Raymond Smith believes that “Reading is everything.” Raymond grew up in a single parent household as the oldest of four. His third grade teacher was very influential in launching his interest in reading. Raymond says, “Reading books changed my life and opened up the world to me.” Although the characters did not look like him, Raymond found safety and discovered himself in books. As he got older, he noticed many children did not have an interest in reading and attributed this to them being unable to connect with the stories and characters.

Raymond obtained his BA in secondary English education from Chicago State University, a Master’s in Reading from Olivet Nazarene University, and a Type 75 (Administrative Endorsement) from Lewis University. As a reading teacher, Raymond noticed that many of his students did not value reading and were often unengaged with their texts in school. Also, his students were not familiar with life lessons and basic principles learned in the home. This motivated him to begin the Righteous Ray-Ray Children’s Book Series. There are now four books in the series that each includes: a great story, vocabulary, and thinking questions for the reader. Be on the lookout for upcoming Righteous Ray-Ray titles.