I wrote last week about my love of reading (and my summer reading list), and realized I forgot to mention a formative event. My elementary school would hold an annual Read-In, which was basically a giant sleepover at the school where everybody stayed up late reading. They would have special guests visit (like local newscasters) and talk about their favorite books, and we'd sleep on the floor in classrooms. I loved it even more than the Scholastic Book Fairs (which were like Christmas). Did your school have something like this?
Anyway, every time we go down to Virginia, I always check to see if our visit will coincide with the Green Valley Book Fair. It's held only a handful of times a year in Mount Crawford. A huge building is filled up with all kinds of books -- they even have a tiny gay section! (Which is labelled "LBG," but they definitely get major points for effort.) The best part is, all the books are majorly discounted. We go with Kristie's family and everybody picks out plenty of books. We spent $40 and came away with a "Got Books?" t-shirt (obviously); Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain & My Long Trek Home by Nando Parrado; The Busy Girl's Guide to Sewing by Carrie Maclennan; The Martha Rules by Martha Stewart; Power of the Dog: Things Your Dog Can Do That You Can't by Les Krantz; The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Out of Debt (hell yeah!); a bird guide for my grandpa; a classic composition notebook; and a packet of scrapbooking papers.
And my new favorite picture of Kristie and her nephew Jacob:
Kristie's shirt: 410 BC; bag c/o: Brooklyn Industries
It may not be much to look at, but this place is a hidden gem. I didn't take many pictures because I was busy being in heaven. I would even suggest this as a good day trip from Washington, D.C. -- it's only a two-hour drive! Mark your calendars: the next book fair will be held August 17 - September 2.
Check out our visit to the White Oak Lavender Farm.
