What began as a record of everything I read for one year quickly turned into a place to connect with other book lovers over our shared passion. I'm so glad that I discovered the book blogging world! Please visit as often as you like, and feel free to chime in with your opinions any time.
Ambassador of Books ~ Book Club Madam ~ Blogger Gal
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That's a good question ... I'm a daughter, a wife, a mother, a sister, a friend ... and there's so much more! But for the purpose of this blog I am a first and foremost a reader.
When I was in the first grade I read The Hobbit and my love of Fantasy took root. By the time I left elementary school I had completed the entire series as well as The Belgariad by David Eddings. Seventh grade brought me the beginning of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series ... which is still not complete. High school and college introduced me to the classics and to history. My reading disappeared for several years when I had a child. Then I started a book club and it came back in full force.
Today I read anything that catches my eye ... at the moment that includes historical fiction, fantasy, literary fiction, and any titles I find interesting. I'm always on the lookout for the next great find ... any suggestions?
Siblings Paul and Maureen live on Chincoteague Island with their grandparents. This year Paul is finally old enough to join the men on their annual round-up of the wild ponies on neighboring Assateague Island. Paul get amazingly lucky and captures the mysterious Phantom, a mare who has evaded the round-up for several years in a row, and her new foal, Misty. Paul and Maureen have saved money for months to be able to purchase a pony on Pony Penning Day and now they want to buy both Phantom and Misty. Will they be able to come up with the money in time? If they do, can they ever hope to tame Phantom? And what about little Misty?
*** Why We Listened To It ***
This is a classic of childrens literature and holds a special place in my reading memory. Chincoteague is just a few hours from where I've lived all my life, and I visited there for the Pony Penning Day Carnival once as a child.
With a 7 hour drive coming up, I raided the library for audiobooks that Kiddo might enjoy. I checked out about 10 books and let him pick from that stack. Surprisingly he chose MISTY as one of his top picks. He's not a big fan of horses but I think the fact that this takes place near where we live is what interested him. I honestly expected him to avoid this one like the plague, so I was thrilled when he seemed excited to listen to it.
*** Our Thoughts ***
I loved revisiting this book, but it was shorter and simpler than I remembered. Unfortunately the cassettes were really in bad shape so the last part of the book was hard to hear, but that was my only complaint. Kiddo listened to this in utter silence for several hours so I know he enjoyed it. Here's his review, in his own words ...
1. Did you like this book? Yes, it was fun.
2. What was your favorite part? I didn't have a favorite part - I liked the whole thing.
3. What was your least favorite part? None, I didn't have a least favorite part.
4. Since this was an audiobook the only illustration was on the cover. What did you think of the cover? I thought it was cool. I liked the cover because it had Misty and Phantom on it. [Mom's note: The audiobook cover was different than the one pictured above, but I couldn't find an image that matched what we had.]
5. Would you recommend this book to your friends? No because kids that I know don't like horses or ponies. Do you like horses? Just the male horses. Like the Pied Piper? Yes. Why? Because they run the her. Is there anything else you'd like to say about this book? I liked listening to it in the car.
*** Your Thoughts ***
Did you read this book as a child (or an adult)? Which of your childhood favorites have you shared with your own children? What were there reactions to your old favorites?
This review is part of Kids' Picks, hosted by 5 Minutes for Books. Check out what other kids are reading today!
Kiddo and I have been working on this book for months, reading just a few chapters each week. We both really enjoyed the continuing saga of Percy Jackson and his friends. I love how Riordan includes the Greek myths that I grew up loving and yet presents them in an entirely new way. But it is the fact that Kiddo is so into this series that makes me enjoy it as much as I do.
For me, the best part about this book was the character development. Up until now most of the characters have been pretty static but in this installment several of them change in rather significant ways. My favorite character is Nico, a boy that I didn’t like at all in the previous books. He began as a seemingly minor character but he’s now a major part of the story and I love that.
Normally I'd have Kiddo chime in here with his impressions for our Mom & Son Book Club but he's away at camp right now so you'll have to take my word for it that he really like this book.
Kiddo is really excited to get to the last book in the series but I think we’re going to take a break from Percy while so we can read some other books while we’re on vacation …
...
