Last night I took B. B. Bright to Harrisburg, PA and read to a boat full of children on the Pride of the Susquehana! The Pride is one of only 7 remaining “authentic” paddle wheel riverboat in the United States. This means that the Pride ONLY uses the paddle wheels for both propulsion and steering. There are no propellers, rudders or other forms of propulsion or steering. Truly a gem in our modern world!
The evening was idyllic. Standing on the deck of the boat cruising up and down the river, I was lulled by calming waters and impressed with the beautiful islands surrounding us. Overlooking the water and setting sun over the trees, I thought of how beautiful this country truly is and how it is such a shame that corrupt government and failing industry has destroyed so many, once thriving, cities. Harrisburg has similar histories to Detroit and Baltimore. Failing industry, white flight, crime and poverty has left race relations very tense within the cities. It is really unfortunate because all of these citites hold so much charm and beauty.
I began our evening by sharing a little information about 13-year-old B. B. Bright and her tiny magical island home, much like the small islands that surrounded us that evening. The kids share with me some of the pros and cons of living on an island…one of the pros being free coconuts! What a great launch into our story.
After a couple of chapters, the kids became a little restless and began clamoring to the windows to see the water. I then asked two volunteers to come up and draw themselves as independent princesses. Taking a cue from our sassy and unique, Black Bee Bright, the girls came up with many original princess ideas. One was a gymnastic princess, another was a warrior princess who hunted ravens, another was a fashion princess, and last, but not least, I signed a copy of B. B. Bright to a young zebra princess!
If you haven’t snagged a copy of The Diary of B. B. Bright, Possible Princess, here’s an excerpt to help whet your appetite! There is a young possible princess in your life who would love this!
To see a few more pics from the evening, head on over to my facebook page! Many thanks to Harrisburg’s gem of a bookstore, The Little Scholar! Happy Reading~