If you raise a reader, you might just raise a writer.
Meet A.J. Parsons,
devourer of books and imaginer of stories.
SMAUG
Dark as night, and red as flame,
A whip for a tail the dragon came.
Stole the mountain and the gold
And now, though he has grown old
Remains stronger than one hundred men.
A fire breather in his den,
sleeping on a golden bed.
Lakemen wish that he was dead.
Sense of smell like a thousand dogs,
Weight equal to at least a million logs
of pure gold.
Fire so hot it melts the sky
of pure gold.
Fire so hot it melts the sky
And a single eye of his two
On a pitch black night could spot you
Teeth like spears and claws like swords
Wings beat a hurricane, the strongest chords
can’t bind him
can’t bind him
Undoubtable, this is Smaug.
By
A.J. Parsons
(who at the time this lightning struck her brain was in fourth grade.)
J.L.
What did you like about those books?
A.L.
From Wolves of the Beyond to Song of the Summer King, I really like those because I love animals. But I love them even more because they were written by very talented authors who think outside the box. The personification that they use for the animals is incredibly creative. They're very exciting and often end in cliff hangers which makes me want to read more.
Nancy Drew mysteries are intriguing and there's lots of action, and also I like how Nancy is not a girly-girl. It conveys a message that just because you're a girl doesn't mean you can't trip criminals or trick them when they kidnap you. Usually what happens, is the bad guy kidnaps Nancy, and that ends up being the worst mistake he ever makes. Just because you're a girl doesn't mean you should just panic and not do anything about it.
I've read several stories by Roald Dahl, and some of my favorites are the BFG, Danny, Champion of the World, and Fantastic Mr. Fox.
J.L.
What do you like so much about Roald Dahl?
A.J.
He's very creative and often times his books are funny and entertaining. He makes up silly words like snozcumber or scrumdiddlyumptious. That's one of my favorites.
J.L.
That's kind of hard to spell. I think it's obvious you love books for their stories, but now I'm going to tell on you. You're not just a book devourer, your a book inhaler. You smell books! All the time! I look over and you've got your nose pressed right into the spine of a book, breathing in like you're trying to snort the words right off the page. Would you like to explain yourself?
J.L.
J.L.
J.L.
Did you read the Beyonders?
A.L.
Nope .
J.L.
The entrance is a hippo. You should read it. It's on the shelf.
A.L.
Yeah, and I want to read the 100 Cupboards books, too. I might start that after Song of the Summer King.
J.L.
You remember I met Jess E. Owen? Just in case she reads this, what do you want to tell her about her book?
A.L.
I would say that this is the best way I have ever read anyone write about griffins, because it's very realistic, despite being fantasy. I really like it. There's a lot of action and danger and it's very descriptive. I like books like that because it's easier to imagine what's happening and what everyone looks like, and it also makes it a little easier to remember what happened. It's a really, really great book. I don't know why, but I've always loved books with maps in the front. It helps me comprehend what the places in the story look like.
J.L.
What kinds of things are you going to do when you grow up? (Besides staying up all night watching movies while eating an entire bag of marshmallows. I already know that.)
I managed to track down Miss Parsons for an interview. She's hard to schedule, what with that leaning tower of books on her nightstand, and a batch of fresh kittens in her backyard.
J.L.
Thanks for chatting with me. Can I call you A.J.? Do you feel like Harry Potter and I'm Rita Skeeter?
A.J.
In a way, but you're not as pesky and nosey as she is. The difference between you and Rita Skeeter is you know when to stop.
In a way, but you're not as pesky and nosey as she is. The difference between you and Rita Skeeter is you know when to stop.
J.L.
I hope so! Tell us about this poem, and how it came to you.
A.J.
My teacher read The Hobbit aloud. I think that we had just gotten to the part when Smaug starts to become part of the story, and we had an art corner. That week our art corner was about some famous poets. Mr. Von Till told us about a type of poem, I can't remember what it was called, but the poem was written in the shape of something. Maybe a circle, or a tear drop. I was having trouble deciding what to write my poem about, then it hit me. Smaug! I was trying to decide what shape I could use for the poem. Since a dragon would be ridiculously complicated, I would use a flame instead. What we did, is everyone drew their shape on a piece of paper and we wrote our poems, and then copied them onto the paper, following the lines of the shape.
J.L.
I remember your original being the shape of a flame. Very cool! It's a little different on the computer. Let's google that type of poem and figure out what it's called. Aha! A concrete poem. Cool! You taught me something new.
I remember your original being the shape of a flame. Very cool! It's a little different on the computer. Let's google that type of poem and figure out what it's called. Aha! A concrete poem. Cool! You taught me something new.
So what do you love most about reading? You read all the time.
A.L.
It's the story itself, and the fact that I get to have some control because there is no screen, so I get to imagine what the characters look like and I get to be a part of the story.
It's the story itself, and the fact that I get to have some control because there is no screen, so I get to imagine what the characters look like and I get to be a part of the story.
J.L.
I know you never ask a reader what their favorite book is, so I'll ask you for a short list of favorites.
