At Tandem, we’re big fans of authors. Since June, we’ve been conducting monthly interviews with some of our favorite local authors. We’re always so excited to meet people who make the books we love so much. It’s especially exciting when we see kids so inspired by grown up authors that they write their own stories. Many of us have memories wanting to be authors as kids, myself included. Less of us actually made our own books, so hearing from a determined kid who wrote and assembled her own book is great!

Meeting Aida

This past August, I received an email from one amazing local parent. Mareme is a friend of Tandem and has volunteered with Tandem before. Her youngest daughter is a participant in our StoryCycles program and her kids are big bookworms, just like all of us at Tandem! Her now fourth grade daughter, Aida, has been writing her very own stories for a few years. She wanted to tell us about her first completed book. Aida has a number of severe allergies and after ending up in the emergency room, she wanted to share with the world all about what it’s like to be a kid with allergies.

When Aida and I met in August to talk about her book, she was excited to tell me all about her book. She’s passionate about sharing her experiences of the world with others and as a book lover, writing is a natural fit. It’s fun to talk to her and watch her light up when she talks about her story. Aida is so invested in helping other kids just like herself that she even included an advice section in her story for parents and teachers of kids like her.

 Kids Can Share Stories Too!

Aida doesn’t keep her love of books and stories to herself. She loves to make up stories for her younger siblings. When I asked her about sharing stories with her younger sisters, she told me all about making up wild stories inspired by the things that she and her sisters see around them. Telling stories together is one of her favorite pastimes and her love of books and stories is contagious. Her younger sister, just starting first grade, wanted to tell me all about the books she wanted to write now, inspired by her older sister. It’s not just adults who can help spark a love of books and reading with young children!