A Note from the Author
Having learned to read before I even started kindergarten, my love affair with books has essentially been lifelong. Starting with Jack the Waiter when I was four years old, I was taught to read by my sister, Kelly. As children, she and I would check out as many books per visit (six) as library policy would allow, and before we returned them, I had read both her books and mine (all twelve). Some of my reading habits were forged during that time, as biographies and Nancy Drew mysteries were my preferences. Now, I favor classic literature, but works of history, true crime, and detective fiction are still high on my list. Honestly, there are few books that I don't like. Sister Carrie, however, is one of the few. They don't call him Theodore "Dry-Sir" Dreiser for no reason.
I have often said that when I reach retirement age, I will work in a bookstore, partly for the discounts but mostly because I long to be surrounded by books all of the time and to talk about them with interested people. With a life that has always been framed by bookshelves, it comes as no surprise to anyone who knows me that midway through my education career, I aspired to become a librarian. Just as I was meant to teach English and will someday work in a bookstore, I was always destined to be a librarian, particularly a historical one. So many of my tendencies and quirks have come into focus since I began the MLIS program at The University of Alabama. My voracious reading, compulsive book buying, and rambling Internet searches; that I categorize by genre, then alphabetize by author, then sequence by release date the CDs on my shelves; that I track which episodes I have seen and which I haven't of a few favorite TV shows; and that I used to consult the ol' World Books (housed in our dining room) during family dinners each time a burning question arose.