Have I told you about the DK biographies yet? If not, shame on me, because you're missing out if you've not yet heard of them.
I received Joan of Arc's biography for Christmas this past year, and I immediately fell in love with the series. They're short, compact in size and all do, as their titles suggest, contain scads of photographs.
The truth is, I don't read a lot in the summer. I can't say why; I just don't, really. Because I don't, books were off my radar the past few months and what my kids or husband did or didn't read escaped me.
But now, here I am, back in the literary swing of things, so let's talk books.
Me
I have been reading the September issue of Vogue. I know. Pathetic. In my defense, I just finished a really sweet book by Curtiss Anderson called Blueberry Summers, and I just wanted to read something completely unimportant and unnecessary. Plus, I love looking at clothes, and this massive issue is the perfect fix to satisfy that craving!
In history, the kids and I have been studying the French and Indian War and I finally think I am ready to read The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper, which I have always meant to read and never have. After realizing the book that is widely considered Fenimore Cooper's most important work takes place smack dab in the middle of the war, I'm going to take a stab at it and see if it grabs me. Or maybe I'll read it through even if it doesn't. We'll see.
Joe
Joe never reads fiction anymore; it's all politics and theology, and right now it's theology. The book is called The is My Body by Hermann Sasse. While I am sure the book is riveting, I'll wait for Joe to give me the Cliff Note's version in lieu of reading it myself.
Madeleine
Madeleine was the lucky recipient of a gazillion books for her birthday and, in true Madeleine fashion, started many of the books simultaneously. Since she started four or five at once she is, as you might suspect, still in the middle of most of them. They are The Wide-Awake Princess by E.D. Baker, Fablehaven by Brandon Mull, Where the Mountain Meets the Mood by Grace Lin, and Molly Moon and the Morphing Mystery by Georgia Byng, which Madeleine says are all really, really fun. For school she's reading Henry Reed, Inc. by Keith Robertson which, yesterday, was pronounced sort of dull, but now, at page eighty-seven, has been deemed a fantastic book.
Hank
I don't know how I feel about abridged books. I mean, I know I am supposed to hate them; they take wonderfully written books and dumb them down. Except, I don't always hate them. I sometimes feel they can be a wonderful introduction to a classic story that a child may not yet be ready to read.
I have a story from my childhood that it still so vivid in my mind, it might as well have happened yesterday. I was in my bedroom. For a change, my bedroom was clean. Sunlight was pouring through the windows. I was lying in my bed. Somehow, a graphic version of Jane Eyre had fallen into my hands, and I was reading it. Mom walked by the door of the bedroom and paused. "What are you reading?" she asked, a trace of disgust lacing the question as she saw the cartoonish pictures.
"Jane Eyre," I replied, thinking Mom would be proud I was reading what I vaguely understood was a classic novel.
"But..." she sputtered, "It's... a... cartoon! Don't read it-- you;ll spoil the book!" And, with that, Mom walked away. I am convinced she was certain she had won the exchange.
But she hadn't. You see, I continued to read the graphic novel and after I finished, I could not get my hands on a copy of the real version of Jane Eyre soon enough. I devoured the book, and then I went on to read Wuthering Heights, so I could better understand the difference between the Brontë sisters.
So, yes, I am supposed to hate abridged versions of classic novels. I know that. But I don't as much as a I should, and I really thought the Children's Illustrated Classics edition of The Last of the Mohicans would appeal to Hank. It did; he is devouring the book and I can't help but believe this will gently pave the way to reading Fenimore Cooper's classic at an earlier age than he otherwise might have.
For school Hank is reading Meet George Washington by Joan Heilbroner, and he has loved how this book has overlapped with our history lessons; it's a great easy, short biography of Washington's life.
Elisabeth
This girl likes to read anything and everything. Her favorite book right now is A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker, but she always enjoys a wide array of books. The Pinkerton books by Steven Kellogg. Ian Falconer's books. You name it, she's game to snuggle in and have it read to her.
Family
As a family we're reading The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. It's been fantastically fun to note the ways the book has differed from the movie we are all familiar with, and we're anxious to find another series we can enjoy as a family. Perhaps this will be the one!
The kids and I are listening to The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare on tape during our school day. This book, while fiction, corresponds to the period we are studying in history, and cuddling on the sofa with blankets and this tape is a nice, quiet way to end our school day. We are all enjoying the story immensely.
