Dana Meachen Rau

Books

Reading with Your Ears, Nose, and Fingers

Recently cleaning out our childhood home, my family uncovered lots of treasures. We sold off some in a tag sale, which was dominated by tables and tables of books. But some books I held on to—especially the well-worn ones my brother and I had most enjoyed. What struck me as I flipped the pages of these long-forgotten stories was that my brother and I experienced them in different ways. He is blind, so he never read the words or soaked in the pictures like I did. He used senses other than sight to absorb stories—and to navigate the world.

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Tinkering with Words

A few weeks ago, I was thrilled to discover A Mighty Girl blog had listed one of my early readers, Robot, Go Bot!, among its 25 Books Starring Science-Loving Mighty Girls. I love that readers are finding this book an inspiration to curious, science-minded girls. But it’s funny, too, because Robot, Go Bot! was not conceived as a science book.

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Welcome to My Inventing Room

“This is the most important room in the entire factory!” he said. “All my most secret new inventions are cooking and simmering in here!”

That’s what Willy Wonka says to the lucky golden ticket finders in Roald Dahl’s famous book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

It’s my favorite book ever.

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