Thursday, October 23, 2014

a good book a day- seven really quick takes

1. We Are in a Book! (An Elephant and Piggie Book) is a complete delight. Mo Willems is an amazing artist and writer. I promise you will not get tired of reading these. Be sure to use voices.
2.The Fathers Know Best by Jimmy Akin is an engaging resource that every Christian home should have on their bookshelf. The Church Fathers really did (and do) know best! I am constantly amazed with how modern they seem, but I suppose the same evil then is here now.
3. The Tolkien Reader with The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight boxset will delight the LOTR and Hobbit fan in your home. 
4. Faeries, Elves and Goblins: The Old Stories is reminiscent of the Andrew Lang-edited fairy tales...beautiful and perfect for this time of the year when the nights get longer.
5.The Action Bible will keep a boy interested in what happens next. It is not for the faint of heart, but it really is full of 'action' that brings Bible history to life. Buy the hardbound version; I think that a Kindle version is not advisable. A not-so-young, not-too-visually-sensitve reader needs to see the pictures well and physically page by page.
 
6. Richard Scarry's Best Storybook Ever! (Giant Little Golden Book) This is the 'best storybook ever!' I just adore the varying artistic styles and lengths of the stories included. You will have time to read three stories to the little ones before bedtime.
 
7. Black as Night: A Fairy Tale Retold by Regina Doman is part of her fairy tales retold series. My girls (15 and 14 now!) have enjoyed them and re-read them. They are holding off on the rapunzel book, but even the others have dark story lines. But good and bad are contrasted and following God's commandments is what saves the primary characters. I was reprimanded by my Catholic homeschooling group for recommending them- but I didn't tell teens to go out and buy them, I told the mothers they should consider the books.....and I certainly did not mention Harry Potter!
 
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4 comments:

  1. Wonderful selection. I'll check out the Bible version you mention. Thanx.

    God bless.

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  2. I am a LMLD reader and I enjoy popping over to you also :) Just wanted to say that my daughter and I enjoyed the Regina Doman fairytale books (she is 14 - also holding off on the Rapunzel one) very much. I would recommend them to families with teenage daughters for sure!

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  3. I love Mo Willems, everything from the pigeon series, Knuffle Bunny, and especially the Elephant and Piggie series. I think the best part of that he understands that to a child a lot of their experience is extremely troubling and worrying. I saw an interview with him in which he said the biggest mistake a lot of children's authors make is that they assume kids are happy. Gerald, in the book you mention here, has an existential crisis when he realizes the book ends. In another, a snake is very upset that he has no arms with which to play catch.

    His book City Dog Country Frog is a fantastic little story about aging and death. Very touching.

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    1. I love Elephant like I love Eeyore (instead of Pooh) and I love Bert (instead of Ernie) ....they speak to me!

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