Only twenty minutes to go until our Mother/Daughter Book Club. Wine, friends and book talk. Can't wait!
I've been in a bit of a book funk lately. I want to come across another book I just can't wait to dive back into. The last book I can recall feeling that way about was Out Stealing Horses. I mean, yeah, I always love Jane Austen and Emma was fun too, but I knew what happened and I was reading it solely for enjoying Austen's comedy and writing, which is entertaining, sure, but doesn't exactly make a book something that you are desperate to get back to.
I did recently finish Mennonite in a Black Dress, Rhoda Janzen's memoir. Eh. It was fun and Janzen did a decent job of poking fun at her childhood without making fun of Mennonites too much, but I only liked it whereas I wanted to love it.
And now I am reading E.M. Forster's A Room With a View which has yet to catch me. I've only just started it though, but so far I'm having a hard time finding much sympathy or interest in Lucy, the main character. We'll see. I am also listening to Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, which I am really enjoying. The book is narrated by Lisette Lecat and I am really enjoying her melodic voice and the captivating story. When I haven't felt like picking up my earphones or a book, I've been thumbing through my current issue of Real Simple (I cannot express how deeply I love this magazine, if only for its beautiful, crisp covers) and an older issue of The New Yorker. A highlight was a fascinating article about alcohol consumption and how it relates to local culture and customs. Worth the read if you can get ahold of the magazine's February 15&22, 2010 issue.
Joe has slowly been making his way through Ron Paul's book, reading a chapter here and there and thinking about them after he's read them. For Joe, my dear Libertarian husband, Paul has always been a bit too Libertarian, especially in regards to foreign policy. However, I think Joe feels he has a much better grasp of Paul's position now, and while he doesn't completely agree with him, he now at least feels as if he understands what Paul is saying, and can appreciate the argument, even if he doesn't wholly embrace it. Joe also polished off On the Way to the Melting Pot by Waldemar Ager (translated by Harry T. Cleven), which Joe, the great-grandson of Norwegian immigrants, loved.
Madeleine is reading Plain Girl by Virginia Sorensen for school, and Madeleine declared to me today, "Being Amish would be so cool; it would be so easy to play Laura Ingalls Wilder!" Madeleine said it's a great book so far. In her free time she's reading Philippa Fischer's Fairy Godsister by Liz Kessler and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Madeleine says she's addicted to Kessler's book and says she has yet to get sucked into Wonderland, but she did just start it, so we'll see.
Hank is happily reading The Report Card for his assigned reading and even thumbing through a magazine called Nintendo Power all on his own accord. Yes. I have stooped to checking out magazines from the library about video games to get my son to read. I feel no shame-- it worked!
As a family we've all been addicted to an old compilation of Grimm's fairy tales. The book is a gorgeous old edition illustrated by Mercer Mayer (an example of one of the illustrations here) that I remember requesting often as a child, and all three older kids have been requesting the grim, gruesome tales.
As always, I enjoy padding my book list with your suggestions-- I've got quite a list going and I love having a lot to look forward to reading!
One of the surest signs that something is about to become passé is that I discover it; you've all known about Playaways for years, haven't you. (The period at the close of that last sentence was intentional).
Be that as it may, I feel as if my recent discovery of Playaways has offered me boundless options that books on tape or CD do not offer. 
The Playaway is lightweight and compact and its reliance on earphones is perfect for someone who, like me, is moving around in the midst of chaos. I am able to wash dishes, ignore my children and read (well, listen to) a book all at the same time.
With a Playaway in my pocket and my earbuds plugged into its side, I may actually catch up on my laundry.
Elisabeth has been requesting a lot of books lately. I have to say, it's somewhat heartwarming to note that two of her current go-to books are Beatrix Potter books that were mine when I was a child. Her favorite stories of Potter's right now are The Tale of Peter Rabbit and The Tale of Two Bad Mice.
Another heartwarming favorite of Elisabeth's is The Little Red Hen out of a storybook called The Better Homes and Gardens Storybook, which belonged to my mom when she was a girl. I remember her reading it to me when I was Elisabeth's age and having her tell me about how she remembered her mom reading it to her. I wonder if someday Elisabeth will read the tattered copy of The Little Red Hen to her daughter?
Joe and I are about this close to hiding Elisabeth's copy of P.B. Bear's Christmas; we are that sick of her pulling it out and asking us to read it. For Pete's sake; there really isn't any story, just a bunch of--admittedly cute-- pictures. Argh!
