Get Caught Reading! A blog giveaway!

In remembrance of my lovely bookstore I left behind after our move, I am going to hold a contest. That bookstore was The Learned Owl in Hudson, Ohio. It was the place I always ended up at when I had a few minutes to kill while waiting for a piano lesson to end or a hair appointment to begin, or if I was looking for a birthday, Christmas, teacher or thank you gift. I always luxuriated in my visits there, so many possibilities. so many neat discoveries. Walking into The Learned Owl, you felt as though you could absorb some wisdom from its ancient walls, that time had stood still there, save for the new releases on the front table. It was a place of little nooks you could tuck yourself into while you perused the shop's offerings. I usually ended up there with a stroller that contained Will. Will, from his first few weeks of life, has had the chance to feel the coziness of being enveloped by tall shelves of books and that unmistakable new book smell. I don't think I ever left that store empty handed. The best time of year at The Learned Owl was Christmas. If you ever wanted the chance to experience any type of old-time, Victorian Christmas experience, this was the place it happened. You walked into the warm, somewhat dimly lit shop and worked your way around the other customers, all enjoying their shopping in an unhurried way. Hushed small talk blended with the seasonal music to create such a nice break from what we all consider "holiday shopping". The kids knew to look for the ever-full plate of cookies that sat out at this time of year too. I got to know all the wonderful staff there so well. They too made my browsy shopping visits something to look forward to. If I wanted to linger in the cookbook section or I was enroute to a kids birthday party and needed to find, purchase and have wrapped, the perfect selection (with perfect card too) in an emergent way, they could accomodate me.
Once a year the bookstore held a "get caught reading" contest, in which anyone could submit a photo of someone "getting caught" reading.

So, with that idea in mind, I am having a blog-giveaway! In an effort to familiarize you with your local independent bookstore and show people that an extra chromosome is not a barrier to reading, I am asking for pictures of your favorite person ~with a little extra~, reading. The prize is a $25. gift card that is redeemable at any participating independent bookstore across the US. Here is the link to the BookSense website, it can tell you where your local independent bookstore is, if you haven't already discovered it.


So, email me your photo submissions of a reader (or readers) with Down syndrome, and I will post them here. The drawing is going to be on my birthday, Nov. 19th -isn't it nicer to give than to receive? ;)-so you have lots of time to capture a book lover with T21 (or a picture of your T21 pre-reader enjoying a book with someone else!) and send it in. Remember to include some favorite book titles too!

For those entries coming in from outside the U.S., I will use the gift certificate to purchase your selection and send them to you!

Here is my address: mojwmom (at) yahoo (dot) com. I look forward to seeing lots of reading soon! Here is a picture of Will to get you in the mood :)



Things go better with books, like a snack. Here is Will reading Walter Wick's Can You See What I See? Trucks and Cars. Of course this guy is going to love a book with cars in it. This little book gives me the chance to review searching skills and colours at a very beginner level with Will.




Check out Who's been caught :)