“Lacey Loves to Read” Brings Acclaimed Author Kashmira Sheth to Lacey

lacey loves to read
Students at North Thurston Public Schools read and participate in activities based on a selected book each year. Photo courtesy of North Thurston Public Schools
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By Gale Hemmann

lacey loves to read
Students at North Thurston Public Schools read and participate in activities based on a selected book each year. Photo courtesy of North Thurston Public Schools

As any avid reader knows, one of the great joys of reading is that it opens us up to new worlds. Through reading the voices of others, we develop empathy, as well as curiosity about what life is like beyond our own experiences.

In this spirit of celebrating both literacy and diversity, the Lacey Loves to Read initiative is bringing the award-winning author Kashmira Sheth to Lacey. Each year, this annual community-wide reading initiative selects a distinguished author to feature. Sheth will be visiting local schools and giving a public reading on Thursday, February 26 (see event details below). Sheth, the author of eight books, joins the distinguished ranks of past Lacey Loves to Read authors including poets Naomi Shihab Nye and Gary Soto, and the late children’s author Walter Dean Myers.

Now in its twelfth year, Lacey Loves to Read is a partnership of North Thurston Public Schools, the Lacey Timberland Library, the City of Lacey, and the Lacey Chamber of Commerce, along with many other local community partners and businesses.

Kashmira Sheth: Using Words to Connect Cultures

lacey loves to read
Author Kashmira Sheth will be giving a reading as part of an all-ages community event at the Lacey Community Center. Photo courtesy of Kashmira Sheth and North Thurston Public Schools

Kashmira Sheth has a fascinating life story. Sheth grew up in India, where she wrote poetry in Hindi and Gujarti as a girl. She moved to Ames, Iowa at age 17 to attend college and graduate school. She studied microbiology and spent many years working in the field before turning to writing full-time. As a mother, Sheth always enjoyed reading beloved children’s books to her own young daughters, inspiring her to write children’s stories.

Sheth’s books range from picture books to novels for teens. Her books each grapple with themes of family, compassion, and cross-cultural understanding. Each focuses on different aspects of Indian or Indian-American culture. The award-winning young adult novel “Blue Jasmine” tells the story of a girl who moves from India to Iowa (mirroring Sheth’s own life), while “Boys Without Names” gives names and faces to children in an Indian sweatshop. Though her books deal with substantial themes, the messages are always age-appropriate and the books are engaging to read. She uses her own experience and relatable characters to bring the stories to life.

Sheth is also a faculty member in the Solstice Low-Residency MFA in Writing Program at Pine Manor College in Massachusetts. She currently lives with her husband and two daughters, Neha and Rupa, in Madison, Wisconsin.

About Lacey Loves to Read

Sheth’s upcoming author talk caps off a month of reading and literacy activities around Lacey. Each February, the Lacey Loves to Read initiative gets kids excited about reading through a variety of programs. Courtney Schrieve, Communications and Community Relations Director for North Thurston Public Schools, notes that the program has something to offer all ages of readers.

This year, youngsters participated in “Preschool Reads,” which brought well-known local figures to preschools to read Sheth’s picture book, Tiger in My Soup. Students in grades one through six also had the opportunity to join in “Read Around Lacey,” a program in which kids read a piece of their writing at local businesses and discuss how reading is important in the day-to-day jobs of the business owners. (Schrieve notes that both the kids and business owners found this to be a very empowering experience.) Some elementary school classes also had the opportunity to Skype with Sheth about her work.

lacey loves to read
Local students had the opportunity to Skype with author Kashmira Sheth as part of this year’s activities. Photo courtesy of North Thurston Public Schools

Students were also encouraged to enter a bookmark contest, with the 24 winners’ art distributed around town (view the winning bookmarks here). And for teens, the Teen Short Story contest held by the Lacey Timberland Library gave them a chance to put their creativity on the page. The popular program reaches thousands of students each year, says Schrieve.

Schrieve says that Lacey Loves to Read is valuable to young readers not only because it celebrates reading but because it highlights themes of diversity, compassion, and understanding through literacy. Like past authors, Sheth is selected both for her accomplishments and her commitment to representing often-unheard voices in her work. North Thurston Public Schools serves a very diverse student base, and Schrieve notes it’s important that the authors selected reflect and celebrate the diversity of the community around us.

One truly special aspect of Lacey Loves to Read is how it reaches across so many sectors of the community to get kids reading. Lacey Timberland Library Manager Holly Paxson says, “As a librarian, my favorite thing about it is to see people in our community get excited about reading. A month-long celebration of reading, writing, and literacy is exactly the kind of event we love to be a part of! We’re especially happy to be able to provide a place for our home and alternatively-schooled students to participate in activities like the bookmark contest, the teen short story contest, and Read Around Lacey. It truly is an event for the entire community.”

Meet the Author: An All-Ages Community Event

The local community has the opportunity to meet Kashmira Sheth at a free Community Author Reception on Thursday, February 26, 2015 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. at the Lacey Community Center. Sheth will read from “Tiger in My Soup” and talk with the audience. The evening will also include a dance performance by the India South Sound Association. With complimentary refreshments from Lacey Costco and door prizes from the Lacey Chamber of Commerce, the event will make a great family outing. Kids and adults alike will enjoy learning a little more about Indian culture.

lacey loves to read
Each year, Lacey Loves to Read brings the joy of reading and important multicultural themes to kids and adults around Lacey through free programming. Photo courtesy of North Thurston Public Schools

Sheth’s book will be available for purchase from Orca Books, and you can also buy “Lacey Loves to Read” t-shirts and tote bags. The South Sound Reading Foundation will also be giving away free children’s books, so every child leaves with a book.

I hope you’ll join me for this evening of cross-cultural fun. Geographically speaking, we may live here in Thurston County, just one small corner of the world. But Sheth’s stories remind us that through books, we can take ourselves anywhere, and connect with the larger world, whether it’s another continent or a larger world inside of us.

To learn more about Kashmira Sheth, visit her inviting author website. Learn more about Lacey Loves to Read here.

Community Author Reception with Kashmira Sheth

Thursday, February 26, 2015 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.

Lacey Community Center

6729 Pacific Avenue Southeast

Olympia, Washington 98503

Get more event information here.

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