As a family we are reading Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. It's slow going because Joe has been working a lot lately and when he has been home we've been playing lots of games; the kids are really into Charades and Guesstures. But on the nights when we've all settled in with blankets and pillows, we've enjoyed it.
To correspond to our history readings, the kids and I have read, or will read shortly, Peter the Great by Diane Stanley about Peter the Great of Russia, which is a great, easy to read book with engaging text and pictures about one of Russia's most important tsars. This week, we'll read another picture book called The First Tulips in Holland which is a fictionalized account of how the first tulips were taken from the Middle East into Holland. This book is only loosely related to this week's study of the Ottoman Empire. Next week we'll work through a couple of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories.
With the warm weather, Hank has given up reading for fun. (Argh! Someday he'll realize reading is fun... right?!) He read Tippy Lemmey by Patricia C. McKissack for school and Hank said he thought it was really good. Now he's reading Tornado by Betsy Byars which he also says he really likes. But, like usual, no matter how much he's enjoying his book, once he's finished with what I've suggested he read that day, he closes the book up and announces, "I finished my reading!" (Argh! Someday he'll realize reading is fun... right?!)
Joe's been busy the past few weeks. Madeleine insisted months ago that he read The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart and he finally acquiesced. He enjoyed the adventure, just as Madeleine and I did. Now he is working through The Revolution: A Manifesto by Ron Paul and before that it was American Original: The Life and Constitution of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia by Joan Biskupic, which he enjoyed.
I remember days when I could finish a book in under a week. Heck, I remember days when I could keep my eyes open at night for more than twenty minutes at a time. Bob introduced my to these DK Illustrated Biographies at Christmas and I just love them. Madeleine read the one about Helen Keller awhile back and I just finished it. How fun to get a brief glimpse into such an extraordinary life with all those wonderful photographs interspersed. Now I am reading Emma by Jane Austen. It's been years since I first read it and I can't remember it much at all so I am enjoying it almost as if I had never read it before.
I also did finish up Out Stealing Horses shortly after my last book post. *Sigh* I really, really loved it. The story and all its subplots were engaging and the writing was just so lovely. I wish I hadn't finished it and could have stretched it out.
Madeleine is still working through Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl. She loves it but I've noticed she'll read a large chunk and then take a break for a day or two from it, almost as if she needs to let Anne's words settle in so that she truly understands what is going on. When she's not reading about Anne, she's been tearing through the American Girl dolls books for the 147th time, Betsy Tacy (third time through? Fourth?) and one of the Jake Drake books that Hank checked out of the library. And, finally, for school she's almost done with The Seventeenth Swap, which she still says is dumb.
I'm struggling with what to read next. Everyone under the sun tells me how much they loved The Help so I requested it from the library but I didn't realize it was still new enough to only be a seven-day loan. Pathetically, there's no way I can finish a book in seven days anymore, so I'm going to return it and wait until I can keep it the full three weeks. I am thinking of starting David Copperfield by Dickens since I've never read it, but gee whiz, at the rate I've been reading lately, I won't finish it until 2011! We'll see.
What have your must-reads been these past few weeks?
Please, indulge me. Allow me to jot down random thoughts about books here and there and, if you're so inclined, respond. Tell me what you're reading. Tell me if you've read what I have read or am reading, and if your thoughts are the same as mine. I don't belong to any book clubs, so favor me, if you will, with your thoughts and recommendations.
Jane Ray's edition of Snow White is enchanting and Elisabeth has been requesting it be read to her a lot lately. The illustrations are lovely and Ray's adaptation is much more faithful to the original than the Disney-fied versions of late.
Madeleine is reading Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl and it has spurred a lot of interesting discussion in our home. And, to show how pathetic my memory is these days, I can't even remember if I toured the Anne Frank museum when I was in Amsterdam many moons ago. Madeleine wants me to dig out my pictures of that trip so we can we can see what, if anything, I saw. Is it possible I visited Amsterdam without visiting the museum? It seems unlikely; I read and was moved by Frank's diary as a young girl myself. How, then, can I not remember. Frustrating.
Ballet Shoes is my read and it's for our next Mother/Daughter book club meeting. I wish I could say I was loving it, but I am persevering. On the other hand, Madeleine enjoyed it immensely.
Joe bought himself a copy of William F. Buckley's book The Reagan I Knew with some Christmas gift cards. I hear him chuckling a bit when he's reading it. I suppose it would be difficult for a Reagan fan to not enjoy reading his personal letters and exchanges with a friend.
