Around the World…magically.
“One story. Then it’s bedtime.” That was the deal I tried to negotiate every evening when Bree was a little girl. She would smile enigmatically and disappear for an inordinate amount of time which I let pass only because it was filled with much needed peace and quiet. Eventually she would return, her arms piled with books from her fingertips to her chin. Needless to say, “bedtime” was not a hard and fast number on the clock in our house. But bending the rules produced beautiful benefits. Not only did Bree become a voracious reader. She became an inspired writer as well.
Finished copies of our first co-authored picture book arrived this week. My greatest joy came from watching my granddaughter read ALL AROUND THE WORLD to her little brother. As Yogi Berra said, “It was déjà vu all over again”. The following day I tried to coax my grandson to nap by reading his book of choice. We snuggled up to journey around the world in our dreams. When the book, and his eyes, were closed, he snuggled in closer and said, “Mom-mom…I can’t wait to travel all around the world with you.” My heart exploded with joy. Ah, the magic of books. Then, he snuggled up even tighter and in a dreamy voice, added, “Maybe Saturday.”
Ah, the wonder of a child’s mind.
Gina Cascone is the co-author/TV script writer of DEADTIME STORIES (Tor). She has been a writer for 17th Street, Parachute Press, and other series. She has written GHOSTS OF FEAR STREET, ANIMORPHS, SWEET VALLEY JUNIOR HIGH, teen thrillers, and humor books. She is also the co-author of three teen thrillers and the author of two well-received memoirs, PAGAN BABIES AND OTHER CATHOLIC MEMORIES and LIFE AL DENTE: Laughter and Love in an Italian American Family. Her most recent picturebook, AROUND THE WORLD RIGHT NOW (Sleeping Bear Press), is co-authored by her daughter, Bryony Williams Sheppard. She has two grown children, two grandchildren and lives near Princeton, NJ with her husband and three cats.