Oh, magic hour when a child first knows it can read printed words! For quite a while, Francie had been spelling out letters, sounding them and then putting the sounds together to mean a word. But, one day, she looked at a page and the word "mouse" had instantaneous meaning. She looked at the word, and a picture of a gray mouse scampered through her mind. She looked further and when she saw "horse, " she heard him pawing the ground and saw the sun glint on his glossy coat. The word "running" hit her suddenly and she breathed hard as though running herself. The barrier between he individual sound of each letter and the whole meaning of the word was removed and the printed word meant a thing at one quick glance. She read a few pages rapidly and almost became ill with excitement. She wanted to shout it out. She could read! She could read! From that time on, the world was hers for the reading. She would never be lonely again, never miss the lack of intimate friends. Books became her friends and there was one for every mood. There was poetry for quiet companionship. There was adventure when she tired of quiet hours. There would be love stories when she came to adolescence and when she wanted to feel a closeness to someone she could read a biography. On that day when she first knew she could read, she made a vow to read one book a day as long as she lived. Betty Smith
About This Quote

The magic hour represents the time when a child learns to read. This is a very special time for any child who is just learning how to read and sounding out the letters. The feeling of reading and reading and reading and knowing that you can read is a very magical experience. The magic hour is where you take your first steps into the unknown and begin to explore the world.

Source: A Tree Grows In Brooklyn

Some Similar Quotes
  1. Just because it's fiction doesn't mean it's any less true. - Jodi Picoult
  2. Oh, Sweetie. No one ever gets through their TBR list. For every book you finish, you'll add five more. That's just the way it works. - Leisa Rayven
  3. If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that. - Stephen King
  4. No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader. - Robert Frost
  5. Read, read, read. Read everything -- trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You'll absorb it. Then write. If it's good, you'll find out. If it's not,... - William Faulkner
More Quotes By Betty Smith
  1. I know that's what people say-- you'll get over it. I'd say it, too. But I know it's not true. Oh, youll be happy again, never fear. But you won't forget. Every time you fall in love it will be because something in the man...
  2. But she needs me more than she needs him and I guess being needed is almost as good as being loved. Maybe better.
  3. Dear God, " she prayed, "let me be something every minute of every hour of my life. Let me be gay; let me be sad. Let me be cold; let me be warm. Let me be hungry..have too much to eat. <span style="margin:15px; display:block"></span>Let me...
  4. Because, " explained Mary Rommely simply, "the child must have a valuable thing which is called imagination. The child must have a secret world in which live things that never were. It is necessary that she believe. She must start out by believing in things...
  5. She had become accustomed to being lonely. She was used to walking alone and to being considered 'different.' She did not suffer too much.
Related Topics