The Saddle Club book is (was?) Madeleine's late-night, my-mom-and-dad-think-I'm-asleep-but-I'm-really-reading book. She tears through this trash at light speed and I think this is the one she's on right now. She has other Saddle Club and Nancy Drew (the old, original ones) waiting in the wings.
We read The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo as a family and uttered the final word just last night. This one was a heart-wrenching, emotional journey versus an adventure sort of journey and it gave our family a lot to talk about when it concluded. I do love the stories DiCamillo weaves, but I am thankful we read this story out loud so that I could edit language I would rather not have included in children's books. I'm no prude and I know my children have heard me mumble an expletive or two under my breath, but I don't understand why they're ever necessary in children's literature.
We're thinking of The Jungle Book as our next family read aloud. We'll try a chapter or two out and see if it grabs us. I suspect from previewing the first few pages that it will.
Out Stealing Horses. What can I say about this book? Oh, is it ever lovely. The story is building slowly, but the writing is captivating. The book is so engrossing and so haunting that I have been forcing myself to read more slowly, to treasure every moment and ensure that it not end too soon. I am only halfway through, but so far I adore this book.
The Seventeenth Swap and McBroom's Wonderful One-Acre Farm are what Madeleine and Hank are reading for their assigned, school reading. Madeleine says the The Seventeenth Swap is horrible and boring and dull. Hank is ambivalent about McBroom's Farm, but I suspect he's enjoying it more than he's letting on based on his guffaws while reading and how he becomes so engrossed while reading it that he reads more than assigned.
Save Hank, we all like to read. And, well, Hank doesn't know it yet, but he likes to read too. I am convinced he could not possibly enjoy being read to as much as he does without one day growing in affection for the activity itself. So, the Hankster doesn't read for fun. But lately, as he has been staying up later, we've been insisting on some quiet time before bed. Sometimes we read aloud as a family, sometimes Madeleine or Hank will read a book to Elisabeth or sometimes we all sit together but read independently and, because of that, Hank does have a book he's reading right now that is not an assigned school book. He chose Jake Drake, Know it All. While I don't find Clements' writing to be all that challenging, his plots to be all that sophisticated or his characters very layered, there is no denying the fact that kids enjoy his books. Hank is reading a book. For fun. I'm counting this as a win.
Ah, Duck on a Bike. All of my kids have gone through a Duck on a Bike phase, and I suspect Caroline will too. Something about the barnyard animals and the repetition... I don't know, but my kids have all loved it.
That's it, for now. I don't know what I am going to tackle next; I suspect I'll make my decision as things come with my holds at the library. What are you reading?
Here is what we are all reading right now. 
Joe seems to be enjoying Marine Sniper quite a bit. I think it sounds horrifically dull, but my dad enjoyed it too, so what do I know.
I am barely into On Gold Mountain, but I anticipate liking it since I have enjoyed Lisa See's work in the past, and I am always drawn to memiors. And, yes, I am still slogging through The Well-Adjusted Child. It's not that it's bad, it's just that it covers a lot that I already know. I've been reading a chapter here and there, and I am sure I'll finish it eventually.
Hank is the first fan of Beverly Clearly in our home. I adored all of her Ramona Quimby books as a kid and it has always pained me that Madeleine has turned her nose up at Cleary's books. Hank, however, is really enjoying Henry and Ribsy and thinks Madeleine is silly for not liking Cleary's books. Of course, this is his assigned reading for school; Hank still thinks he doesn't enjoy reading in his free time. Baby steps. I figure if he is enjoying the books he's reading for school, eventually that will turn him into a reader.
Madeleine is reading The Goose Girl for fun. She says it's really sad, but really good. For school, Madeleine is reading In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson and she loves this book. It's about a little girl that moves from China to America. She doesn't speak English and has a tough time adjusting to her new home until she starts playing stickball and following Jackie Robinson as he leads the Brooklyn Dodgers to victory after victory.
Last week, Madeleine finished the book Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright and words cannot possibly convey how much Madeleine adored this book. She wants to tell anyone who will listen that they should read this book.
I have not read a book in a while that I have really enjoyed. This morning I read the closing chapters of Shanghai Girls by Lisa See and I really enjoyed it. I read Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, also penned by See, a few years ago and I liked it, but I enjoyed this book even more.
I happy to have invested my time in a book that, for once, did not disappoint me and make me feel as if I had wasted my time reading it.
As a family, we have been reading the Chronicles of Narnia books for a few years now. Madeleine and Hank love them and remember every detail they've ever heard, from The Magician's Nephew to The Horse and His Boy. Joe and I have loved them tremendously as well, and so, we have tried to spread the books out over a few years instead of reading them all at once and not having any more Narnia to look forward to.
Sadly, the end had to come eventually and, last night, with just two chapters to go in The Last Battle we decided to promote our ordinary pre-bedtime ritual of reading together into a Major Book Night and celebrate the last few moments in Narnia as much as we could. Sleeping bags were gotten, popcorn was popped and we all managed to make it through to the end without a great many tears being shed (those of you who've read the books can well imagine a few tears were shed).
We are all sad that we are done with the series, but we were cheered to think that in a few years we could start all over again when Elisabeth and Caroline might be interested in hearing the stories. And this, of course, ignited all sorts of debate about which order to read the books. This last time we read them in chronological order, but I've heard some say no real Narnia fan would read them in any order but the order in which they were written (more info about the conflicting orders here). Hopefully my blog readers can offer their opinions about the "right" way to read the Narnia books in the comments.
I have always loved to read and lately I have been dismayed at the very few books I've muddled through this past year. I've read a book here or there, but nothing constant. I must confess is I usually get sucked into watching some dumb show on TV and then I'm too tired to move, let alone become interested in a book.
I am determined to read more and to cut back on the mindless TV shows I find myself watching most nights.
I have a stack of really appealing books in my house right now and I am anxious to read them. First up is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Yes, again. I received a beautiful edition of the book for Christmas to replace my tattered paperback copy and I have enjoyed the pretty appearance of the cover almost as much as the familiar story on its pages.
I am also reading a book recommended called The Well-Adjusted Child: The Social Benefits of Homeschooling by Rachel Gathercole. 
So far it's more describing things I am well aware of (i.e. the different ways home-schoolers teach their children, the deluge of social activities available to home-schoolers, etc.) than telling me anything new but I still always enjoy reading books about home-schooling. Usually I find at least a few helpful hints when I read such a book.
One thing I read that sort of surprised me was that, according to Gathercole's research, the number of people choosing to home-school is growing at a rate of ten-twenty percent per year. I have long realized it's a much more popular option now than when I was a child, but wow; that is significant growth.
I will also be spending time this week reading through my copy of The Well-Trained Mind since I am hoping to start making some tentative plans about different texts that I would like to buy for next year.
Some home-schoolers school even when most public and private school kids are off of school. For a variety of reasons we take the time off. Mostly I find it impossible to get my kids to concentrate when their friends are running around outside and calling to arrange times to get together.
I confess I like the time home with the kids where nothing is on the agenda. I like sleeping past 8 a.m. I like that we can run down to Silver Lake today to spend a few more hours with my brother before he has to catch an airplane back home.
So, for this week, we loaf. We relax. We decompress.
Kids that are not mine play here, kids that are mine play elsewhere. We stay in our pajamas if we want to (though if I were to be forthright I would have to admit we do that frequently) and daily routine and chores are minimal. And all this we do guilt free because, after all, it's Christmas vacation. What else are we supposed to do but lose ourselves in delightful fiction for an entire day if for no other reason than the idea is appealing?
Yesterday Joe had to spend the day down in Chicago for work which meant that, based on train schedules, he wouldn't be home until 10 p.m. Madeleine and Hank begged to stay up and wait for Daddy and I said they could. We decided to read together until his arrival and I told the kids they could pick whatever they wanted, the only caveat was they needed to agree on whatever it was they chose.
Madeleine asked me, "Can we read a chapter or two out of our history book?" After I picked my jaw up off the floor I said that we could. Hank wanted to make sure we weren't going to have to do any map work or write any narrations before agreeing but after hearing that we could just plain read, both kids enthusiastically agreed on the book.
After reading about Murad and the Ottoman Empire Joe got home and we closed the book. But this morning I'm still delighted that the kids like our history text enough to want to read it simply for fun.
I love to read. And I love to discuss books but, for whatever reason, I have never joined a book club (other than the book club I'm a part of with Madeleine). It just always seems like it's one more thing to schedule into our already busy lives.
