Inspiring young readers has
been author’s 50-year mission

By Hope Katz Gibbs

“RAMONA QUIMBY WAS nine years old. She had brown hair, brown eyes, and no cavities,” writes beloved children’s book author Beverly Cleary in the first chapter of her bestseller, Ramona’s World. It chronicles the day our heroine meets her new baby sister, Roberta.

This is one of more than three dozen books penned by Cleary in the more than five decades (her first book, Henry Huggins, was published in 1950; her last was Ramona’s World in 1999) that she has been drawing kids into the adventures of her characters. Klickitat Street, where several of them live, is based on her own childhood neighborhood.

Inspiring kids to love reading, especially struggling readers like herself as a child, has been a lifelong mission for the woman who grew up on a farm in Yamhill, Oregon—a town so small it had no library.

“Until I was in third grade, I thought of
reading as something I just had to do in
school,” Cleary tells The Connection. “In the
fifth or sixth grade we had to write a story,
and the teacher told me I should write chil-
dren’s books when I grew up.”
Children everywhere are better for Cleary
receiving such sage career advice.

Prior to her career as an author, Cleary worked as a librarian, which is how she first encountered children who had trouble finding books that captured their imaginations. That’s when she decided to start writing books about kids young readers would recognize as being like themselves.

On April 12, 2010—the day Cleary turns 94—her love of books will be celebrated during National Drop Everything and Read (D.E.A.R.) Day, sponsored by, among others, the National Education Association, the Parent Teacher Association, HarperCollins Children’s Books and, of course, Ramona Quimby ( www.dropeverythingandread.com).

Cleary recently took some time to share her thoughts and words of wisdom with The Connection.

The Costco Connection: Of the dozens of books you have written, do you have a favorite? Beverly Cleary: I don’t have a favorite title, but I have favorite characters, including Henry, Ramona, Ralph and all the rest of them. My least favorite books went straight into the wastebasket. If I don’t enjoy writing them, how can I expect anybody to enjoy reading them?

Beverly Cleary

CC: Which of your characters is most similar to you?

BC: People tell me that I was Ramona. I don’t agree. I was much more Ellen Tebbitts, which is really quite autobiographical. I was also quite a bit like the mouse who rode the motorcycle, not that I rode motorcycles, but, like Ralph, I hoped for adventure.

CC: We understand that some of your
characters are hitting the big
screen this summer in a movie
entitled Ramona and Beezus. Did
you help write the script?
BC: I was consulted about the scripts
and rejected a few of them, and I made
suggestions about the final script,
but my involvement ended there. I
am excited about the movie.

CC: Do you still write? Is there any-
thing you wish you had written
about, but didn’t get to?
BC: I no longer write. I wish I had
written about Ramona in the fifth
grade, but didn’t wish hard
enough to actually do it.

ALAN MCEWAN

CC: What was your favorite book when you were a child? BC: As a child, my favorite book was Dandelion Cottage, by Caroll Watson Rankin. Every time I brought it home from the library, my mother would say, “Not Dandelion Cottage again.” I’d also read any book of fairy tales. As an adult, I have no favorite titles, but I especially enjoy autobiography.

CC: Where do you find inspiration and ideas for your stories?

BC: Any place. Every place. From memories, observations, newspapers, overheard conversations. I’m an unrepentant eavesdropper, especially in restaurants.

CC: If you could tell anything to the millions of children who have enjoyed your books, what would it be?

BC: I think I would say, “Don’t stop now. Go
ahead! Be readers all of your lives. And don’t
forget, librarians and teachers can help you
find the right books to read.” C
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