Here's what I wish you all this holiday season -- good health, a good book to read and good company. And also, as a special treat -- some hugs from kids.
This morning I was invited to Centre Rockland to do a reading for kids (and yes, I got some holiday hugs -- more on that later). The plan was to read from my new novel Christmas Weekend, but I packed a few other books just in case -- which was a good thing because my audience was younger than we expected.
I ended up telling kids the story of the monkey man charm I wear around my neck -- and I read them a little from my picture book, The Brass Charm. The kids were interested in the story and eager to see Marie Lafrance's wonderful illustrations.
Also, because I can't resist being a writing teacher, even with mostly pre-school aged kids (!!), I shared some writing tips. We even did a quick exercise!! I asked the kids to think of two words -- one to describe how yesterday was, and another to describe how they want today to be. Aurèle came up with the word "cold" to describe yesterday, and the word "garage" to describe today. His mom Vanessa told me that Aurèle loves hanging out in their garage. Aurèle added, "I have a big garage at home."
I was most impressed by Marius, who was there with his dad and his sisters Lilly and Marion. At five years old, Marius was the oldest member of the audience (not counting the adults!). When I warned the kids that I was about to give them a little lesson (a bit like in school!), Marius called out: "I like that!" Later he told me that he loves nightmares -- I thought that would make a great story: a kid who loves nightmares!
Two lovely sisters in matching princess dresses showed up partway through my talk. When I asked their names, the older sister said what sounded to me like "Adélia." But then their mom explained their names are "Adèle" and "Léa." This also gave me an idea for a story -- two sisters who go by a shared name that combines both their names -- like "Adélia"!
My favourite part of my day happened at the very end of my presentation... here's why. First Adèle came over to tell me, "C'était une très bonne histoire" (which made me very proud). But better still, I suddenly felt six small arms around me. I was being hugged by "Adélia" (that's both sisters) and by Marius. Which was pretty much the best feeling in the world. And even though it's now about four hours later, I'm still smiling when I remember it!
On Wednesday morning at 11 AM my friend pic book author Andrew Katz will be at Rockland to read from his newest picture book. If you know parents with kids who live nearby tell them to go and have a listen.
Many thanks to author Connie Guzzo-McParland, to Rockland Centre's marketing director Karen Galena, to Rockland Centre and Minimod Coiffure for organizing this holiday reading series. Special thanks to the parents who shared their kids with me today. Happy holidays to all of you!