However, when leafing through my most recent issue of Real Simple I saw that they offer an on-line book club that you can comment on and take part of when it's convenient, not at a set time. Yes, you lose a lot of the benefits of having an actual conversation with a live person, but hey, it still sounds fun to me!
I probably won't be able to read along until after the new year, but I think I might try it out!
Real Simple's No-Obligation Book Club
The other night I finished The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls. Every time I read a memoir of someone who is not famous (at least not very) I am amazed at how someone I'm not emotionally connected to or interested in can captivate me with the story of their life, and Walls' tale was no different.
Reading the story of her life I kept thinking how incredibly normal her parents seemed in so many respects and, of course, how incredibly dysfunctional they were. It's also interesting that, despite their childhood, three of the four Walls children seemed to be fairly successful in their adult lives, and certainly raised themselves out of the poverty they knew as children. With poverty these days seeming to pass from generation to generation, it's interesting to question what made their family different.
When Joe and I found out last year that we were expecting a new baby right about the same time I was going to start our third year of home-schooling I had a bit of a panic attack. Not only would I have a new baby to care for, but two students to teach, one of whom was moving from kindergarten work to more time intensive, laborious 1st/2nd grade work.
Sonlight's literature based/quasi-Charlotte Mason-y/quasi-classical method has always intrigued me and I considered it strongly but eventually decided not to pitch the idea to Joe; there were too many things we were already using that I liked and I didn't want to throw out the baby with the bath water. Ultimately I suggested to Joe we splurge on their reader packages for Madeleine and Hank. My thought process was even if our new baby was colicky and high-needs at least they'd be reading some quality literature each day, with much of what they were going to read corresponding to important historical events. It was a bigger outlay than we wanted, but boy oh boy do I not regret it!
For the past two years I've struggled mightily with what the kids should be reading. Madeleine gravitates towards everything. If there are words printed on paper she generally shows interest. In that category, of course, are a lot of worthless books, i.e. simplistic vocabulary, elementary sentence structure, subpar plots, etc., etc. I spent a lot of time discussing the issue with Joe and wringing my hands about how much I should intervene and dictate to her what she could and could not read.
I struggle no more. Madeleine has an aggressive reading list to finish this year for school and the books are everything Joe and I want, she doesn't complain because she gets to spend school time reading, she generally finds she enjoys the books she's assigned and, best of all, I don't bother her any more about what she chooses to read in her spare time. I've also found that while she still picks up a book that I wish she wouldn't choose, more and more often she's choosing books that I would choose for her.
Then there is Hank. Hank is a great reader. The problem is he is convinced he doesn't like to read. The real issue isn't that he doesn't enjoy reading, the issue is there are other things he'd rather be doing. Sonlight's list of assigned reading has helped me with Hank immensely as well. He's now reading every day and realizing as he reads through these assigned books that he likes them. Don't tell him I told you, but there are days when he'll read more than what is assigned because he's enjoying the book. For him too, many of the books are historical fiction and he has learned a lot just by reading about Swedish immigrants and the Pony Express.
We could do all these things were I to spend time researching books, creating a reading list, visiting the library, etc., etc. but I know my weaknesses. I won't and I don't. It just simply wouldn't get done and my kids and I would still struggle about what to read, how much to read and all the rest of it.
A recent highlight was Scholastic's Harriet Tubman biography. Madeleine enjoyed it very much and, even though we're still pre-Revolutionary War in history, she was asking questions about the Civil War and will be better prepared (and interested, I bet!) when we do get to learning about the Civil War.
This year it's finally all coming together in the sense that everything I had hoped to get out of home-schooling we are. The kids are interested and engaged in what they're learning, and they're learning a lot. To a large degree, I am so thankful to Sonlight for that because the fighting and angst about books that were read last year was causing a lot of consternation around our house.
"Mom," Madeleine began a few minutes ago, "Is Filtch a squib?"
"Huh?"
"You know, Filch. From Harry Potter."
"What's a squib?'
Madeleine let out an exasperated sigh. "A squib is someone born to a wizard family with no magical powers." You can almost hear the "duh, Mom" that she wanted to include at the end of the sentence.
"Oh."
Pause.
"So, Mom, is Filch a squib?" Madeleine asked once more.
"Oh, I don't remember. Which one is Filch?"
Madeleine looks at me for a moment, inwardly rolling her eyes, I'm sure, and then dives back into the second book in the Harry Potter series.
I haven't read these books since Madeleine was Caroline's age. If she's going to keep asking me questions about the books, I'm in trouble.
