Award-winning author visits McHenry High School

Matt de la Peña, a New York Times bestselling author and winner of the Newbery Medal for his book “Last Stop on Market Street,” never would have imagined he’d be speaking to students as a published author since, as a child, he was “kind of a reluctant reader.”

In fact, he recalls the meeting his parents had with the principal and teachers at his elementary school about holding him back from third grade because he wasn’t reading. The memory stuck with him while growing up.

That was one of the many personal stories he shared with McHenry Community High School students Thursday during his visit in honor of the school’s Writers Week.

“We all have our different journeys to where we end up,” he told students in the school’s English classes who gathered all morning to hear from de la Peña.

“It’s kind of an unlikely story that I’m standing in front of you as an author,” he said.

The visit was part of Writers Week, a celebration of reading and writing, centered around the annual Poetry Slam for sophomore students.

Sophomore English students spend weeks studying and writing poetry, then performing it in front of other students.

The week includes other activities, such as an author visit and “Celebration of Words” activities.

De la Peña encouraged students to find things to read that they enjoy, and give books at least 50 pages before deciding whether to keep reading. He said some of his favorite books didn’t grab him right away.

De la Peña, author of “Mexican WhiteBoy” and “Ball Don’t Lie,” also shared stories of his childhood in southern California as the grandson of Mexican immigrants. He said he developed a love of basketball, and then his love of reading came in college.