Do you remember your favorite childhood story?
Mine was the Three Little Pigs. But not just any version of the tale — the version my dad told me at bedtime.
My father has always been a great storyteller, and his bedtime stories were special to me because of the little absurdities he would pepper them with.
Our nightly routine might have started off with the classic tale of the Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf who wanted to blow their houses down and eat them, but after many nights of begging for “just one more story,” it took on a life of its own.
It became a sweeping porcine epic spanning the entire solar system, as Three Little Pigs outsmarted the Big Bad Wolf on every planet.
The Three Little Pigs on Earth catapulted him all the way to the Moon, where he met Three Lunar Pigs and tried to blow down their houses made of moondust and rock. But they outsmarted him and rocketed him off to Mars, where he met Three Martian Pigs … and so on and so forth, down the line of planets.
Just a few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of joining the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall as the resident children’s librarian. One of my favorite parts of this job is getting to be a storyteller in my own right, doing my part to help nurture a love of reading in the little ones I meet — just as my dad did when I was young.
Whether your child is an avid reader or a little more reluctant to pick up a book, the library has something for them to enjoy, and I would love to help them find it. Who knows, maybe they will discover their new favorite story nestled among our stacks.
This summer, I invite you to come along on an adventure with us for the Carnegie Carnegie’s 2024 Summer Reading Program. Kids and teens can log any books they read between June 8 and Aug. 10. For every five books read, they will get a ticket for a drawing to win fun prizes.
Join us at the library on June 8 for our official Summer Reading Kick-off Party to get your family signed up for summer reading. And on Aug. 10, celebrate your child’s reading accomplishments at our End-of-Summer Celebration.
Mark your calendars!
Throughout the summer we are excited to offer several other exciting programs for kids and families, as well — including four regular weekly storytimes, a special storytime about self-confidence and self-love with local author Emonie Smith on July 6, and a visit from the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium on July 20. There is plenty more summer fun to be had, so don’t forget to keep an eye out on our calendar of events at CarnegieCarnegie.org.
Mikayla Wobrak is the children’s librarian at the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall.