Hi all, remember me? I’m your GHQ blogger who had to go off into the real world and start being an adult. Well, I haven’t forgotten about you, I swear! I think about you every day and kick myself for not getting to sit down and write. But things are finally settling down here and I finally have time to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard).

One of the coolest things about moving to Brooklyn (aside from the whole experience of living on my own for the first time and working in Manhattan) is, well, being in Brooklyn. It’s such a cool area with so much to do. I’m a few blocks from Prospect Park, Park Slope has some of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to, and I am a short bus ride from the Brooklyn Public Library.

Call me a geek if you wish, but when I finally got my Brooklyn Library card I was thrilled! I’ve always been a little bit of a bookworm (I wear this title with pride, I assure you) and libraries or bookstores have always been one of my happy places, and now I’m just across a park from one of the most amazing libraries I’ve ever seen.

It’s funny, just this morning I was lounging in bed watching infomercials (what better way to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon?) and saw a half an hour ad for American Girls. I probably owe my entire passion for reading and writing to this series. While I was in first or second grade, my mom and I would cuddle together and read the Kirsten series. I was hooked and soon read the others (this was back in the day, mind you, aside from Kirsten we had Felicity, Addy, Samantha, and Molly). I remember being so engaged and relating to these girls from different times. I also didn’t realize I was learning, but aside from encouraging a passion in reading, the series also made me interest in history. I’m looking forward to hopefully someday reading these girls’ stories to my daughters or nieces. Maybe I’ll even grab my Kirsten doll out of storage so we can all read together.

Did you read the American Girl Books, or anything that made you passionate about reading when you were little? Who was your favorite of the American Girls? And here’s asking a favor of you GHQ readers: Now that I have access to thousands upon thousands of books, is there anything you recommend I should pick up?