Many Moons Ago (Entry #1)

The wise court jester offers advice to the distressed king.

It is hard to pinpoint how old I was exactly when I first interacted with the written word, however I can recall that there is one book that represents the inception of my literacy. The children's book Many Moons written by James Thurbur (and delightfully illustrated by Louis Slobodkin), was perhaps my favorite book to read with my parents as a young child. Since it was a relatively long story, they would read it to me less often than other, shorter stories, and thus, always made me look forward to hearing it even more. The story itself revolves around the woes of a young, "sick" princess, who believes the only remedy to her illness is receiving the actual, physical moon. The tale chronicles the efforts of a worried king who consults a mathematician, a wizard, and a court jester in desperate attempts to assuage his daughter's distress. As a child, this story was the initial nexus point of many interests I still have today. The tale of the wizard introduced me to an interest in sci-fi, and fantastical genres of literature, while the mathematician inspired an appreciation for the role math plays in our daily existence. I, however, believed the court jester was a true role model, and contrary to his role in the court, he stood out as the wisest character of them all. I would always attempt to emulate his kind actions and abilities to solve problems through effective deductive reasoning. It was around this time that I remember condemning the general stupidity of royalty (which I have learned generally held true regarding most monarchs of european history), and also the beginning of the desire to continue reading, longer, more complex stories. As a young child, this book was the initial inspiration for my growing passion for finding the whimsey in both life, and other works of literature.