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Hello, everyone! My name is Kylan Jerrell, and I am in my third semester here at SIUE. My literature journey began small, like most of us, but, at least for me, little by little grew into what it is now. From fairy tales to meta-fiction and modernism (and all what lies between and beyond), my curiosity has never waned with the help of friends, family, and colleagues, and I am always looking for my next good read and discussion, either assigned or chosen. I am grateful for my eldest brother, Langdon, who has always fostered curiosity within me and always has me asking the question “why”?--A question I never want to stop asking.

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My Grandma begins to read classic Fairy tales, such as "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" and "Rapunzel" to me.

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I go through my family's bookshelves to see what I can find, magazines included. Comic books stand out to me.

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My aunt Jean Jean introduces my twin and me to the Boxcar Children books by Gertrude Chandler Warner, having us hang on every word.

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In Elementary school, I begin to pick up books such as Captain Underpants, The Magic Treehouse, and Big Nate by Dav Pilkey, Mary Pope Osborne, and Lincoln Peirce, respectively. Roald Dahl becomes one of my favorite authors.

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I win first place for having the most reading points in my grade and am encouraged to read more challenging books.

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I begin to read JK Rowling's "Harry Potter" books.

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I read the five original Percy Jackson books by Rick Riordan and expand my love of fantasy novels.

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I move from smaller books to others, such as Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy collection.

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I begin to play video games and swap stories with friends, quickly developing a love for storytelling.

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I am required to read a summarized version of Romeo and Juliet due to time constraints, which I find upsetting.

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I read The Lord of the Flies by William Golding in my sophomore year of high school; I didn't enjoy it.

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I begin a fascination with the poet Emily Dickinson.

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The Life of Pi and The Catcher in the Rye (15)

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The Life of Pi and The Catcher in the Rye (15)

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Both books listed make me have an emotional response like never before, whether it be weeping or incredulity at the endings; I begin to read more and more, discussing with my eldest brother as I go.

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I return to Shakespeare and begin to love his work.

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I take my heaviest English class and read F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, and multiple short stories, as well as other novels. The instructor fosters a long-lasting love of literature in me.

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My older brother presents Faulkner's As I Lay Dying, which blows my mind and further stretches what writing can be to me; I develop an interest in other stream-of-consciousness works such as Toni Morrison's Beloved and am both captivated and confounded forever.

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Switches from a Music Major Path to that of English.

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Continues with the English Major path and considers teaching English in secondary education.