The Interview Swap – One of the most popular events of Book Blogger Appreciation Week. It affords all bloggers an opportunity to reach out to other bloggers and get to know them a bit better. It is also the day of the week where I add way too many new bloggers to my Reader, but that’s okay!
This year’s interview partner is one that made waves over the past year – both by her ability to write a review and because of her age. I give you Melina of Reading Vacation fame!
Melina is a relatively new blogger who is only 11 years old. That’s right, she is the same age as my son but is an active blogger and participant on Twitter. Her writing is amazing, and her comprehension and understanding of the subtleties of novels is very advanced. I had the distinct pleasure of getting to know Melina a bit more.
You describe yourself as an average 11-year-old girl. The fact that you are blogging regularly at your age would prove that you are anything but average. What made you decide to start blogging about the books you read?
Thank you for the compliment, but I’m really just a typical girl who loves reading. I have always been a reader and I wanted to find some way to do something more with reading. But what? My parents introduced me to blogging and helped me get Reading Vacation set up. Once I got started, I found such a friendly community of readers, authors, and bloggers. Everyone has been so nice and helpful to me.
As the mother of a ten-year-old myself, I must state that I would be very hesitant to let him get online with any regularity, especially to blog and to use Twitter. What do you parents say about all this?
My parents are very proud of me. We made an agreement from day one that they would have complete access to my email, twitter, and blog. They log into them every day to be sure things are safe. There have been a few times where someone approached me inappropriately. We just deleted the messages and moved on.
Do your parents read your blog? Do your friends? What do they say about all this?
Parents – They read my blog daily to keep an eye on my Internet safety. They know I work hard on it, so they are very proud.Teachers – A few of my teachers read my blog. Last year’s language arts teacher also uses it as an example of Twenty-first Century Learning when he is training other teachers.Friends – Some of them read my blog to get book recommendations. They think it is so awesome that I am in contact with authors.
My ten-year-old is a voracious reader as well, yet he has never expressed an interest in writing reviews for either my blog or on my own. What would say to kids your own age to get them interested in writing book reviews for the masses?
I would show them some of my favorite book blogs so they would have an idea of what is possible. Then, I would leave the decision totally up to them. Since it is such a big commitment, they would need to have their own motivation.
Other than reading and blogging, what keeps your interest? What other activities keep you busy?
I was on a competitive dance team until I was ten. My specialty was tap. I gave up dance last year because it was starting to interfere with my homework time. At dance competitions, I was the girl reading a book between dances.Aside from reading and blogging, I like to knit, listen to music, play wii, talk to my friends, and walk on the treadmill.
You mention that you read YA, but I suspect that you are not quite the target audience for such books. Which books, if any, do you feel were a little too “old” for you? Have you gone on to recommend them to friends?
There are plenty of YA books that are too mature for me. I haven’t actually read any of them, so I could not recommend them. My parents approve every book before I read it by reading some reviews and thumbing through the pages if we are at the library or bookstore. There are lots of times that they will put a book back on the shelf after looking through it.
You state that you love school. What are your favorite subjects? Do you find your favorite subjects influence your reading selections?
My favorite subjects are Language Arts (of course) and History. I absolutely love historical fiction. Books about strong females in history are some of my favorites in this genre. Language Arts teachers are great for book recommendations too!
What are your top five favorite books you’ve read so far?
Oh, that’s hard to answer! Here are a few of my all-time favs in no particular order:The Goose Girl by Shannon HalePrincess Academy by Shannon HaleThe Cinderella Society by Kay CassidyThe Iron Fey Series by Julie KagawaRadiance by Alyson NoelThe Hunger Games Series by Suzanne Collins
What are the top five favorite books you are looking forward to reading in the future?
The Iron Queen by Julie KagawaForever by Maggie StiefvaterDarkest Mercy by Melissa MarrCity of Bones by Cassandra Clare
At your age, I was well immersed into reading classics (I was a weird child). Is this a genre that interests you? Have you read any classics? Are you going to include them in future reading selections?