PS. As a side note, my mood really affects my reading ability. I read the last few chapters of this book to Kiddo late one night while I was dealing with my normal monthly mood swings (oh how I love PMS … not). We were at a part where there was a battle and several characters do some heroic things. I had to keep stopping my reading to take deep breaths so that I wouldn’t cry. I covered it up by coughing quite often. :) Yeah, I can see me trying to explain to Kiddo why a heroic battle scene is making Mama cry … ~LOL~
The Titan's Curse Percy Jackson and the Olympians #3 by Rick Riordan320 pages
I started reading this to Kiddo back in November, I think. In December we took a break to read A Christmas Carol together. Between Hockey, Cub Scouts, AWANA, school, and family activities, we didn't finally finish the book until the end of February.
Do you want to know another reason that we took so long to read this? Kiddo started reading some of it to me! As you may recall, he's struggled with reading but has been improving steadily. I am so very impressed that he is able to read parts of this book to me, even if he still has trouble with lots of the words and his pace is very slow. All that doesn't matter - the fact that he is trying really hard, and (for the most part) enjoying it ... that makes me a very happy momma indeed.
I don't have much to say about this book that I haven't said about the previous ones in the series. Although it is fun to read with Kiddo, it is not a series that I would really have enjoyed on my own. The Greek mythology theme is clever and interesting but to my mind the book is geared more to it's intended audience: kids. This book does stray slightly into romantic situations but those are an undertone to the main plot, and more a part of the growing-up process of the characters. Kiddo didn't seem to notice it at all.
One thing I did notice, and this is more about our experience reading than about the book itself, is that Kiddo is getting better at putting the clues together and anticipating what might be coming next. In previous books, I'd have a plot twist figured out chapters ahead of time but he'd be completely surprised by it. Now he is catching on to the hints in the story and is quite pleased when he realizes he was right about something.
Kiddo intended to do a video with his thoughts on the characters but time got away from us. By this point he is focused more on the next book in the series and doesn't really have much to say about this one. Hopefully next time we'll have it a bit more together and we'll be able to do a video just after we finish reading ...
A Christmas Carol: Special Edition by Charles Dickens additional material by Stephen Skelton 124 pages original story published in 1843
I am thrilled to say that I read this entire short story to Kiddo in the original (old-fashioned language and all) and that we both loved it - yay!
*** My Thoughts ***
I remember loving this book when I read it years ago, and I've been wanting to read it to Kiddo for quite some time. I made it one of my goals this holiday season so I'm doubly thrilled to have met that goal AND enjoyed the whole process.
We took about two weeks to read this book despite the very short length. That's because we've been so busy with Kiddo's surgery and the holidays that time kept getting away from us. Plus I had to stop often in my reading to explain things to Kiddo; Dickens is one wordy guy and although Kiddo was paying close attention, he didn't always understand what was going on. So my reading pace was slower than usual but we did finally make it to the end.
(As a side note, my mother-in-law offered me her copy of the book which was rewritten to be more accessible to children. I didn't take it, because I wanted Kiddo to be exposed to the original. And I'm so glad that I stuck with it. In the end, Kiddo said that the old-fashioned language didn't bother him at all and that he really enjoyed the story.)
My opinion? "I love this story and I think everyone should read it at least once. It will restore your faith in humanity and help you keep the Christmas spirit all year round."
Kiddo's opinion? "I liked it!"
*** Mom & Son Book Club Questions ***
Did you like this book? Yes, but there were good parts and bad parts. [Mom's note: After much discussion, I realized the "bad" parts were those times when he was really bothered by the characters' actions.]
What was your favorite part? When Scrooge gave Bob Cratchitt a raise. And when Tiny Tim said "God bless us, every one." [Mom's note: Kiddo also pointed out that in the Mickey version, Scrooge makes Bob his partner, but that it doesn't happen in the book. Kiddo wasn't happy about that or that Scrooge didn't bring toys to the Cratchitt house, as those are his favorite parts of Mickey's A Christmas Carol.]
