An Open Letter To Rick Riordan From A Nine-Year-Old Fan

Last updated on: October 11, 2013 at 1:24 pm by Tara Edelschick

An Open Letter To Rick Riordan From A Nine-Year-Old Fan 2013-10-11T13:24:05-06:00 Tara Edelschick

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Ezra in the grass, devouring the latest Riordan book and waiting to hear him speak.

Open letters seem to be in fashion these days. So I thought I’d post Ezra’s letter to Rick Riordan. In case you don’t know any children between the ages of seven and seventeen, Rick Riordan is the author of three wildly popular series of books where gods of old are alive and well.

His latest book, House of Hades, was released today, and we went to see him speak at a local school. On the way there, the boys and their friends had a vigorous debate about which of them was most likely to be a demi-god. Demi-gods are the children of one mortal and one god, and in Riordan’s world, their disabilities are often a sign that they are special.

Zach: Well, I have ADD, so I think I could be a demi-god.

Friend: Well, I’ve got dyslexia.

Ezra: Well, I have ADD AND dyslexia. So I’m most likely a demi-god.

Friend: Well, actually, I don’t know my birth father either.

Realizing that this meant his birth-father might actually have been a god, all four kids agree: Yeah, you’re probably the demi-god.

The debate continued and I got teary-eyed. Any man who can help a bunch of homeschooled kids who didn’t quite fit in to their school feel like their struggles might also make them special is worth waiting in line for five hours for.

When we got there, I handed the woman running the event an envelope with letters from our homeschool class inviting him to join us. She assured me that she would hand it to him directly. But just in case she didn’t, and he happens to be googling himself (do famous people do that?), then here is the letter from Ezra:

In case you are not up on the latest demi-god writing conventions, it says, “Dear Rick Riordan, Please come to our class. I love your books. They are what got me reading. By the way, I am dyslexic. My mom’s email is ….”

It might be shorter than a typical open letter. But that’s okay, mine would have been even shorter. “Dear Rick, You got my kid reading, and believing that he’s okay. Thank you.”

________________________________________________________

And for the thousands of you who could not see the event, here are some clips that I recorded tonight:

Previous Post

October 7, 2013

Don't Take Away Recess: Better Yet, Make It An Hour

Next Post

October 11, 2013 Rick Riordan Was A Homeschooler?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Reflections on "Mind In The Making" by Ellen Galinsky Uncategorized

Select a Month January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 January 2014 December 2013 October 2013 September 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz