Sharing the Fun

Last week I visited two great schools, full of enthusiastic readers. Both local, which is my favorite thing to do this wintry season.

Do you know what a charming little place DUNEDIN, Florida is?  

(I've spent days wandering around Dunedin, visualizing a different, fictitious place for my next book. Hint: Dunedin and Destiny are a bit alike!)
 
When the librarian at Curtis Fundamental School in Dunedin contacted me way last summer inviting me to visit, her email was the very first I received after GLORY BE was selected for the Sunshine Readers list. 

Who could resist an invitation with sentences like these:
Thank you for providing us with your historically accurate, beautifully written narrative about family and community support systems, and a very timely teaching tool! I know our students at Curtis would gain valuable knowledge and insight about the historical fiction writing process.

Of course I said yes. And now I have a new friend of my very favorite sort. Librarians who love books.

 Her school has won the Battle of the Books trophy! Two years running!

I came home with flowers, Bridge Mix, and neat bookmarks, and I signed a big stack of books.

(Jennifer, a teacher with a whole bunch of stickies in her copy of Glory Be. Actually, many of the teachers, volunteers and especially librarian Jan Hager had read and prepared the students so well. Thank you Curtis Fundamental School!)


An Aside:Dunedin has a whole lot of Little Free Libraries. 
I need to go back to see them. 
Here's the link. 

There's also a beautiful public library. Some of the Dunedin librarians came to visit and gave me this eye-catching necklace- It's a bookshelf!
Can't wait to wear it on my next school visit.

Earlier in the week I got to spend a little time with another Pinellas County school. Sutherland Elementary in Palm Harbor. Librarian Jackie Keller invited the special kids who'd read all the Battle of the Books books to a pizza party. 
Wow. Impressive!

I shared my GLORY BE stickers. 
These two turned theirs into a tiny book. 
I loved hanging out with these clever kids!
(and the Godiva chocolate was nice, too...)