Award-winning writer and teacher Sally Allen knows that good books don’t just draw us in; they talk to us, shape us, and transport us to times, places, and minds different from our own.
In Unlocking Worlds: A Reading Companion for Book Lovers, Allen deftly weaves personal stories with fifteen thematized, annotated, and illustrated reading lists for what to read next. By sharing some of the treasures in her library and the secret lives they reveal, she gives us permission to embrace the shameless book lover inside each of us. Unlocking Worlds is a testament to how reading passionately—and compassionately—can unlock the world beyond our back yard. Celebrating books and those who read them, Allen shows how the solitary act of reading can be a powerful thread that creates community and connection. Thought-provoking and eloquent, Unlocking Worlds: A Reading Companion for Book Lovers is a must-have for anyone who can’t leave the house without a book in hand.
Here’s a quick Q&A session with the author Sally Allen:
What genre do you write and why?
I write nonfiction about books. When I was younger, I enjoyed writing fiction. During and after college, I’ve written essays and done reporting and other journalistic writing. In recent years, I find my favorite subject to write about revolves around my favorite pastime, which is reading. Books give me so much to think about, and writing helps me work out what I’ve learned and valued from my reading experience.
Where do you write?
I do a lot of my writing in my walk-in closet, which doubles as my home office. I live in an old home, and my closet, which probably wasn’t a closet when the house was built, has a large, lovely window. I put a small desk under it, and it’s a surprisingly cozy spot where I can sneak away when I want to write without being interrupted.
As a mom writer, how do you balance your time?
The biggest thing I had to learn is how to write productively in small bursts. Before I became a mom, I assumed I needed long, uninterrupted stretches of time to write. After I became a mom, I realized this was no longer possible. So I had to retrain myself to take whatever time I could carve out, even if it was just fifteen minutes, and make those minutes count.
What is a book that inspired you to be a writer?
One of my favorite books growing up was From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg. Claudia and her brother, Jamie, run away from home and live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a place I’d spent a lot of time in growing up in New York. Reading that book inspired me to write my own Claudia-and-Jamie-style adventure, though mine was set in Williamsburg, Virginia, where my family had recently gone on vacation. Though I don’t write fiction anymore, that is definitely the first book that inspired me to write.
Name a quirky thing you like to do.
My absolute favorite place to read is on airplanes, especially on evening flights. Anytime I’m booking a flight, I’ll opt for an evening one if at all possible. Something about being 30,000 feet above the earth’s surface in the dark facilitates getting lost in another world. My secret fantasy is to be given an airplane ticket around the world so I can finally make a serious dent in my massive to-be-read list.
If you would like to read more author interviews, guest posts and book reviews of Unlocking Worlds, please have a look at the book tour schedule here.
Award winning writer and teacher Sally Allen holds a Ph.D. from New York University in English Education, with an emphasis in writing and rhetoric, and a M.A. in English Language and Literature. She teaches writing, literature, and communications, leads book group discussions, and is the founder and editor of Books, Ink at HamletHub.
Connect with the author: Website | Twitter
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Thistles and Whistles 
Great interview with Sally Allen. She appears to be a very interesting and talented author.
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