I have no memories of ever learning to read; I only ever remember reading. As a child I was an avid reader. Other children my age would consider reading a chore or would only read to gain points from the reading program the school offered. Because of my genuine love of reading and books, I was often labeled as the “weird, quiet kid.” I would visit the library every day after school and spend hours reading entire shelves in the children’s section. One day when I was six, the librarian suggested I try a book from the teen section of the library titled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Soon after, I had read all the Harry Potter books that had been published by then. However, this experience led me away from the children’s section and into the rest of the library where more books awaited to be discovered. This transition out of the children’s books was an important milestone for me because it introduced me to a greater variety of writing and new authors. I read different styles of literature ranging from Shakespearean tragedies to Jules Verne’s fictional adventures. With books I was able to travel anywhere without leaving my house, and I absolutely loved that. Literacy for me then became a way of exploring new worlds. As I grew older, literacy became a way to learn about and understand new ideas and views as well.