By Jennifer Chastain @JenniferCwrites

Growing up in a small rural town in New York State, there wasn’t a whole lot to do by way of entertainment. In the summers, we swam and played in the creek behind a neighbor’s house, or we’d ride our bikes everywhere.

But the one thing I enjoyed most was visiting our local library. The library was built in 1904 in the Greek revival style with four large pillars flanking the entrance. Whenever I stepped over the threshold, a sense of awe swept through me. Walking across the original mosaic tiled floor, my small footsteps would echo in the cavernous room. The smell of old books scented the air, and the stacks of books beckoned me from shadowy recesses.

I was about 8 when I received my first library card. Oh, I was so excited! My mother, who was a high school history teacher, would bring me once a month and let me pick out books.

Today on My Reading Life, Jennifer Chastain lets us know what's she's reading. #ReadingCommunity #Reading #BRRC Share on X

By the time I was twelve, I was riding my bike to library by myself. One summer day, after swimming lessons were over, I decided to go to the library. The librarian knew that I visited weekly and approached me. She said, “I think you might be interested in these books.” It was then that she introduced me to some of the classics, my favorite being Jane Eyre. Inside that imposing structure, I met my new book friends, helped Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys solve mysteries and experienced all the joys and sorrows of Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy in Little Women. I traveled back in time to visit Greek civilization and learned about their mythology.

One Christmas, I was gifted the entire Little House on the Prairie series and it was after reading these novels that I then dreamed of becoming a writer, just like Laura Ingalls Wilder. And here I am, almost fifty years later, an author.

Yes, I am a book nerd – I have been from the time I was a toddler and would beg for one more story before my parents put me to bed.

Reading has transported me to faraway places and times. Within the pages of a book, I have visited civilizations that I would never have the chance to experience firsthand.

In many ways, I experienced an idyllic, bookish childhood, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world!

Jennifer Chastain lives in the beautiful state of North Carolina with her husband of twenty-eight years. Over the years, they’ve been the caretakers for several rescue cats. A small-town girl at heart, she always dreamed of epic adventures as a child. She is employed by UNC Charlotte and works for a research center during the week. At night and on the weekends, she is a writing ninja, cramming as many words as possible within a limited time frame. Her first novel, The Mistletoe Contract, released November 6, 2020. Currently, she is editing the first of her 3-book romantic suspense series, Targeted for Elimination: Lethal Intentions. Lethal Intentions will be released in 2023 with the other 2 books following.

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