CHATTING WITH H.H. POOLE MIDDLE SCHOOL

Sudents at H.H. Poole Middle School have read BLUE. In preparation for my April visit, they sent me some questions. I am going to dribble the answers out here over the next several posts.

Feel free to lurk while we chat.

I'll begin with a few of the personal questions they sent me. (and if you click on the ABOUT ME link at the top of the page you'll see me as I really am -sort of)

1. What are your other favorite foods besides banana bread and dark chocolate? Do you like potatoes?

I love potatoes.  Anyway you slice them. Or season them. Or cook them. They're one of my favorite comfort foods. I also love raw veggies, exotic foods in general, fried okra and just about anything healthy! And a lot of things that aren't healthy. Can you tell I love to eat? (FWIW - I am not fond of horseradish!)

2. Do you have a bodyguard?

Yes, my 3 year old grandson is my “duper hero”. He is “drong and brave”. Don’t mess with him!

Actually I try not to make enemies. I don’t have any valuables. And I’m way too boring for the paparazzi to mess with. So my duper hero can handle anything that comes up.

3. When is your birthday?
July 18. Eight years after NC’s polio epidemic. You do the math!

Here I am as a baby with my older sister.

4. Did making forts help you create wisteria mansion?
Oh, I think so. I gew up on a homestead that had a barn with lots of empty sweet potato crates in them. My siblings and I used those crates to build houses and mazes. And I would go with my friends into the woods and create playhouses too.

My hubby and I are creating a wisteria mansion in the field behind our house. (He does most of the work because I burned up too many belts on his mower.) Unlike my real house it gets bigger and better every year.

I’ve always loved creating play and living spaces. When I feel discouraged with my house or maybe a little depressed I just rearrange my furniture and it makes me feel like I have a whole new house.

5. What’s your favorite book?

Okay, this is a very hard question. When I go to a restaurant with 10 items on the menu I cannot decide which I want. And you want me to choose one favorite book from the thousands of options? So let’s try to narrow this down.

I mostly read historical fiction. I like books from the early 20th century. I am drawn to holocaust stories. So I will give you several favorites.

A few incredible holocaust books 
The Diary of A Young Girl by Anne Frank
Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli
Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy
Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

Historical but not holocaust
The Night of the Burning by Linda Press Wulf
Sudie by Sara Flanigan
Billy Creekmore – by Tracey Porter
City of Cannibals – by Rikki Thompson
Jip: His Story by Katherine Paterson

Other
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Wintergirlz by Laurie Halse Anderson
When We Were Saints  - by Han Nolan

There are tons of amazing books out there and I'm sure I've forgotten something really important.  But I love anything by Katherine Paterson, Jerry Spinelli, and Gary Paulsen.