by John Reid, Editor

Carylee Carrington writes more than just words in a book, she brings a freshness and a picture of identify to everyone who reads her stories. In addition, she took a leap of faith and opened the door for other extraordinary authors to share their talents. We had the opportunity to see it in person as we attended a live taping of “The Read with Carylee” show at Jirani’s Coffeehouse in Manassas.

Mabuto Richardson, son of Jirani’s owner Ken Moorman, opened the festivities with the release of the show’s new theme song which he wrote, produced and sang. In a setting inspired by one of her favorite shows “Reading Rainbow,” authors from the DMV area come in and read their books, which on this morning was to a packed house. Produced by Buzz365Media the show is a throwback to the days where the imaginations of both young and old were opened to unbridled enthusiasm by the reader.

First up was Mr. BK Fulton, who has written a series of books based upon his own childhood titled “Mr. Business.” The first story he read told of a time when he was a new student at school and changed his name, as well as an unfortunate run-in with a bully named Grimes. The second tale was about the young lad being at his grandparents’ house, enjoying sweet potato jacks and the meaning of being God’s lamb.

Next was Mr. Marc Boston, who read his book “The Girl Who Carried Too Much Stuff.” More about our interview with Mr. Boston and why he wrote his stories in a related article. Then we were visited by Ms. Toni Settles, who read her story, “The Gold King.”

The final taping was with Mr. Jay Foreman, who read his story “Mask of the Monkey.” After the reading, he mentioned how he was inspired to become an author by reading “Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing,” by Judy Blume when he was a child. He wrote Ms. Blume a letter providing her with an idea for a future book, and she responds with a letter back to him suggesting he should write the book instead. He inspired the audience with this quote from the book: “If you can’t stop thinking about it, don’t stop working for it.”

Carylee also provides the opportunity on the show to recognize others. During the tapings she gave an honor to two students who are making a difference in their communities by giving them the Community Award. Before the taping we sat down with Carylee for an interview for her vision on the show.

Check out her YouTube channel here for previous episodes and visit her website at www.readwithcarylee.com.