What was your least favorite part? When the people stole Scrooge's stuff after he died - that was so mean! [Mom's note: Kiddo was REALLY bothered by this whole section. It was worse for him than the creepiness of the Spirit of Christmas Future or of Scrooge being dead.]
Would you recommend this book to your friends? No, because it might scare them and they might not understand it. Did it scare you? No. Did you understand it? Yes. So you're saying that you're smarter than all your friends?[Here Kiddo started smirking slightly.] Well, a little ...
*** Other Thoughts ***
One of the reasons I wanted to read this with Kiddo was to prepare him for the Disney version that is in theaters now. He loves Mickey's A Christmas Carol, but I'd heard that the Jim Carey version was a bit more intense and I wanted to be sure he wouldn't be scared by the images that go with the Ghost of Christmas Future. Now that we've read it, we're ready to see the film. I just hope there is time before - or right after - Christmas!
*** About This Version ***
The version of the book I read is pictured above and is a new release this year. It includes a TON of annotations that illustrate Dickens' many Biblical references in the story. It also includes discussion questions that could be used with a Bible study group or for family discussion.
In reading this book to Kiddo, I chose to read him the story only. After we finished the story, I went back and read all the annotations and discussion questions on my own. I LOVED the annotations! In fact, I wish I'd read them before reading the story to Kiddo; they would have helped me to explain some of the sections better. And although I didn't use the discussion questions, I can see that they would be a great basis for a fun and insightful group discussion of this book.
Here's a video that shows you some of the pages inside and give you a better idea of what this version of the book is all about.
Thank you to the publicist for sending me a copy of this book; I was planning to read this story during December anyway, so the book arrived at the perfect time. And this version was a real treat, one that has gained a place in my permanent collection.
*** Your Thoughts ***
I KNOW that many of you have read this ... so where are all your posts?! I certainly can't find them. Here are two reviews that I DID find:
Wordsmithonia read it for the 1st time and really appreciated Scrooge's character, more so than in the movie versions.
Library Dad also appreciated the written version more than the Hollywood versions.
I'd love you include yours here - just link to it in the comments!
Every year the local church puts on the exact same Christmas pageant with the exact same costumes and the exact same actors ... the exact same everything. But when the 6 Herdman kids (who are simply the baddest kids in the whole wide world and don't even go to church - *gasp*!) end up playing the main parts in this year's pageant, things don't go the exact same way they have in the past ...
*** Why I Read It ***
I remember this story from years ago and wanted to share it with Kiddo this Christmas season. I checked it out from the library on audio so we could listen together as we drove to and from ice hockey, Cub Scouts, Irish step dance, etc.
*** Our Thoughts ***
I think this story is hilarious and heartwarming. It is one I remember from my own childhood.* It is fun and funny, amusing and touching, all at the same time. I really enjoyed listening to it and sharing it with Kiddo.
Kiddo enjoyed listening to it as well. I know this not because he told me so (he didn't) but because he was completely silent whenever it was on in the car - and THAT is quite unusual for Kiddo. Whenever we'd arrive someplace and need to turn the car off I'd ask him what he thought of it so far. "It's alright," he'd say in the most casual voice he could manage. "Just alright," I'd ask. "Yeah," he'd say. And that was the end of our conversations. But when we'd be back in the car and I'd ask if I should put on the show, he always said yes, and he always stayed quiet. THAT is saying something.
When the story finally finished, it was a time when Hubby was in the car with us as well. I was really excited to discuss the book with Kiddo but he wasn't having any of it. "It was weird," was all he'd say. Hmpf.
After a few leading questions failed to get him talking, I tried asking our usual Mom & Son book club questions.
Me: "Did you like it?" Kiddo: "It was weird." Me: "Did you have a favorite part?" Kiddo: "No." Me: "Did you have a least favorite part?" Kiddo: "No." Me: "What did you think of the picture on the front?" Kiddo: "It was weird." Me: "Would you recommend this book to your friends?" Kiddo: "No." Me: "Why not?" Kiddo: "Because it was weird."
Ah, yes ... Kiddo ... the most verbal child in the world when he wants to be but push him on something and he clams right up. Don't you just LOVE stubborn, opinionated children? (You ARE sensing the sarcasm here, right?)
