Wish

Dear Matthew,

You know I've been a fan of your work for years but when I first read Wish I knew I was holding an extraordinary book.  It was as if all the love you hold in your heart had been placed on those pages.  It addresses with compassion a timeless longing.

From conversations on Twitter after I posted my review, I knew many others, whether they are parents or not, have similar feelings about this book.  A discussion followed about making multiple copies of Wish available to more people.  At the time I suggested to Twitter followers they contact their local hospital foundations.

Two months later on April 30, 2015 I reached out to one of the board members of the Charlevoix Area Hospital Foundation.  When asked how many children were born each year at the hospital, she said there are two hundred.  At the end of our phone call, I knew I would be giving them copies of your book in memory of my mom. 

My mom instilled in me the belief that anything worth doing is worth doing right, so it became important to me that the books given to the newborns be signed by you.  I not only want to thank you for agreeing to autograph the books but for corresponding with me online.  To share your joy in this endeavor has been truly wonderful.

Through our mutual friend, John Schumacher, as you know, I was given a contact name at Anderson's Bookshop.  I am thankful for their assistance in ordering the books and coordinating the signing with you.  As the delivery date for the books gets closer I can feel the excitement growing.

A book plate will be placed inside each copy reading

Welcome to the world!

May this book be the first step on your journey

to becoming a lifelong reader.

It is given with love by Margaret Marie Myers Culver 

in memory of her mother, Agatha Marie Fires Myers,

 a woman who loved introducing the joy books can bring to children.

I have decided to wrap the books, Matthew, in white paper with a yellow ribbon tied around each one.  To me children, like this book, are a gift. 

At this time I am filled with overwhelming gratitude.  I am thankful to be able to give Wish to these children and their parents.  I am thankful for you, Matthew, for writing this book and for agreeing to sign the two hundred copies. I am thankful for all the people who are helping make this beautiful thing happen.  I am smiling on the inside and on the outside.

With love,

Margie

Dear Margie,

I am absolutely floored.

Backing up for just a minute… I remember the very moment I first discovered you and Librarian’s Quest. I’d happened upon your review of my book, Another Brother. It was the most perceptive, thoughtful, insightful, and pitch perfect write-up I’d seen. Every last nuance and subtle gag and hidden message I layered into that book—you found them one and all. I got chills. You know when you listen to the perfect song, or see the perfect movie, or (of course) read the most perfect book, and it sends a chill right over your whole entire self? That’s how I felt. And every review I’ve read of yours since has had a similar effect.

It’s obvious that you put so much of yourself and so much of your time and intricate thought into the things you want to say about the books you love. You give complete attention. You truly love what you love. And it’s all done for the sake of the book itself, which I very much admire.

As bitter as this may sound… so many times in today’s world, people throw terrific, outrageous things into the air that will never come into existence. Like, “every baby born at this hospital should receive a copy of your book on the day she/he is born.” It goes into the atmosphere, never to materialize and never to be heard from again. This thing was said, which sounded nice, and then it went away and I had no other thought about it. That was that. Then… out of nowhere, you came back and said that you would actually be making this incredibly generous notion into a reality. I was shocked. Shocked! But at the same time… I can honestly say, I wasn’t all that shocked. That it was coming from you. I still can’t believe it. And yet I can.

On behalf of myself, and on behalf of the tiniest new readers who will benefit from this, and on behalf of their moms and dads who will benefit too, I thank you from the bottom of my heart, Margie.

I am absolutely floored.

With love and admiration,

Matt  

UPDATE:  Matthew wrote a blog post about our project on May 19, 2015.