SPARKS — Somewhere on a dusty shelf in any house, there is usually a book that has been carried around for many years. It probably hasn't been read since childhood, but the nostalgia and innocence of it make it is impossible to part with.

Youngsters at Alice Maxwell and Greenbrae elementary schools picked out their literary keepsakes Friday when former Sparks High School teacher Patti McClelland and a group of current Railroaders gave out free books. It was part of the Books for Kids program, which McClelland started in 1998 to promote literacy among the future students of SHS.

"See this label on the front cover?" McClelland asked one of the groups of squirmy students seated on the cafeteria floor at Alice Maxwell on Friday afternoon. "It says this book is for kids. Are you guys kids?"

A youthful chorus of "Yes!" responded.

McClelland said she got the idea for the program on a trip to New Zealand where she saw a program called Books in Homes. That program put new books into the hands of "decile," or low-income, school children. She brought the idea back to Nevada, specifically to the schools that feed into Sparks High: Agnes Risley, Alice Maxwell, Florence Drake, Greenbrae, Kate Smith, Lincoln Park and Robert Mitchell elementary schools and Sparks and Dilworth middle schools.

"Some research shows that if a child chooses their own book they make a contract with themselves that they will read it and take care of it," McClelland said.

Through her fundraising and partnership efforts, she is able to bring a variety of books to each school so the children can pick and choose. If a student doesn't find anything to their liking, she encourages them to pick a book for a friend or family member.

For the kindergartners and first graders, book choices are simple, often with mostly pictures and minimal words. Nonfiction books about butterflies or penguins are popular with children who don't read much, McClelland said, since it is easier for them to inject themselves into real life. Sixth graders pick from more complex material, such as "My Brother Sam Is Dead," "Farewell to Manzanar" or "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

McClelland also gets help from current Sparks high students who are part of the Block S club, made up of student athletes with a 3.0 grade point average or higher. Some of the Block S students get to go back to their former elementary schools and read to youngsters who sit in the very chairs they occupied just a few years earlier.

Sophomore Andrew Beaver, who at 16 graduated from Alice Maxwell just four years ago, said he remembers at that age thinking everything was interesting and being curious about everything.

"I didn't have this opportunity when I went to school here," he said after helping read a story to the children. "Maybe I'd be more inclined to read more if I had free books at this age."

McClelland said the Books for Kids program is supported through a yearly golf tournament and donations of money and of books by various groups, including the Nevada mining industry. The book selection comes from her partnership with publisher Scholastic, which helps provide some of the most popular titles. She and her husband, Gene, chose Sparks High School as the recipient of their efforts because Patti taught there for eight years and Gene graduated from there in 1966.

"He has been highly successful and he attributes it partly to teachers at Sparks High," she said.

Before each child is allowed to pick their book, McClelland asks them to make two promises: First, treat it very, very carefully. This means no "peanut butter and egg sandwiches" around the book, eliciting a lot of "ewww" reactions. Second, they have to promise to read it a lot or have someone read it to them. McClelland suggests the children read it to a pet, perhaps a fish.

Why a fish?

"Because he is stuck in the bowl and has to listen," she explained to them.