An Interview With Father Goose: Alabama Author Charles Ghigna

What brought you to Alabama? I moved here in 1974 on a grant from the NEA to begin the state’s first Poet-in-the-Schools Program. What kept you in Alabama? I fell in love! Not only with Alabama, but I also met the love of my life here and married her! Our son was born here. I have traveled all over the U. S. and overseas and have found that Alabama really is the best place in the world to live. Of all the books you’ve written, which is your favorite? That’s like asking a father, “Who is your favorite child?” Each one is like a new baby that you hope the world will love and enjoy. Two of my most recent books are quickly becoming my most popular “children.” Animal Tracks: Wild Poems to Read Aloud and Halloween Night: Twenty-One Spooktacular Poems both sold-out within a matter of weeks. Very good children, indeed. What are you working on now? I am working on two new books, Autumn in the Pumpkin Patch and If You Were My Valentine. I’m also writing a book of funny school poems based on my visits to schools titled On the Way to School and an autobiography titled Father Goose.

This interview was conducted by Heather Miller Homewood Public Library

Contributed by Betty Nylen Hoover Library
What do Harry Potter, Cyrano de Bergerac and James Bond have in common? Their stories have been retold in three recent book releases for teens!
	The Amulet of Samarkand: The Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud. Move over Harry Potter, there’s a new wizard in town and he’s itching for a fight. Nathaniel, a 12-year-old apprentice, summons a powerful djinn named Bartimaeus and commands him to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from Simon Lovelace, an evil magician. What follows is a whirlwind adventure of danger, intrigue, and hilarity. Grades 5-12
	Flavor of the Week by Tucker Shaw. Cyrano de Bergerac won the fair Roxanne with words while Cyril Bartholomew hopes to win the love of Rose with his wonderful recipes, but in both stories, a handsome interloper stands in the way. Will Cyril transform Rose’s friendship into love? Will he make it into the prestigious American Institute of Culinary Arts? Grades 8-12
	Skeleton Key: An Alex Rider Adventure by Anthony Horowitz. Recruited by the CIA to masquerade as the son of two agents, teenaged Alex becomes involved in investigating the suspicious dealings of a former Russian commander on a small Caribbean island. Amazingly, the teen becomes the sole participant in a plan to thwart a nuclear detonation. Grades 6-12

 

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