Our Story
Where it started
I spent years teaching middle school English in Chicago. My favorite part of my job wasn’t even technically in my contract: it was helping kids fall in love with reading. I loved helping them see that the books in their hands were worth talking about, worth arguing over, worth connecting to their own lives.
And when my first son was born, it came naturally at home, too — so naturally that I sent a picture of my four-month-old “reading” to a coworker with a comment about his serious reading stamina. It wasn’t really a joke.
I remember watching my toddler make connections between books and life while he was still learning to speak. And I remember feeling deeply sad that there were teenagers I knew — bright, curious children — who couldn’t make those same connections without considerable effort.
My son wasn’t special. And I wasn’t either. We just had information that isn’t handed to you in a notebook when you deliver a baby.
What I did about it.
I wanted to create something that could be used over and over again. I didn’t want to write another book that someone like me would read and highlight and forget about. I didn’t want to make families feel guilty, because there’s nothing to feel guilty about. I wanted to give them a springboard that empowered them to create their own unique reading culture — one that could eventually run on autopilot.
And here’s what that looks like when it works: you no longer need to put a Remember card on your mirror, pull a Do card when you’re planning your weekend, or have the Say and Wonder deck at the dinner table. They’re on your shelf — beautiful and sentimental now — as reminders of where you’ve been and what you’ve built together.