What Do the Books We Love Say About Us?

Encyclopedia Brown by Donald J. Sobol

Lately, I've been thinking about the books we loved as kids and how the mere mention of a favorite book can spark a moment of joyous nostalgia.

Case in point: Over the holidays, I shared some of my favorite reads with my newsletter subscribers. I received a flood of comments as folks waxed poetic about their love of Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, or The Babysitters Club, to name a few fan favorites.

For me, the hallmark book series of childhood is Donald J. Sobol's Encyclopedia Brown series. While many of my friends were reading Nancy Drew Mysteries (another fine collection!), I devoured the details that led the scrappy boy-wonder, Leroy, to solve mysteries.

To this day, when I see an Encyclopedia Brown book, I smile.

Knowing my love of the character Leroy Brown, my dear friend and fellow wordsmith, Kate Hollis, messaged me a picture of the Encyclopedia Brown book she borrowed from the library. Just like my newsletter subscribers, I couldn't help but reminisce about tearing through the series while perched in the corner of the Fall River Public Library, my signature hangout. I added that I had the great pleasure of reconnecting with my childhood librarian, Joyce P., a few years ago. She, too, recalled the image of me, huddled head-down, reading every last word of Sobol's and various other books.

Moments like these, when you get to relive a piece of childhood, are rare gifts as the years go on. I've learned to savor them as much as the written word that inspires them.

But what I found interesting extends beyond the joys of reading. I embody Leroy Brown-like traits in the way that I work as a writer. I seek information, look for facts, draw them all together to form a conclusion, tell a good story, or lately, debunk myths I read and hear in various aspects of my life. 

I'm also like Leroy Brown in that I retain various pieces of information that (sometimes, okay often) come in handy in my writing. For example, I know that a door will always swing in the direction of its hinges, thanks to Encyclopedia Brown. So random, yet there it is, stuck in my head forever. How I will use it is anyone's guess.

I feel a writing challenge coming on.