Everything Must Change: When the World's Biggest Problems and Jesus' Good News Collide by Brian D. McLaren - link to post. (Kansas Dad's copy)
Mrs. Pepperpot's Outing by Alf Proysen - I thought I found a Pepperpot book on Mater Amabilis's prep level page (preschool and kindergarten), but it's not there so now I'm not sure. Wherever it was, I requested this one from PaperBackSwap because our library didn't have any of the Pepperpot stories. In this quirky books, Mrs. Pepperpot shrinks to the size of a mouse and hilarity ensues. I intend to read this aloud next year, mostly for the benefit of my youngest who will be six and just starting kindergarten. I imagine they'll all enjoy it. (received through PaperBackSwap.com)
Hickory by Palmer Brown - I found this on a list of summer or spring read-alouds and thought the cover looked lovely. In fact, the entire book is physically lovely. The binding and slightly thicker pages are of excellent quality. The illustrations are delightful. The story, though, is a little ambivalent. Hickory is a mouse who leaves the farmhouse to make his home in the meadow where he befriends a grasshopper. In the fall, when the grasshopper expects to die, they decide to journey south where it's always warm. And that's how the book ends, with them wandering southward. I plan to leave it out with the library books so the kids can read it if they like, but I'm not going to read it aloud. (library copy)
Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfield (purchased copy) - This book is recommended by our history curriculum for Roman times (find it here). It's a mystery that mixes a few historical people and actual events with an imagined group of young boys that find themselves in the thick of things. The author shows every-day life in ancient Rome without "teaching" and the story is enjoyable. I read this one aloud, but the older two read the first book in the series, Detectives in Togas, on their own. That one is recommended as a read aloud for the unit before but I didn't have time to read it aloud. (received through PaperBackSwap.com)
The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit - Six children find their family in financial difficulty after their mother dies and attempt various methods to procure riches - rescuing rich men in distress, wielding a diving rod, digging for treasure in the garden, selling poetry...they all have idea. Their naivety and generous natures win many friends, inspiring them to see the world anew. I stumbled once while reading it when I encountered one particularly unacceptable word. (I wonder how Librivox readers deal with such things; I suppose they read it. I skipped it, the whole sentence in fact.) It's not my favorite E. Nesbit novel, but it was worth reading aloud and my children enjoyed it. (library copy)
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson - link to my post. (library 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)
- City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II's Kraków by George Weigel (February 2016)
- A Triumph for Flavius by Caroline Dale Snedeker (March 2016)
The italic print: Links to Amazon are affiliate links. As an affiliate with Amazon, I receive a small commission if you follow one of my links, add something to your cart, and complete the purchase (in that order).
Links to RC History and PaperBackSwap are affiliate links.
Other links (like those to Bethlehem Books) are not affiliate links.
These reports are my honest opinions.