I went through a classics phase in fourth grade. I read every single one of the Great Illustrated Classics that my library carried. I have a blog post dedicated to that series and how much it meant to me.
Let’s face it – most of the book bloggers out there are much older than you. How do you handle this generational gap? Do you ever find yourself uncomfortable with the age differences?
I am comfortable being the youngest book blogger around. At some point, someone younger than me will come around, and I will be right there to support them.As for how I handle it – When I see a review for a book or a twitter conversation that is too mature for me, I just pass it by. No biggie.Sometimes the age difference can be fun though! There was some twitter talk about Buffy the Vampire Slayer a few weeks ago and I had never heard of Buffy before. That led into some pretty fun conversations about Buffy and what a tragedy it was that I had never seen her shows.For the most part, I think I have more in common than NOT in common with my blog and twitter contacts. We all have books in common and that is why we are here in the first place.
Very elegantly put, Melina! Books are the common denominator and that does transcend any age difference.
If you have not had a chance to check out Melina’s blog, she is a remarkable young woman that is worthy of your attention. Thank you, Melina, for being so forthright and honest!
Melina honestly writes better than some of my coworkers, which I find amazing on her part and very sad on the part of my peers. I too am impressed with her parents' open-mindness on the part of using technology to learn and grow.
Thanks, Steph!
Fantastic interview! Melina is an impressive girl and I've really enjoyed her blog!
My recent post My First Blogiversary! and an Intl Giveaway
My son isn't that mature either, although he likes to think he is!
You definitely deserve them all!
Valerie – That is where I first discovered her too. I was in shock when I found out how old she was (and slightly jealous that she wrote so well at that age)!
Thanks so much! She is definitely a blogging phenom!
Yes, her writing is better than some adults I know!
Thanks, Lu! I was curious to see how she did it given her age, and I definitely want to expose my son to her writing.
Yes, it is. She is fascinating to watch!
Thanks, Amy! Isn't it impressive? She's worth following just to watch her mature and grow!
Isn't that great? My parenting meant keeping Connor offline as much as possible! LOL! I think we can all learn from her parents how to maintain Internet safety while allowing her freedom.
Yes, I let Connor see her blog. He was impressed and jealous, even if he didn't like her choice of books. LOL! It's going to be fun watching her go places.
We should introduce her to Buffy when she's older!
I think we can all learn from her!
Thanks, Christina! They were the first ones on my mind too. I struggle with the idea of letting Connor online like that, so I was curious to see how her parents did it. I agree that she does have a great blogging future!
Awesome interview. I'm impressed. I have an 11 year old son and no where as mature as Melina.
Michelle and Friends – Thank you for the compliments. You are making me blush.
I remember discovering Melina during ArmchairBEA. I'm one of many who is impressed by her blogging ability!
My recent post BBAW Book Giveaway of “Hands of My Father” by Myron Uhlberg
I really loved the interview!! I follow Reading Vacation for a while and really apreciate it ^^ Melina is such a smart kid 🙂
I was floored the first time I met Melina.
Interview
My recent post As If I Had a Choice
What a great interview! It's hard to believe that this young lady is only 11 years old!
Wow, that is fantastic that Melina is so young and doing such great things! Congratulations! And great interview Michelle.
My recent post Books I Brought on My Trip 2
I've been very impressed with what I have seen of Melina, she seems like a smart young lady. Kudos to her parents, too, for being smart about her internet safety without disallowing it completely.
Great interview. Melina is fantastic. I showed her blog to my husband (the high school English teacher) and he was extremely impressed with her writing ability.
Melina – I really hope you get to experience the wonderfulness that is Buffy the Vampire Slayer someday.
Yay Melina — I need to take some lessons from you in keeping a good balance in my life.
My recent post BBAW- Discovering Bloggers around the Globe and Giveaway
Great interview! You asked all the questions I've ever thought when I see Melina online. She seems very mature for her age. She got a great blogging future! BTW Melina, I just picked up Princess Academy yesterday.
My recent post Book Blogger Appreciation Week- First Treasure