The gift of place

Last night, I was part of 25,000 US book givers selected to give away 500,000 special edition books as part of an effort by World Book Night to promote reading and books to reluctant readers.

I am not a reluctant reader. I am reluctant to mop my floors, walk the dog in freezing weather, eat Brussels sprouts, and try on bathing suits. But, reading is always something I love to do.

I know some reluctant readers though. My beautiful, brilliant sister preferred trying on bathing suits to reading, at least until she got her hands on Harry Potter books years ago. Suddenly, she was engaged and unstoppable, plowing through those enormous books one after the other. This is the power of a good book.

20 beautiful copies to give.

There were 30 amazing titles being offered to givers this year, some of them young adult titles including THE HUNGER GAMES. I chose Laurie Halse Anderson's WINTERGIRLS, the story of Lia and her best friend Cassie and their endless struggle with eating disorders.

WINTERGIRLS is not an easy read. The subject matter is grim and Anderson's portrayal of Lia's struggle is honest and brutal to endure. Why give this book?

Sometimes we read books to escape. But sometimes we read them to find our place.

I gave my books to teens living at Fairbanks an addiction treatment center. Each of these kids knows what it is like to wake each morning and face insurmountable obstacles. Each of these kids knows what it is like to want to disappear, sink into a winterland where everything, including pain, freezes. Each of them feels alien and alone.

Perhaps one of them will find a place in WINTERGIRLS - a place of hope, no matter how small, that they have the power to take back their own lives.

Special thanks to Kids Ink, my local bookseller.

I'm so grateful to the authors, publishers, libraries, booksellers, and donors who made World Book Night a possibility. Thank you for giving to those who have never known the power of story.