"Hey, how are you doing? I'm Courtney. What grade are you in? What's your favourite book? Elephant and Piggy? Yeah, I got it."
If you think you have walked into a library with a 1 like that, you are exactly wrong. 2, you've entered the workplace of Courtney Holmes, known as the Storybook Barber (理发师).
Two years ago, his small town held its first yearly Back to School Party, offering needy families a 3 to learn about free resources in the community. Holmes, a warm-hearted barber agreed to take part. Though he was very busy, he choose to donate his 4 to give free haircuts to needy kids so that they'd look tidy on that first chose to donate his day of school. Suddenly, a(n) 5 went through his mind, "The kids should go on getting their free 6 by having to read a book to me."
The idea was so 7 that he continued it for the next two years. Kids aged 5-10 would grab a favourite book, sit in the barber chair, and 8 while Holmes snipped (剪). If they stuttered (结结巴巴) over a word, Holmes was there to 9.
After the haircut, they'd 10 the books, from the characters and vocabulary to the themes — just like in school, only more fun. Holmes realized that not every 11 had the time to read with their kids. He had a talk with his neighbour Mr. Smith, "You have four kids, and you are so 12 that sitting down and listening to them read is the last thing you have time to do. Just bring in your kids and let them read to 13."
Holmes added, "I, too, 14 the free snip-and-reads. Last month, there was a seven-year-old boy, Bob, who tried hard to read through his book, stuttering over words, and then I asked the boy to take the book home and practice. 15 the kid came back a few days later, he read it with no problems. That inspires (鼓舞) me," said Holmes.
