Posted in Books, Books and More Books

Posted in Books, Books and More Books

Posted in Books, Books and More Books

       The other story we read that I really liked is called The Lion in the Box by Marguerite De Angeli.  I found it randomly at the library in December. We checked it out because I have a special place in my heart for the author.  When I was teeny little, someone gave us a big oversized copy of her Mother Goose nursery rhymes. My mom used to read from it to my sister and me.  We loved the riddles and poems and beautiful illustrations.  Our favorite poem in the book was called "Babes in the Wood" and was this rather morbid poem about 2 children who wander into the woods and fall asleep under the trees and die! The robins cover them up with leaves.  What is up with that?  There was also a full page illustration of the two tykes, can't tell if it shows them dead or sleeping . Anyway.  I do remember that my mom used to get a little annoyed that we always wanted to hear that one. 
         But I digress.  This story has none of that and no one dies in the course of the tale! The Lion in the Box is a story set in New York in the early 1900's and tells of an immigrant family where the mother works to support the family as the father has died before the start of the book.  It's a very interesting picture of life for this woman and her 5 children.  The oldest was 11 and the youngest was about 2.  It was set in the month of December and told about how they prepared for Christmas even though they had very little.  The mother was gone much of the time; she worked 2 jobs, so the children took care of each other and the house.  I was amazed at how capable and responsible the older children were and couldn't help but wonder if my own kids would be able to cope so well in similar circumstances! (Well, I don't wonder, I know they would not!).   Toward the end of the story, a huge box arrives when the mother is not home.  The children are warned not to open the box becuase there is a lion in the box!  They totally freak out and are awake past midnight waiting for their mother to come home.  In the end, of course, there is no lion in the box, but what they find is as amazing as if it Had been a lion

         This is definitley not a Christ centered tale, the children don't seem to have a real understanding of the true meaning of Christmas. But it's a great slice of life historically and gave us many opportunities to talk about how much we have, how well the children cared for each other and what a blessing that was to their mother. 
         As a side note, my very thoughtful brother Tim asked my mother about the Mother Goose book since he remembered how much I loved it. He searched high and low until he found a used copy and gave it to Trinity as a birthday present.  My kids don't seem so drawn to Mother Goose, but we have read Babes in the Wood a few times.

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        I meant to post this closer to Christmas time, but never seemed to get around to it! But I wanted to blog about two stories that we read around Christmas time this year.  In the past, we've done an advent wreath and read Jotham's Journey together as a family. But this year, that book is still packed...somewhere... and the advent wreath is buried in the storage space, so we didn't do that
          But we Did read some new to us stories. The first is a short story from a compilation volume called Christmas in Prose and Verse that my friend Janice gave me when she moved back to CA.  Included was the ever popular story by Henry Van Dyke called The Story of the Other Wise Man.  I think I've never actually read the story before, although I was vaguely familiar with the story line, and the children had never heard it before.
        This was an unabridged version, not one translated into kid friendly terms.  So the first chapter rather dragged for them. I found myself "translating" for them, but they got the general idea that a 4th wise man was very excited about the new star and the prophecy given by Balaam about the birth of the Hebrew King.  This 4th wise man invited all his closest friends to hear his good news and to have the chance to join him on his quest.  All of his friends politely declined to engage upon such a wild goose chase, so Artaban set off on his own. That first night we talked about why his friends didn't want to go with him, and how that didn't deter Artaban from starting on his journey. He wasn't swayed by the arguments of the other "wise" men.
        The second night we read the next chapter and they became more engaged in the story of Artaban's travels. There are 5 sections altogether, we actually finished after Christmas. 
         Artaban has several moral dilemmas where he had to choose whether he would stop and give of himself to help someone in need, or continue on his quest which was time sensitive.  He begins with 3 gifts for the new king and along the way he parts with all of them. This was a struggle for him as he questioned whether it was "right" to use his gifts for the king to benefit strangers who seemingly had nothing to do with his quest.  
        Artaban's journey wound up taking much more time than he originally anticipated. More great opportunity to talk about persevereance, dedication and courage.  The story ended with a great twist that made the first difficult chapter worth it!
        Another thing I loved about the story was the beautiful descriptive language. ( Although the kids could have done without the flowery description of Artaban's home and the details of the conversation between him and his friends in the first chapter.)  But occasionally I would stop reading and look at Lukas and say 'What a great sentence that was!"  Since we're working on English composition this year, we're both more aware of things like "strong verbs" and "descriptive adjectives."  Here is an example that I stopped to marvel aloud at: 