A.L.
Well, if you ask me, some of my favorite books are the Wolves of the Beyond series, the Guardians of Ga'hoole series, the Warriors series, and I haven't finished it yet, but I really like The Song of the Summer King by Jess E. Owen. I like Nancy Drew, and Roald Dahl really is the world's more scrumdiddlyumptios story teller. I very much enjoyed Jerry Spinelli's Maniac McGee, and Louis Sachar's Holes.
Well, if you ask me, some of my favorite books are the Wolves of the Beyond series, the Guardians of Ga'hoole series, the Warriors series, and I haven't finished it yet, but I really like The Song of the Summer King by Jess E. Owen. I like Nancy Drew, and Roald Dahl really is the world's more scrumdiddlyumptios story teller. I very much enjoyed Jerry Spinelli's Maniac McGee, and Louis Sachar's Holes.
J.L.
What did you like about those books?
A.L.
From Wolves of the Beyond to Song of the Summer King, I really like those because I love animals. But I love them even more because they were written by very talented authors who think outside the box. The personification that they use for the animals is incredibly creative. They're very exciting and often end in cliff hangers which makes me want to read more.
Nancy Drew mysteries are intriguing and there's lots of action, and also I like how Nancy is not a girly-girl. It conveys a message that just because you're a girl doesn't mean you can't trip criminals or trick them when they kidnap you. Usually what happens, is the bad guy kidnaps Nancy, and that ends up being the worst mistake he ever makes. Just because you're a girl doesn't mean you should just panic and not do anything about it.
I've read several stories by Roald Dahl, and some of my favorites are the BFG, Danny, Champion of the World, and Fantastic Mr. Fox.
J.L.
What do you like so much about Roald Dahl?
A.J.
He's very creative and often times his books are funny and entertaining. He makes up silly words like snozcumber or scrumdiddlyumptious. That's one of my favorites.
J.L.
That's kind of hard to spell. I think it's obvious you love books for their stories, but now I'm going to tell on you. You're not just a book devourer, your a book inhaler. You smell books! All the time! I look over and you've got your nose pressed right into the spine of a book, breathing in like you're trying to snort the words right off the page. Would you like to explain yourself?
A.L.
I don't know, they just smell good! Mostly the pages. I've never really smelled the cover. They don't usually smell like anything, especially if it's got that plastic over it like all library books do. I just like the musty, dry smell. If you asked me what I would most want my house to smell like when I'm a grownup, I would want a room with the smell of books. Because if it smells like books, then obviously there are books there, right? It would be cool if someday they could make books that, like, if there was a banana in the story, you could smell a banana. Scented books!
J.L.
That would be awesome. Do certain books smell better than others?
A.L.
Yes. Older books that the pages are getting yellowed, I don't know why but I've always liked that smell maybe a little more than the smell of some newer books. But it all depends on what kind of paper they used. If it's a really old book sometimes they have a really weird tang to them. I think I kind of like, okay, I'm going to have to use a little bit of personification here--middle-aged books smell the best. And also, if it's a brand new book, usually the ones that smell the best to me are those picture books with pages that feel like plastic. Usually, if you sniff the middle of the page, the smell is not quite as potent, I guess, as it would be if you stuck your nose in the spine. That's kind of, for some reason, where the smell all collects, and out on the edges doesn't smell like much.
J.L.
That would be awesome. Do certain books smell better than others?
A.L.
Yes. Older books that the pages are getting yellowed, I don't know why but I've always liked that smell maybe a little more than the smell of some newer books. But it all depends on what kind of paper they used. If it's a really old book sometimes they have a really weird tang to them. I think I kind of like, okay, I'm going to have to use a little bit of personification here--middle-aged books smell the best. And also, if it's a brand new book, usually the ones that smell the best to me are those picture books with pages that feel like plastic. Usually, if you sniff the middle of the page, the smell is not quite as potent, I guess, as it would be if you stuck your nose in the spine. That's kind of, for some reason, where the smell all collects, and out on the edges doesn't smell like much.
J.L.
What book smells best? That you own.
A.L.
I have a whole bunch of paper back chapter books and I've always thought those have a nice scent, a little bit like our old camper that we used to have, but a bit less musty, because I think the camper was a lot older than those books.
J.L.
You've really thought this through! Don't name names, but have you ever met a book you didn't like? Why?
A.L.
I have a whole bunch of paper back chapter books and I've always thought those have a nice scent, a little bit like our old camper that we used to have, but a bit less musty, because I think the camper was a lot older than those books.
J.L.
You've really thought this through! Don't name names, but have you ever met a book you didn't like? Why?
A.L.
I don't know, I guess that I've been one of those lucky people who never picks out a book that they end up not liking. After a while, being eleven years old, Sesame Street books aren't exactly a party for me anymore. I don't dislike them, I just don't think they're fun to read anymore. But I don't think I've ever read a book that I didn't like.
J.L.
What do you wish more authors would write about?
A.L.
