Class assignment leads to lunch with famous British author
By Stephanie Bertholdo bertholdo@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers GETTING TO KNOW YOU- "The Indian In the Cupboard" author Lynne Reid Banks spends an afternoon with Heschel West student Ariel Levenson, 10. Students from teacher Ellen Brennglass' class wrote to well-known authors, inviting them to lunch. Banks responded by making Agoura Hills a stop on her visit to the United States from London, England.

Ellen Brennglass, a fourthgrade teacher at Heschel West Day School in Agoura, presents her students with the same challenge every year- write a letter to a famous author. If they are lucky the students might receive a standard form letter from the author's publishing company thanking the youngsters for their interest in the author.

This year was different.

Ariel Levenson, 10, addressed his letter to famous author Lynne Reid Banks of "Indian in the Cupboard" and received a hand-written, personal note accepting his invitation to lunch. Turns out Banks had planned to visit her son, Gillon, in California, and carved out time to meet Ariel, his mother Wendy, and Ariel's teachers at a local restaurant on Jan. 21.

In her reply to Ariel, Banks said she especially liked that he invited her to lunch.

"You said you'd like to lunch with an author in real life," Banks wrote. "That might as well be me as some other author, mightn't it? No other fan has ever done that before."

"When she wrote back I was very surprised," Ariel said. "I got (the letter) at school and it was read out loud to my classmates."

Banks also visited Ariel and his family at their Agoura Hills home. Ariel set a proper English table in her honor and served her tea and cookies. He also took her on a tour of their home and gave her oranges from his backyard trees, followed by a drive around Agoura Hills, he said.

"She's really nice, and really funny," Ariel. "She's English so she tells a lot of jokes; she's got a good sense of humor."

Banks and Ariel talked about the "Indian in the Cupboard" series and the other books of hers that Ariel enjoys reading.

Ariel said he has finished two of the books in the "Indian" series and said his favorite part was when the Indian came back to life.

Banks said while she always personally responds to fan letters, she's never gone to lunch with a child.

"I thought it would be rather fun to take him out to lunch," Banks said. "It was a bit overloaded on the adult side, I'm afraid. I could have used more time to chat about school."

Banks signed three of Ariel's books.

In the "Return of the Indian," which Ariel said is his favorite book of the series so far, she wrote, "To Ariel, with love and happy memories of a delicious lunch together." On another, she wrote, "For Ariel, who wrote a very special letter."

"Her books inspire me to read more and more," Ariel said. "I love her books."

He said the experience taught him that dreams really can come true, and that sometimes all you have to do is ask.

Acorn Bits

Lynne Reid Banks is a bestselling author for children and adults. She has written 40 books since her first book, "The L-Shaped Room," was published in 1960. Her classic children's novel, "The Indian in the Cupboard," has sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and was made into a feature film. "The Indian in the Cupboard" is the first in a series of five.

Born in London in 1929, Banks became an actress in the early 1950s and later worked as one of the first women TV news reporters in Britain.

In 1962 she immigrated to Israel where she taught for eight years on a kibbutz. She and her husband live in England, and they have three grown sons.

Banks will be signing books on Feb. 27 at Borders Book Store, 3700 Torrance Blvd. in Torrance. For information, call (310) 540-7000.