The Poky Little Puppy

For me, it all began with a little dog that had the courage to follow his own path. While his siblings sniffed away at a familiar patch of grass, this puppy, this poky little puppy, struck out and explored on his own. I'm not sure if this was the first book I ever read, but it is the first one I remember. And what did I learn?: lizards and caterpillars are cool, dogs have the uncanny ability to prepare rice pudding, moms be tripping (no strawberry shortcake? WTF?), and every story has a moral. The Poky Little Puppy was one of those books that really first sparked my love of reading.
First Books (thanks, Newpages) is a cool nonprofit that works to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. First Books works with existing literacy programs to distribute new books to children who, for economic reasons, have little or no access to books. It sounds like they have a lot of opportunities for people to get involved with the program on the local level, whether through donations or volunteering, so check them out. Stay Poky.

--Abdel