What We're Reading in August 2019

I've got something in the works for you, Mama. I can't spill the beans just yet, but I can give you a teeny hint. It has something to do with your reading life and it includes a community of moms who, like you, love books.

Do I have your attention, yet?

I hope so. Stay tuned in the coming weeks. I'll be dropping the announcement soon.

Until then, keep reading--to your kids and to yourself--and remember the wise words of vaudeville actor Groucho Marx, “Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.”

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Here's what we'll be reading this month...outside of a dog.

Read aloud- everybody

The Penderwicks in Spring- It's been over a year since we last visited the Penderwick sisters. The first book is easily my family's most favorite read aloud to date. While the subsequent titles have not been quite as good, they are still among our treasured stacks. We're not too far into this fourth installment, but are finding that the large age jump for all the characters has taken some getting used to.

Please note: I have been forewarned by a couple of readers that this particular book has a few mature themes in it. I'm not exactly sure what "mature themes" folks are referring to, but I'm also very used to editing on the fly. In fact, I skipped an entire chapter of the first book when we read it years ago because my kids were just too young to read of a budding (albeit very innocent) teenage romance. 

Jamie- that's me!

Before We Were Yours- This is the best fiction book I've read to date this year! I just finished the final pages and am not sure how I'm going to jump into another story. I might need to turn to a few non-fiction books to let my emotions settle first.

Loosely based on one of America's most notorious child trafficking scandals, Before We Were Yours spans nearly 80 years and tells the story of the Rill Foss and her younger siblings who are kidnapped by Georgia Tann famed adoption ring-leader of the Tennessee Children's Home. Like hundreds of kids who came before and after them, the Foss children are all eventually sold off to wealthy families and are doomed to spend the rest of their lives forgetting one another. That is until someone starts digging into the past.

Free to Focus- I've only read the introductory chapter to this one, but I'm looking forward to getting into the meat of it. According to Amazon, while reading it, I should expect to learn how to do the following: 

• Redefine my work so it works for me
• Filter my tasks and commitments
• Cut out the nonessentials
• Eliminate interruptions and distractions
• Set boundaries that protect my focus and drive results
• Leverage my time and energy for maximum productivity
• Build momentum for a lifetime of success

We shall see...

Sweetie Pea- 11th grade

Graceful: Letting Go of Your Try-Hard Life- This will be a reread for my daughter. She really enjoyed pouring over it a couple of years ago. Recently, I found it for cheap (FREE) at a used book sale and thought it was worth having available for other young ladies who like my daughter have grown up in the church and who sometimes need to be reminded that grace is for good girls too. When she saw it on the shelf, my daughter decided to give it another read-through.

Super Boy- 8th grade

No Easy Day- This is the autobiography of Mark Owen, SEAL Team Six member credited with helping to take down Osama Bin Laden in 2011. Because of the topic, the book is graphic at times. However, my son is a member of CAP and is very well-read and knowledgeable of the violent nature of war. As he has aspirations of entering the military someday, I feel that true-to-life books, when vetted properly, can help him go into military life with his eyes wide open.

**Updated: A few chapters in, my son discovered quite a lot of language in this book and would not recommend it.

Blonde Warrior- 7th grade

Redwall- My middle son is still working his way through this one that he started last month. It is the introductory title of the entire Redwall series and features an unlikely hero, the fledgling apprentice Matthias who rallies his fellow mice to defend Redwall Abbey against an army of rats.

Greased Lightning- 5th grade

Mountain Born- My son is really loving this Elizabeth Yates classic that we read together as a family years ago. The naturalist in him loves the story of a young boy who raises a black lamb to eventually become the leader of his family's flock.

The Dude- 2nd grade

Woodchuck- This is a vintage I Can Read Science book and is just one of many easy but not boring vintage readers my youngest has been racing through all summer long. 

That's what we'll be reading this month. How about you? 

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