Last week, Grace, Dani, and Leonardo sat down with Mr. Bestler over lunch to find out what, where, when, and why he likes to read. He had some pretty interesting things to share!
What book did you last read?
Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters
Which genres do you like to read?
I like to read historical adventures and poetry.
Where do you like to read?
Wherever I can. I do like to read in my library though. Mrs. Wukmir gave me a very big comfortable chair that I have in my library. I like to read there.
Why do you like to read?
I like that it gives me the opportunity to use my imagination versus sitting in front of the tv screen and letting it do all of the thinking for me.
What is your favorite book?
That’s a difficult question. The Catholic school teacher part of me would say the Bible. I also like Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations.
Do you have a favorite book from your childhood?
I had a favorite when I was a little tiny kid that I read to the preschoolers this year. It’s called Make Way for Ducklings. When I was a bit older I enjoyed the Laura Ingalls Wilder series.
What is your favorite fairy tale or folk tale?
Robert Service composes poems and sonnets and songs and rhymes and things like that which are like folk tales. Most of them take place in an Alaskan wilderness setting.
Do you like reading out loud to a group?
Sometimes. It’s usually to my students when I read out loud to a group.
Who is your favorite character? Do you think you are at all like him or her?
Hmm . . . I’d like to think so. It would be James MacIntosh Quillaran from The Cat Who series by Lillian Jackson Brown . He’s a gentleman who inherited a lot of money from a previous client and he has a couple of cats and they solve mysteries. He enjoys good music and has a great sound system in his house and he gives money away to people who want to do good work for the town. It is light reading and fun.
Was there a time in your life when you discovered that you liked to read? Was there a time when you didn’t read so much?
I discovered that I liked reading when I was reading Laura Ingalls Wilder books with my mom when I was in third and fourth grade. We’d sit down and read to each other. I did do less reading for pleasure when I was in college because I was doing so much reading for my education that I didn’t have much time for other reading. In the summertime, though, that’s when I can read the most.
Do you do any reading about your interests?
Well, remember how we talked about what I do in the summertime, that I teach classes in Italy for the University of Minnesota? I teach students about the geology there and the cultural and economic ramifications of the changing geology. I stay at this old castle, and that has led to doing restoration work in castles. I restore wood and revitalize antiquities. I work on a lot of agricultural pieces, some as big as a VW. So, I’ve done a lot reading on that, so I know what I’m doing and how things are supposed to look. I want the woodwork to look the right way.
How often do you read?
About 2-3 times a week I get to sit down for an hour or so for pleasure reading. I’ve been reading Clive Cussler. He writes action adventure archaeology-type stories. They all start out with information on an event from history where a relic was lost. Then the 2nd two thirds is about the discovery and finding the bad guy who is responsible.
Thanks Mr. Bestler!
What book did you last read?
Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters
Which genres do you like to read?
I like to read historical adventures and poetry.
Where do you like to read?
Wherever I can. I do like to read in my library though. Mrs. Wukmir gave me a very big comfortable chair that I have in my library. I like to read there.
Why do you like to read?
I like that it gives me the opportunity to use my imagination versus sitting in front of the tv screen and letting it do all of the thinking for me.
What is your favorite book?
That’s a difficult question. The Catholic school teacher part of me would say the Bible. I also like Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations.
Do you have a favorite book from your childhood?
I had a favorite when I was a little tiny kid that I read to the preschoolers this year. It’s called Make Way for Ducklings. When I was a bit older I enjoyed the Laura Ingalls Wilder series.
What is your favorite fairy tale or folk tale?
Robert Service composes poems and sonnets and songs and rhymes and things like that which are like folk tales. Most of them take place in an Alaskan wilderness setting.
Do you like reading out loud to a group?
Sometimes. It’s usually to my students when I read out loud to a group.
Who is your favorite character? Do you think you are at all like him or her?
Hmm . . . I’d like to think so. It would be James MacIntosh Quillaran from The Cat Who series by Lillian Jackson Brown . He’s a gentleman who inherited a lot of money from a previous client and he has a couple of cats and they solve mysteries. He enjoys good music and has a great sound system in his house and he gives money away to people who want to do good work for the town. It is light reading and fun.
Was there a time in your life when you discovered that you liked to read? Was there a time when you didn’t read so much?
I discovered that I liked reading when I was reading Laura Ingalls Wilder books with my mom when I was in third and fourth grade. We’d sit down and read to each other. I did do less reading for pleasure when I was in college because I was doing so much reading for my education that I didn’t have much time for other reading. In the summertime, though, that’s when I can read the most.
Do you do any reading about your interests?
Well, remember how we talked about what I do in the summertime, that I teach classes in Italy for the University of Minnesota? I teach students about the geology there and the cultural and economic ramifications of the changing geology. I stay at this old castle, and that has led to doing restoration work in castles. I restore wood and revitalize antiquities. I work on a lot of agricultural pieces, some as big as a VW. So, I’ve done a lot reading on that, so I know what I’m doing and how things are supposed to look. I want the woodwork to look the right way.
How often do you read?
About 2-3 times a week I get to sit down for an hour or so for pleasure reading. I’ve been reading Clive Cussler. He writes action adventure archaeology-type stories. They all start out with information on an event from history where a relic was lost. Then the 2nd two thirds is about the discovery and finding the bad guy who is responsible.
Thanks Mr. Bestler!