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I'm cheating, posting a book review that I didn't write about a book I haven't read yet, but fully intend to !  This is a great review  and inspired me to stop Saying I' going to get this book and actually go Do it!  Mandi over at onecrazymom (see my friends list) wrote this review and said I could post it here.  This book also happens to be written by a wonderful missionary-homeschooling-mother-of-4(so far)-adopted-children-in-Ireland who is a sweet friend. Barbara also wrote another nifty  book called Wisdom from Proverbs: Devotions for Homeschooling Moms.  And I do own that one =)

So read Mandi's review and go order a copy of Ned while I go instill some initiative and responsibility in my own kids!

Nov. 25, 2007 - Lessons in Discipline from the Barnardo Home for Boys

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For ages 4 to 8: Abraham's Sacrifice This classic, reverent retelling of the Bible story is a beautiful illustration of faith and redemption, in simple language for the youngest readers.	For ages 4 to 9: Martin Shows the Way Set in the late 15th century, this chapter book about church reformer Martin Luther can be read to your 4 or 5-year-old, or read independently by young readers.
For ages 7 and up: Anak, the Eskimo Boy Learn about early 20th century Inuit (Eskimo) life through the eyes of Anak, a young tribal member. Young boys especially will be drawn to the challenges Anak faces as he learns to survive in the frozen north, hunting seals, caribou, and walruses with his father. Then Anak encounters the Gospel . . .	For ages 8 and up: Augustine, The Farmer's Boy One of the very few books about Church Father Augstine of Hippo written for young readers, this book details his prodigal youth, how he turned to Christ, and his amazing ministry. A hero today's children should know about.
For age 8 and up: William of Orange: The Silent Prince Sent to court at the age of 11, this unpretentious prince ended up leading the Dutch resistance to Spanish oppression. His life is a model of grace under pressure that will spark even the most reluctant student's interest in European history.	For age 9 and up: Salt in His Blood If your children enjoy swashbuckling tales of adventure (and who doesn't?), why not nurture them with the true-life story of a great Dutch admiral, rather than the goings-on of narcissistic pirates? Michael de Ruyter was a sea captain and pirate hunter who all his life remained a humble and faithful servant of God and his country. Spellbinding chapter book will have kids eagerly turning the pages!
For age 9 and up: Scout: The Secret of the Swamp This first book in the seven-book "Scout" series by award-winning author Piet Prins follows the adventures of Scout, a German Shepherd dog, and his owner, Tom, during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Tom and his pal Carl overhear a vital German plan. To warn the Allies, they are tested to the utmost as they make their way via a dangerous swamp trail. A real page-turner!	For age 9 and up: The Lonely Sentinel This is the first volume of the five-book "Shadow" series, also by Piet Prins. Having personally survived the German occupation of the Netherlands, he writes from first-hand experience. Young and old believers alike had to stand together against the overwhelming forces of persecution. Yet, unlike so many books about this era, you come away with a feeling of heroism and hope. Excellent lessons for youngsters as we face an ever-more- unpredictable political future.
For age 9 and up: Stefan Derksen's Polar Adventure Stefan runs away from his cruel uncle, the cobbler, and finds a berth on a whaling ship. Set in the 17th century, his adventures include whale hunting, encountering ferocious polar bears, storms, and hunger, and shipwreck. All the excitement of Moby Dick and White Fang, without the soul-searing secularism of those "sea and ice" classics.	For age 10 and up: When the Morning Came A Protestant classic, this is the first book in the "Struggle for Freedom" series. Twelve-year-old Martin Meulenberg and his family gamely face pressure from the reigning Roman Catholic authorities in 16th-century Holland. Timeless lessons about how to survive when society's respected leaders become repressive.