By Staff Writer: Jada Boprie

All kids are inspired by somebody. For me, that person was a spunky six-year-old named Junie B. Jones. Everything about Junie B., from her matter-of-fact attitude to the floppy, oversized bow in her hair, I loved. It didn’t matter at all that she was a character in a book.

I was introduced to Junie B. by my first grade teacher, Mrs. Esbrook. Every day after lunch, my class would sit cross-legged on the floor in front of her and she would read to us from a Junie B. story. I looked forward to the antics of Junie B. more and more each day, and not long after, I came to own almost all the books in the series.

Barbara Park, the author of the Junie B. Jones series, passed away last Friday at the age of 66. She achieved many accomplishments throughout her life, including awards for her books and tens of millions sold. This talented author not only penned the Junie B. series, but also dozens of other books for children and teenagers. Barbara Park’s ability to entertain, teach, and relate to kids is rare, and this is how she influenced me. I still own all of my Junie B. stories and after hearing about the author’s death, rereading some of them made me realize why Barbara Park is truly remarkable.

 Junie B. is one of those characters who come to life in stories.  She has a way of looking at life and everything in it that is all her own. The confidence she has in her opinion, no matter how ridiculous it actually is, was so inspirational to me as a kid. At the same time, her silliness and the way she legitimately acts her age, by being afraid of monsters under the bed and talking to her stuffed animals, made her seem just like me and my friends. I also adored Junie B. because we had the same sense of humor.

When I was young and read the books, I would literally laugh out loud every couple minutes. When I reread some of them the other day I still laughed, but I was also struck by how incredible Junie B.’s character is. She’s spunky with an almost outrageous personality, and yet is down-to-earth in her unclouded view of everything. As a writer and a reader, I understand how much talent it took to create a character like this, especially for children’s books.

Junie B. Jones was the hero of my childhood; however, it should have been Barbara Park. Writing a children’s story is one thing, but creating a character like Junie B., whose adventures inspire children for years, is nothing short of extraordinary.