Richard Wright and the Library Card

It's the last week of the semester, before finals.  My brain is running like crazy trying to keep up with everything I have to do.  It's been a rough week being sick, and with other chaotic things happening, but I think I am going to get through it!  This week I decided to read, "Richard Wright and the Library Card" by William Miller.  I was not really sure what to expect when I picked up this book, but by end of it, I realized that it would make a great book to read to my future students.

This is a story of Richard, a young man who loves to read and is seeking a new life for himself.  When he was growing up, his family never had much money, so he was never able to afford to buy books.  Being black, he was made fun of for even entering into a library.  As he works to earn enough money to move North, he meets a man who lends him his library card.  At first, Richard reads in the safety of his own bedroom, because he does not want to be made fun of.  However, as the story progresses, Richard does not care who sees him reading, because he absolutely loves it.

As I was reading "Richard Wright and the Library Card," I could not help but think about all the times that I take reading for granted.  This book reminded me that I am fortunate to be able to read and that I should not look at it as a chore but as a gift.  I think that this would be a great story to read with my future class, to help them view reading in a different light.  If I was to include more individual reading time in the day, I could see students complaining because they have to read so much.  However, I think that by reading this book, we could have an open discussion about why we should enjoy reading, instead of dread it.

This book could even be used to discuss Black History and the changes that have taken place since the Civil Right's Movement!  There are so many avenues that I could take with this story, and I cannot wait to incorporate it in my classroom.

Until...well, someday,

Ashley