# data[].attributes.body
The first book I can remember my mother reading to me was Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit. I adored this story and the beautiful pictures that went along with Peter’s tale. It was books such as Peter Rabbit and Madeline that first introduced me to my love of books. Well, that and my mother’s love of reading. There wasn’t a night that went by that my mother would not read a story to my brother and I before bed, and as I grew older, I would begin to read the books back to her after I was tucked in for the night. I can still remember reciting back to her, “In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines, Lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.”

Some of my favorite books and authors during this time in my life included: Madeline, The Smell of Christmas, Corduroy, Richard Scarry, Beatrix Potter, and Eric Carle

# data[].attributes.body
Once I began reading on my own, our local public library quickly became one of my favorite places. I still remember when my mom taught me how to use the card catalog and I couldn't wait until our next visit so I could look up her books in the cards and then go search the shelves until I found each one. In the children's area there was a set of over-sized red armchairs that were my favorite place to tuck into with a good book. While at home I would often take my library books, my favorite blanket, and a pillow into my closet and read for hours on end.

Some of my favorite books and authors during this time in my life included: Roald Dahl, Jon Scieszak, Mary Pope Osborn, Shel Silverstein, The Box Car Children, Little Golden Books, Wacky Wednesday, The Berenstain Bears, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Where the Wild Things Are, and Amelia Bedilia

# data[].attributes.body
Third grade through the start of sixth grade were hard years for me. To say that I went through an "awkward stage" is an understatement. So instead of sleepovers and girls scouts, books became my best friends. Before class, I would read. During recess, I would read. At lunch, I would read. After school, I would read. I was living my life in the pages of every book I could get my hands on. While I would eventually grow out of my awkwardness and find that being good at sports makes you pretty popular, those few years of turbulent times made me resilient and strong, and it was the characters in my favorite books that had something to do with building that might. - Most notable was Meg from A Wrinkle in Time (this continues to be my favorite book of all time).

Some of my favorite books and authors during this time in my life included: R. L. Stein, C. S. Lewis, Mark Twain, Judy Blume, Louis Sachar, A Wrinkle in Time, The Baby-Sitters Club, The Giver, Nancy Drew, Archie Comics, Anne of Green Gables, and Say Goodnight, Gracie

# data[].attributes.body
I read my first Agatha Christie novel, And Then There Were None, during the summer before 7th grade. I then went on to read another 20+ Agatha Christie novels before the end of Junior High. You could say I was a bit of a fan of her writing.While other students in my class were learning the fate of the girl on the milk carton, I was mentally sifting through evidence and scrutinizing Christie's masterful cast of characters. From there I continued with my love of mysteries and thrillers, going on to read the many adventures of Sherlock Holmes, as well as some Dean Koontz and Cujo, my first Stephen King novel. As I fell into my years of YA reading, mysteries, thrillers, and some of the classics became my go to books of choice.

Some of my favorite books during this time in my life included:  And Then There Were None, Tick Tock, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Season of Passage, and The ABC Murders

# data[].attributes.body
We can all look back on our educational history and name the teachers we loved as well as those that we had "mixed feelings" towards. The later for me was my freshman English teacher. Don't worry, I won't mention any names. Freshman year is hard under the best circumstances, but when your teacher embarrasses you in front of the entire class, things simply go from bad to worse. That day for me came when our papers over Cry the Beloved Country (one of our summer reading books) were to be handed back. Before doing so, our teacher decided to say a few words about the assignment and critique the papers that were handed in to her. She started off with the good papers, and quickly switched to the bad ones. She even went as far as to call me out by name and question how I was ever let into her Pre-AP course if I couldn't understand the basics of what she wanted from us on this assignment. Did I cry, yes, but not right then in front of everyone. The tears came after class when I went to speak with her about my paper and what I had done wrong. She told me that I could have another chance to write my paper, but not to expect much of an improvement on my grade. Based on what she had just read and the other assignments I had turned in, I should just be happy that I was doing as well as I was in her class. Needless to say, I lost a bit of pep in my step that day, and after having so thoroughly failed on a reading and writing assignment I retreated from my love of books quite a bit.

Books I should have read for this teacher's course but I instead read the Cliffs Notes: Their Eyes Were Watching God, Of Mice and Men, and The Odyssey

# data[].attributes.headline
The Teacher that Brought Me Back to Books

# data[].attributes.subject
The Teacher that Brought Me Back to Books

# data[].attributes.body
Freshman year had come and gone, then sophomore year went by in a flash, and I still was not the reader I had once been. Que junior year and the English teacher that would change everything. She was fun, vivacious, and just got me. One day after a class discussion, she asked me to hang back for a second and she handed me the book that would change it all, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. While I knew of Austen's writings, I had never actually read any of her work, but that night I finished Pride and Prejudice then I drove to the bookstore the next day and bought the remaining works in her collection. I couldn't get enough! It was like the reading light within me had finally been turned back on, just as it continues to burn brightly today.

Some of my favorite books and authors during this time in my life included: Jane Austen, Orson Scott Card, George Orwell, The Bronte Sisters, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Stand, and the start of the Harry Potter series

# data[].attributes.body
This is what I consider my zen reading years. The time between finishing my undergraduate degree and starting my masters in Educational Leadership at The University of St. Thomas (I transferred from this program to SHSU when I was offered the Teacher Librarian position on my campus). The years where I would go to the library, Changing Hands Bookstore (the Half Price Books of Arizona), Blue Willow Bookshop, Target, and so on, buy a giant stack of books and work my way through them as I pleased. This is also the time where I would read or listen to the Harry Potter series at least once a year because it is my guilty pleasure.

Hello, my name is Shelby Slay, and I am a Potterhead.

Some of my favorite books and authors during this time in my life included: Harry Potter, The Martian, The Help, Orphan Train, Kite Runner, Dan Brown, Ken Follett, Rysa Walker, David McCullough, Erik Larson, and Stephen King

# data[].attributes.body
As I am currently in Library Science courses at Sam Houston State University, my personal choice reading time has dramatically decreased. However, I am glad to report that (for the most part) I have thoroughly enjoyed the books that my professors have selected for their reading lists. When I do have a chance to pick a book from my own personal lists,  I find that I am drawn to pick up YA novels more than ever before. I guess being a high school librarian rubs off on your reading choices a bit ;)

Authors and books I'm currently reading: A. S. King, Helen Frost, Andrew Smith, Caraval, The Knife of Never Letting Go, and One Perfect Lie

# data[].attributes.body
As a librarian, sharing my love of reading with others is a true joy. When a student comes to me and asks for a recommendation there is nothing more exciting, and with the technological advancements of today the ways to share my love of books is never ending. Some different avenues I am currently using to promote reading on my campus include in-person and online book clubs, Goodreads, Instagram, Twitter, Wordpress blogging, Smore newsletters, and author visits.

Books and authors I often find myself showing as recommended reads to students: Matt de la Pena, Rainbow Rowell, David Levithan, Walter Dean Meyers, Ruta Sepetys, Sharon Draper, John Green, Elizabeth Wein, James Patterson, The Selection series, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Uglies, The Hate You Give, and Go Ask Alice

# data[].attributes.body
All book cover pictures used in my Reading Autobiography were retrieved for use from Amazon.com.