In the library of the International School of Bergen with Jules Crossley-Nilsen and teacher. We are holding books that I donated to the library.
While my husband Art attended his meetings at a scientific conference in Bergen, Norway, I took a taxi to the International School of Bergen in Sandlihuagen, a suburb of the city, for a tour of the school. I enjoyed the opportunity to visit several of the classrooms and meet the children and teachers. (Classes are taught in English.) I went into first, second, and third grade classes and the children tried to guess how many books I had written. They were amazed to learn that it is 170! One student asked me if I was famous. I told him that my books are in libraries all over the US and in many parts of the world. So, I can say that my books are famous. I was thrilled to discover that one of the teachers has a copy of my very first book--Five Nests! It was published in 1980. It was part of her mother’s collection of books from when she was a school librarian in India.
I thank Jules Crossley-Nilsen, the librarian and Community Ambassador at ISB for arranging my visit and coordinating my tour of the school. I donated several of my books to the library and Jules told me that she plans to order more. They are a good fit for Earth Day and other parts of the curriculum. I know that this is a busy time of year at the school and I appreciate that I was able to visit. I hope there will be a chance for me to come back some time in the future or possibly to arrange an author visit by Zoom.
