Who

Erika (togetherbooktalk) is a Program Officer at the New York Council for the Humanities where she oversees Together—Book Talk for Kids and Parents, and its sister program, Unidos—Charlas de libros para niños y padres.

Before coming to the Council, Erika was a third grade teacher, an English professor, and a Texan. She’s been in love with books since she was 3 years old, when her favorite was Bears in the Night. When she’s not reading, Erika spends her time making Valentines, eating blueberry waffles, and playing with her dog, Wally.

Chris (chrisbabits) is an intern at the Council. He loves history, sports (especially baseball and football), cheeseburgers, penguins, gnomes, documentaries on Netflix, and going to the movies.  After going to graduate school for history, he’s been a boarding school teacher and a museum educator on Nantucket.  Chris also lived in China for a summer.  When he’s not enjoying a good book or a game on TV or in person, he’s exploring New York, mostly on a quest to find the best cheeseburger in the five boroughs!  He splits his time living in Purchase, NY and Brooklyn.  And if he could go back and change anything, he would’ve read more as a kid.

Camera Shy! Surprised Face!

 

Rachel (greerrachele) is an intern at the Council.  She’s a student and a writer. Rachel loves to write, read, sing, swim, go camping, take pictures, explore neighborhoods and parks, and watch movies. Someday, she hopes to figure out a way to combine all these activities into one!  Rachel has traveled through almost every state in the continental U.S., but grew up in Texas and now calls Brooklyn home.  Also, Rachel hates having her picture taken, so every time someone comes at her with a camera, she makes a face like this one.  Her two favorite books when she was young were A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L’Engle and A Summer to Die by Lois Lowry.