RIF book day in school

Do you remember the RIF Program? Each year in elementary school, our class would go to the school library where dozens of books would be set out on the tables. Each student was allowed to pick one book to keep.

A lot of my classmates had a hard time finding a book. They knew that no matter what they chose, they’d never read it. But who can pass up a free anything? And who wants to get caught with something dumb? I, on the other hand, had a hard time choosing because I wanted to read them all.

I remember in the fourth grade, I eagerly jumped on a copy of Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary. I had to grab this up before anyone else saw it. Then, as I was standing in line waiting to go back to our classroom, the boy in front of me turned around, looked down at my book, and asked, “Why’d you pick that one? We already read it.”

It was true. Earlier that year, we had read this book as a class. We’d each been given a copy to read for homework, discuss in English class, and take reading comprehension tests. Our teacher had talked it up beforehand saying, “you’re gonna love this one.” He was right. Even the non-readers got somewhat into it.

What do you mean you don’t read for fun?

Once we were finished with the book, we had to return our copies for next year’s class to read. So, I was excited by the opportunity to obtain a copy to keep. I assumed that everyone felt that way. You asked and answered all of those questions in class.  That must have meant that you liked it.

What I didn’t realize is that, while it wasn’t bad for school work, reading a book was not an activity these kids were going to do in their spare time. That would be like me asking to take home Mad Minutes math worksheets to do in my free time. It might be an entertaining activity to do at the beginning of class, but don’t ask me to pass up going to the pool on my summer break to sit down and bang out some arithmetic problems.

Reading, though, is a different story.

Striking a chord with Dear Mr. Henshaw

So, what’s the big deal about this book? Dear Mr. Henshaw is about a boy named Leigh Botts who writes to the author of a book that he had to read in class as part of a school project and ends up communicating back and forth with him. It’s very meta to read a book in class about a boy whose story begins with a book he was assigned to read for class.

The story is told through Leigh’s letters to Mr. Henshaw and slowly transitions into his diary entries after Henshaw gives him the brush off, urging him to write down his thoughts and feelings for himself rather than using him for free therapy. Cause despite his witty narration, Leigh is a lonely kid from a broken home. He can’t seem to make friends and misses his dog, Bandit, who is off trucking with his dad who forgets to call when he says he will and is usually late on the child support, but he’s still his hero.

Even though I wasn’t a child of divorce and had friends growing up, I related to Leigh, the aspiring writer who felt like he didn’t have anything in common with anyone but could be funny once you got to know him. I liked that this book was about a real kid with complex feelings and a small but interesting life. The two of us had a lot in common.

Realistic stories for kids

Most kids who read for fun gravitate toward fantasy. In my day, they would borrow books like The Hobbit and A Wrinkle in Time. Aside from horror fantasy, like the Goosebumps series, talking animal books like Charlotte’s Web, or quirky Roald Dahl novels, I struggled with fantasy. I had a hard time picturing new worlds, identifying with made up creatures, or understanding the rules of alternate realities.

When the Harry Potter series was released, I was elated by all of the reading it inspired. I thought I was a little old for the series until I found out that even adults were reading them. So, I decided to give them a try. But after reading one chapter and watching the first movie, I opted to cheer it on from the sidelines. You have fun with your wizards, guys. I’m more of a Superfudge fan when it comes to middle grade books.

Becoming a middle grade author

In Dear Mr. Henshaw, Leigh writes a short story based on his life, and it wins honorable mention in a writing contest at school. The prize is a lunch with a famous author. At the lunch, the author singles out Leigh’s story among all the winners and compliments its individuality.

Like Leigh, I knew from a young age that I wanted to be an author. More specifically, a childen’s author. And I wanted to write stories like Beverly Cleary, Louis Sachar, and Betsy Byars. I wanted to write for all of the kids like Leigh Botts who like stories about ordinary things told in an extraordinary way.

Two of my three self-published novels are stories about real kids dealing with real conflicts in the real world. It’s not the most popular form of middle grade storytelling, but in terms of being popular, why start now?

In the age of embracing diversity, I’d like to think that the reading world needs more than just straight fantasy. Maybe one day, a unicorn of a young reader will pick up one of my novels and feel as excited as I did about Dear Mr. Henshaw.

Buy it!

Buy a copy of Dear Mr. Henshaw here, and help support local bookstores! This is an affiliate link, and I will earn a commission on any sales.

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