An interview with a reader

Every so often, The Book Shelf will interview various readers, with the purpose to highlight and draw attention to the fact that everyone's reading journey is gloriously DIFFERENT. Being a reader is not defined by the number of novels you read, or even how 'deep' the content is. Here at The Book Shelf, we believe any type of reading is meaningful and that however you personally connect to the written word is a rich experience. Graphic novels? Fantastic! Classic sagas? Go for it! Magazine articles? Keep that subscription! Romance for the sake of the spice? Yes, and please pass it along afterwards . . .

Cozy up and enjoy the first in the series of 'An interview with a reader'. (And spoiler alert, this subject happens to be my FAVORITE reader.)

Q: Hello, reader! Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?

Owen: I'm 10, and I really like basketball and video games. Fall is my favorite season because of Halloween, and then my birthday and Thanksgiving. Then we have Christmas!

Q: What does being a reader mean to you?

Owen: It means that you like to read a lot and you would really read any type or style of a book. Yeah, I would say you read a lot.

Q: Where do you like to look or check out books when you go to the library?

Owen: I normally to the sports section, and to the chapter books. When I go to sports, I like to look for biographies on specific players and how, like, basketball history has evolved. If I'm looking at chapter books, it really depends what it's about and if it sounds good to me.

Q: Your teacher has a bookshelf in the back of her classroom. What book stood out to you most?

Owen: Can it be a book I brought from home to read in class? (Sure!)

It's The Unteachables by Gordon Korman. I use it for my main reading in school. We started it a long time ago, and I remember it being good, but I wanted to start it again and finish it. The rotating narrator makes the book better, a lot better. It would be boring if not.

Q: You have 30 minutes of reading homework each night; how does this make you feel?

Owen: (Laughs!) I don't really like reading when I'm told to read at home. I'd rather play or watch TV. Reading is fun when I can just pick up a book and start reading. Reading IS fun at school, though.

Q: What makes a 'good book' to you?

Owen: I would say for me, it probably has to involve a lot of characters, a lot of personalities. It should be like a video game level; each character has book time, but some have more than others. And an interesting story, there has to be a plot -- adventure, problems, something characters are finding.

And it also depends on the character; if I don't like the character, I won't want to read the story. For a book, you need someone you're rooting for.

Q: Is there any topic, reading wise, or book style that you don't care for?

Owen: I'm not a poetry guy, or stuff with rhyming. Not a humongous fan.

Q: What was the best book you have read independently? Why?

Owen: Probably a Diary of a Wimpy Kid book. I flew through that series. Chapter books have so many words and I like when pictures can describe things, too. I liked that there is a lot of action: at home, at school, at Greg's soccer practice. Something like that.

Q: What book experience that we shared together has been your favorite?

Owen: Holes (by Louis Sachar)! It was a really interesting book, like Fuzzy Mud. The reader always had to figure things out. It was consistent; once a reader figured out something, there was always something else a character was trying to fix or do.

Q: We read together many nights a week. I've noticed that while you will sometimes read to me, your prefer to be read to. Can you tell me more about that?

Owen: I don't know, I feel like I can focus more on the story that way. And I don't like reading out loud. I also feel like listening is easier. You know when you're reading a mystery book? It's easier to pick out the little things when you're listening to someone read.

Q: Where is your favorite place to read?

Owen: Anywhere indoors. Probably that chair you're in, because it can rock back and forth. So if I'm feeling edgy to move, I can. It also has to be quiet. Little background noises are fine, but not voices.

Q: Is there a book that you loved so much, you could read it more than once (or have)?

Owen: The Horrible Harry series!

Q: What are you currently reading? What do you think of these reading experiences so far?

Owen: The Unteachables in school, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (by J.K. Rowling) with you and Travel Team (by Mike Lupica) with Dad.

I like that our Harry Potter book has a lot of action. The first book was so good, and reading the sequel is really good, too. Yeah, a lot of action and because we read together, there are extra secrets I might not see as a standalone reader. Travel Team is fiction, just like Harry Potter; but one story can ACTUALLY happen, and the other can't. These books are a good combo to read at once because one is fantasy -- that 'whoa' feeling -- and the other is realistic.

Q: Are there any books you are looking forward to reading in the future?

Owen: More Harry Potter books, the later ones. And the new Diary book, Hot Mess!

Q: Lastly, The Book Shelf's mission is to make reading personal. How do YOU do this?

Owen: Reading by myself is personal. And if I'm reading with someone else, it's personal to both have different feelings about a character. Like maybe I'll like the character, but you don't, and we can both tell our opinions about that.