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I read my books aloud before they were published.

Beverly Cleary

Quite often somebody will say, What year do your books take place? and the only answer I can give is, In childhood.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Book Giving Years
She was not a slowpoke grownup. She was a girl who could not wait. Life was so interesting she had to find out what happened next.
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Girl Interesting Waiting
The key to writing successful YA is to keep the adults out of the story as much as possible.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Keys Successful Writing
I don’t think children’s inner feelings have changed. They still want a mother and father in the very same house; they want places to play.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Children Inspiring Mother
I grew up before there were strict leash laws.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Before Grew Law Strict
With twins, reading aloud to them was the only chance I could get to sit down. I read them picture books until they were reading on their own.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Book Chance Reading
I don’t ever go on the Internet. I don’t even know how it works.
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Goes Internet Know Works
Nothing in the whole world felt as good as being able to make something from a sudden idea.
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Able Ideas World
I don’t necessarily start with the beginning of the book. I just start with the part of the story that’s most vivid in my imagination and work forward and backward from there.
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Book Imagination Stories
My mother would read aloud to my father and me in the evening. She read mainly travel books.
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Book Father Mother
Children want to do what grownups do.
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Children Want Grownups
I enjoy writing for third and fourth graders most of all.
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Enjoy Thirds Writing
Ramona stepped back into her closet, slid the door shut, pressed an imaginary button, and when her imaginary elevator had made its imaginary descent, stepped out onto the real first floor and raced a real problem. Her mother and father were leaving for Parents’ Night.
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Burton Father Imagination Mother Real Step
I hope children will be happy with the books I’ve written, and go on to be readers all of their lives.
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Children Happy Hope Readers
I was an only child; I didn’t have a sister, or sisters.
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Children Only Child Sister
I just wrote about childhood as I had known it.
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Childhood Known
What interests me is what children go through while growing up.
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Children Growing Interest
I read my books aloud before they were published.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Books Publisher Read
If we finished our work, the teacher would say, ‘Now don’t read ahead.’ But sometimes I hid the book I was reading behind my geography book and did read ahead. You can hide a lot behind a geography book.
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Book Reading Teacher
Children should learn that reading is pleasure, not just something that teachers make you do in school.
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Children Reading Teacher
He was dressed as if everything he wore had come from different stores or from a rummage sale, except that the crease in his trousers was sharp and his shoes were shined.
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Different Rummage Sales Shoes
The humiliation that Jane had felt turned to something else–grief perhaps, or regret. Regret that she had not known how to act with a boy, regret that she had not been wiser.
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Boys Grief Humilation Perhaps Regret Turned
I think the best teachers had a real interest in the subject they were teaching and a love for children.
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Children Real Teacher
I have lovely memories of Los Angeles in the 1930s. I came down to live with my mother’s cousin and they invited me to come and go to junior college for a year.
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Cousin Memories Mother
As a child, I disliked books in which children learned to be ‘better’ children.
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Book Child Children
I was a very observant child. The boys in my books are based on boys in my neighborhood growing up.
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Book Children Grow Up
I was a great reader of fairy tales. I tried to read the entire fairy tale section of the library.
BEVERLY CLEARY

Fairy Tales Great Library

I read my books aloud before they were published.

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I read my books aloud before they were published.

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