If we could get more people maybe writing about, um...it would be cool to have some more Narnia type books with maybe kind of the same plot but a little different. Like, some people find a magical world somewhere. There's an entrance other than a wardrobe, for copyright reasons, obviously, it would have to be something different. It would be really cool to have some more of those kinds of books.
J.L.
Did you read the Beyonders?
A.L.
Nope .
J.L.
The entrance is a hippo. You should read it. It's on the shelf.
A.L.
Yeah, and I want to read the 100 Cupboards books, too. I might start that after Song of the Summer King.
J.L.
You remember I met Jess E. Owen? Just in case she reads this, what do you want to tell her about her book?
A.L.
I would say that this is the best way I have ever read anyone write about griffins, because it's very realistic, despite being fantasy. I really like it. There's a lot of action and danger and it's very descriptive. I like books like that because it's easier to imagine what's happening and what everyone looks like, and it also makes it a little easier to remember what happened. It's a really, really great book. I don't know why, but I've always loved books with maps in the front. It helps me comprehend what the places in the story look like.
J.L.
What kinds of things are you going to do when you grow up? (Besides staying up all night watching movies while eating an entire bag of marshmallows. I already know that.)
A.L.
Well, if I'm not up late watching movies, I might be up reading a book, but if I'm not up late then I'll obviously be asleep. But I plan to have a family, and I might be one of those crafty people who make things and sell them. Being an artist would be really fun. Also, to be a music teacher, maybe violin or piano or some other instrument. When I'm in college I might work at a restaurant. I might study science, probably not math, but I might change my mind. Who knows. It would be fun to learn more about history. Language arts is a little boring because it's a lot of stuff we've already been taught.
J.L.
I don't like grammar either. Funny, huh? Since I want to be a writer when I grow up.
A.L.
Yes. Well, sometimes, the nice thing about being a writer, is when you're using dialogue, you don't have to use the grammar rules. If your character is a hillbilly. You can use ain't and double negatives.
J.L.
I don't like grammar either. Funny, huh? Since I want to be a writer when I grow up.
A.L.
Yes. Well, sometimes, the nice thing about being a writer, is when you're using dialogue, you don't have to use the grammar rules. If your character is a hillbilly. You can use ain't and double negatives.
J.L.
Ain't nothin' wrong with that. What should adults know about fifth graders?
A.L.
The main thing is that there's a certain level of tolerance, a certain level of work we can take before we totally malfunction. In my opinion, overloading a fifth grader with work is child abuse. I don't necessarily dislike work all that much. Certain work would be fun to throw into an active volcano. Too much of all work does become torture. If you give some kids too much work, the more work you give them, the less they're going to do. If you want a fifth grader to get good grades, you don't give them a ton of work at once. You have to dish it out in small portions.
J.L.
That's a strong anti-homework argument. But you still have to do your homework.
A.L.
Dang.
J.L.
Ok, so here's the final question, and your dessert and maybe your life depend on your answer. Can you remember the entire title of the book I'm going to publish soon?
A.L.
The main thing is that there's a certain level of tolerance, a certain level of work we can take before we totally malfunction. In my opinion, overloading a fifth grader with work is child abuse. I don't necessarily dislike work all that much. Certain work would be fun to throw into an active volcano. Too much of all work does become torture. If you give some kids too much work, the more work you give them, the less they're going to do. If you want a fifth grader to get good grades, you don't give them a ton of work at once. You have to dish it out in small portions.
J.L.
That's a strong anti-homework argument. But you still have to do your homework.
A.L.
Dang.
J.L.
Ok, so here's the final question, and your dessert and maybe your life depend on your answer. Can you remember the entire title of the book I'm going to publish soon?
A.L.
Kingly College Knight Classes and the Dainty Damsel University of Distress: A Royal Mess.
Kingly College Knight Classes and the Dainty Damsel University of Distress: A Royal Mess.
J.L.
You got it! Is that most ridiculous title you've ever heard?
A.L.
No. For some reason, I've always like long titles.
J.L.
Oh good. That's a relief. I've always like them, too. They make me laugh.
And now, may I show everyone my favorite homework page you ever brought home? You don't even remember, do you.
You got it! Is that most ridiculous title you've ever heard?
A.L.
No. For some reason, I've always like long titles.
J.L.
Oh good. That's a relief. I've always like them, too. They make me laugh.
And now, may I show everyone my favorite homework page you ever brought home? You don't even remember, do you.
A.L.
It's the dragon. It's from third grade. I think it's really funny that you saved it for two years.
J.L. I think it's funny that when your math is done you draw dragons.
It's the dragon. It's from third grade. I think it's really funny that you saved it for two years.
J.L. I think it's funny that when your math is done you draw dragons.
J.L.
A.J., thanks for the interview. I adore you.
A.J.
I'm glad you do. I hope that publishing your book will go well.
J.L.
Thanks, kiddo. I hope that being a sixth grader goes well for you.
A.J., thanks for the interview. I adore you.
A.J.
I'm glad you do. I hope that publishing your book will go well.
J.L.
Thanks, kiddo. I hope that being a sixth grader goes well for you.
..............................................
In the final proofing process!
