This just in...
Homeschool mother goes to a used book sale and comes home with an excessive amount of books. And also...water is wet!
This was me last week at the Teach Them Diligently Ohio conference, and I'm not sorry. Not even a little bit.
I was giving a few workshops at the conference, but on my downtime, I buried myself under a pile of books in the vendor hall. I came home with a bag full of treasures. (I shared them all in my Instastories the other day. Did you catch it?)
Some of them, I'll be giving away. Some of them, I'll be tucking away. The rest, I'll be passing around to my kids to be read in the coming days.
(We've turned the page on the 2017-2018 school year, so the grade levels listed reflect the graduation of each of my kids.)
Here's what we'll be reading this month.
(This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for full details.)
Read Aloud- everybody
The Sword in the Tree- My oldest two children each had other commitments last week when I had to make the trek across the Midwest to the conference. So only my youngest three were able to come along. While it would have been nice to have the whole gang along, the circumstances made it possible to enjoy some intentional time with my little ones. I was able to read a few illustrated chapter books to them that I had already read to my older kids years ago.
The first book I read aloud during the long car ride was Five True Dog Stories. Not surprising, the boys loved it. But who doesn't love a good story about dogs?
Then we cracked open The Sword in the Tree, a heroic tale of a young knight-to-be who saves his father and his family castle from a band of enemies. We didn't finish the entire book on the ride home, so we'll keep plugging away at it together for the next few days.
The first book I read aloud during the long car ride was Five True Dog Stories. Not surprising, the boys loved it. But who doesn't love a good story about dogs?
Then we cracked open The Sword in the Tree, a heroic tale of a young knight-to-be who saves his father and his family castle from a band of enemies. We didn't finish the entire book on the ride home, so we'll keep plugging away at it together for the next few days.
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness- My daughter has been begging us all to read the entire Wingfeather Saga for several years now. She's said multiple times that it is the best book series she's ever read. (And this came from a girl who read the entire Chronicles of Narnia when she was seven. Her standard for fantasy literature is high.) I've hesitated all these years to read it aloud for two reasons:
But, she'll be working at a Christian camp for the summer, so I've promised to read the series to her brothers while she's away. She'll come home each weekend prepared to join us in lively discussions about it.
- I'm not a fan of fantasy and struggle to read it out loud or otherwise.
- I couldn't bring myself to read a series aloud to her that she's already read silently to herself.
But, she'll be working at a Christian camp for the summer, so I've promised to read the series to her brothers while she's away. She'll come home each weekend prepared to join us in lively discussions about it.
Jamie- that's me!
The Lifegiving Parent- This is the third and final book in the Lifegiving series by Sally Clarkson. The Lifegiving Home was (and still is) one of my most favorite books on parenting and home keeping, so I was naturally anxious to read through the other two titles. This third one, however, has been a bit of a disappointment. It is mostly written by Sally's husband, Clay with only a few paragraphs in each chapter by Sally herself. Consequently, the writing style and themes are different from the previous two books. It tends to read more like a sermon and perhaps would be more suitable for a male audience.
Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker- I'm still only half-way through with this historical fiction I started last month. I had such high hopes of enjoying it as much as I enjoyed America's First Daughter. But it's not nearly as riveting and moves at a much slower pace.
Sweetie Pea- 10th grade
Daring to Hope- This is the second book by missionary Katie Davis Majors. My daughter loved her first book and has been on a library waiting list for this one for months. Book two picks up where the first book left off and shows how one can find hope and joy in the most tragic of circumstances. (This title is not on the MUST READ list that I made for my girl last year. But since a book list should never be set in stone like an idol, I only ever intended it to be a launching point to help develop and expand her reading pallet. She's free to veer from the list whenever she wishes.)
Super Boy- 7th grade
Big Red- This is Jim Kjelgaard's most famous book and surprisingly neither my son nor I have ever read it. In true Kjelgaard fashion, it is about a dog and a boy (a hunting boy, to be exact). I look forward to hearing the story as my son reads it out loud each day to me. But who doesn't love a book about a boy and his dog?
Please note: Kjelgaard wrote in a different era of children's lit and chose to write about an off-the-grid culture that was particularly rugged. Occasionally, you'll find a mild swear word like he*l or da*n in his stories. I do not know if that is the case with Big Red.
Please note: Kjelgaard wrote in a different era of children's lit and chose to write about an off-the-grid culture that was particularly rugged. Occasionally, you'll find a mild swear word like he*l or da*n in his stories. I do not know if that is the case with Big Red.
Craig & Fred- My son is still working his way through this soldier memoir about the unlikely friendship between a two-legged veteran of the Afghan war and a four-legged one. He's absolutely loved it. But who doesn't love a book about a man and his dog?
Blonde Warrior- 6th grade
Henry Reed's Babysitting Service- We read the original Henry Reed, Inc. together as a family a few years ago and thought it was hilarious, my middle son, especially. When I found this sequel at the used book sale in Ohio, I knew I had to snag it up for him. In the same tone as the first book, this one details the misadventures of Henry as he tries to establish a new line of work for himself.
Greased Lightning- 4th grade
The Enormous Egg- My son is almost done with this delightful tale of a young boy who raises a triceratops that just happens to hatch out of one of his chicken eggs one day.
Please note: There are some mild evolutionary comments in this book. While listening to my son read it out loud to me, I have countered the author's words with a New Earth worldview.
Please note: There are some mild evolutionary comments in this book. While listening to my son read it out loud to me, I have countered the author's words with a New Earth worldview.
The Dude- 1st grade
Basic Phonics Readers- My youngest son is currently making his way through this set of phonics-based basal readers that correspond with his phonics program. They are eye-catching, simple booklets that focus on the specific sounds he learned last year in kindergarten.
Henry and Ribsy- It appears there is an unexpected theme to so many of the books on our list this month. This one is no exception. But who doesn't love a book about a boy and his dog? I'll be reading the third in the Beverly Cleary "Henry" series to my youngest during some just-me-and-mommy time together each afternoon.
We'll be enjoying these books and more this month. How about you? What will you be reading?
No comments:
Post a Comment