even at dire circumstances – in this case the boy falls into a well! I don’t remember how the book ends, but I still remember his name. And Mrs. Reinert’s enthusiasm for reading it to us, her bright smile lighting up the room.

Some books are . . .

Lines to Build the “Telling” Bridges

• This book showed me . . . • I finally began to learn that . . .• Never before had I encountered. . .• This was a big step because . . . • I realized for the first time that . . . • It shaped me as a reader

because . . .

This book showed me that sometimes when you approach a book at the wrong time in life, it fails to make the powerful impression it is capable of making. I realized for the first time how much I was changing and growing as a reader, that my ninth grade self was only a piece of the adult reader. As I grew to know and understand more about people, the broader my appreciation became for literature. Since I’m still getting to know and understand more about people, that process never really ends.

Finish the sentnces:

• “Showing” helps us to . . .• “Telling” is bad when . . .• “Telling” is good when . . .

Autobiography of a _____________ Reader

Organization

A good conclusion should . . .

Conclusion Techniques

• Quote someone renowned; relate it to your experiences – “Ben Franklin once said . . .”

• Make a grand observation • Wordplay – “I spent my childhood saying ‘good

night’ to the moon and later running terrifying mazes before bed.”

• Return to the title; define or explore the adjective• Use a simile – “To me, reading is like . . .”