Pegeen - by Hilda van Stockum, read aloud to the children. Read my thoughts here. Sorry the sale has ended, but follow Bethlehem Books on facebook or get on the email list to be notified of the next tremendous sale. (ebook purchased for the Kindle, directly from the same publisher as above)
The Black Cauldron and The Castle of Llyr by LLoyd Alexander, are the second and third books in the Prydain chronicles. I enjoyed them and think First Son (12) and First Daughter (9) would as well. (library copies)
The Big Alfie and Annie Rose Storybook by Shirley Hughes. Alfie and Annie Rose books are mentioned on the Pre-K page at Mater Amabilis but we'd never read any of them. The last pages show Alfie turning five and Annie Rose is just a baby. Second Daughter (seven) and Second Son (five) loved these sweet stories of Alfie and Annie Rose just living life. I loved the wedding story that showed a black couple getting married with Alfie as the ring bearer. There's no mention of race in the text, just the illustrations depicting different races celebrating family life together. (library copy)
Don Camillo Takes The Devil by the Tail by Giovanni Guareschi, translated by Frances Frenaye, is the fourth book of Don Camillo available in English. This is a particularly wonderful book for discussions about discerning the ethics of actions in the world, rather than only theoretically (though of course it's fiction). There are plenty of examples of good people (maybe) doing the wrong thing and (maybe) bad people doing the right thing. (library copy)
The Children's Own Longfellow by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - Read my thoughts here. (library copy)
Let's Play Math: How Families Can Learn Math Together and Enjoy It by Denise Gaskins - Read my thoughts here. Sorry, the giveaway has ended. (PDF version provided by the author)
It Happened In Yellowstone by Erin H. Turner is a young reader book of short stories about real things that happened in the area of Yellowstone National Park, beginning with the "Making of Wonderland" 600,000 years ago. I might read some of this book to my children before a planned trip to Yellowstone later this year, though I intend to skip three of the chapters I thought might make them more nervous than excited - about an Indian raid, a murder, and a deadly earthquake. There's nothing particularly gory or violent in those chapters; I just prefer to focus on the excitement of our trip rather than the dangers of it. The stories vary between animals, historical figures, and events in history. It's a good introduction to Yellowstone. (library copy)
String, Straight-Edge, and Shadow: The Story of Geometry by Julia E. Diggins, illustrated by Corydon Bell - Read my thoughts here. (purchased copy)
George Washington, Spymaster: How the Americans Outspied the British and Won the Revolutionary War by Thomas B. Allen - Read my thoughts here. (purchased copy)
Books in Progress (and date started)
- Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol 2 (sixth edition) (August 2014)
- For the Children's Sake: Foundations of Education for Home and School by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay (January 2015, with my Start Here book club)
- Humility of Heart by Fr. Cajetan Mary da Bergamo (February 2015)
- Towards A Philosophy of Education (Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series) by Charlotte Mason (May 2015, with my Start Here book club)
- Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child by Anthony Esolen (November 2015)
- Everything Must Change: When the World's Biggest Problems and Jesus' Good News Collide by Brian D. McLaren (December 2015)
- Father Junipero Serra by Ivy Bolton (January 2016, aloud to the children)
- City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II's Kraków by George Weigel (February 2016)
- Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfield (February 2016, aloud to the children)
- The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit (February 2016, aloud to the children)
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Other links (like those to Bethlehem Books) are not affiliate links.
These reports are my honest opinions.
