What was your favorite book as a kid? That question makes for a surprisingly effective icebreaker. You can tell a lot about someone from the books they read as a child. Case in point: I’m a journalist ...

LITTLE ROCK — "Look, Spot! Look and see" ... . For many grown-ups, Indiana schoolteacher Zerna Sharp's wholesome world of Dick, Jane, Spot and the rest was a comforting hallmark of childhood reading.

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. In the realm of beloved children's books that are worth a ton of money, there are very few that have joined the million dollar plus club.

John Kador fled Communist Hungary on Christmas Eve 1956, crossing the border into Austria with his family as refugees. Kador, of Winfield, was 6 years old when he escaped with his parents, brother and ...