As I said above, I think that Kiddo did actually like this book - although you can't tell from his comments. We did eventually chat about the story and what the Herdman kids did that made the pageant unique. It was obvious that Kiddo had paid attention to every word of the story. I helped him to understand what it all meant and how it related to the meaning of Christmas, and he was quite verbal by that point.
*** Your Thoughts ***
I can't be the only whose Kiddo acts like this, right?! Please tell me about something that you've planned to do with your child that didn't turn out at all like you expected due to said child's attitude - I need to know I'm not alone!
Then you can check out these other reviews of the book - they are bound to put you in the Christmas spirit.
Becky (she of too many blogs to list here) includes lots of quotes in her review
* I could have sworn that Adventures in Odyssey had done a version of this back when I was a kid but I can't find a link to it anywhere. If you haven't heard of Adventures in Odyssey before, it is a wonderful Christian radio program for kids. It started in 1987; I remember listening to the very first episode with my sister. Now Kiddo listens to it and loves it as well. You can find out more about it at this link and search for local stations that broadcast it at this link.
The Sea of Monsters Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan 279 pages
About the book:
This is the 2nd book following the adventures of Percy Jackson, a modern-day boy who finds out he is the son of the sea god Poseidon. In this particular book Percy faces cyclopes, sea monsters, and some not-so-friendly minor goddesses in his quest to save his home.
Kiddo says:
(Mom's questions are in bold, Kiddo's answers follow.)
Did you like this book? Yes, because I met more of Percy's family.
What was your favorite part? The very, very end because of what happened on the last page.
What was your least favorite part? When Percy thought one of his friends died.
The only illustrations were on the cover, so what did you think of the cover? I like it but I didn't know that everything on it stood for something until we talked about it just now.
Would you recommend this book to your friends? Some of them. Some of my friends don't like Greek stuff and some do. [Mom's note: Kiddo has recommended this book to LOTS of his friends - I've heard him talking to them about it when they're playing together outside.]
Is there anything else you'd like to say about this book? The man-eating sheep were funny but scary. I am enjoying the series and I really, really want to get to book 4, The Battle of the Labyrinth, because the cover looks really cool and it looks like Percy is looking into the coffin of the Titan guy.
Mom says:
I really enjoyed reading this to Kiddo over the past month. As I mentioned in my review of Book 1, The Lightning Thief, these books are a bit juvenile for my taste but they are perfect to read along with Kiddo. Percy's adventures in this book draw heavily from THE ODYSSEY; that book was rather fresh in my mind so the references jumped out at me right away. I'm not sure what Kiddo enjoyed more, me reading this book to him or me telling him the original story of Odysseus!
On the whole, this series is a lot of fun and I'm glad that Kiddo and I decided to read it together. We can't WAIT for the movie to come out!
If you want to find out what other kids around the blogosphere have been reading lately, please check out Kids' Picks at 5 Minutes for Mom.
Since I became a mom, I've always dreamed of sharing books with son, Kiddo. Like most parents, I read stories to him when he was small. He was a very wiggly child and would never stay on my lap, preferring to play on the floor while I read. As he grew, I encouraged him to look at books for himself. Unfortunately he wasn't really interested in books and he'd avoid them at all costs.
After I started blogging I began seeing mentions of Mother & Daughter Book Clubs on other blogs and I was envious. Why oh why couldn't I have a daughter to share books with like that?! Then it hit me like a ton of bricks: THIS was the way to get Kiddo interested in reading!
You see, Kiddo loves my blog (unless blogging means I'm not playing with him) and he loves to hear about other bloggers around the world. He does NOT like my book club though, because it takes me away from him when he'd rather I be home. So I gave him the opportunity to make regular appearances on my blog to discuss the books we read together in our own personal book club, our own special time together. He was thrilled!
Kiddo was 6 at our first "meeting" so I did all the reading. Afterward I asked him a series of questions that would become the basis of our book club discussions. I recorded his answers word for word and posted them on my blog. When my readers started responding to his posts he was convinced he was famous.
As Kiddo progressed through first grade I realized that reading doesn't come easy for him nor is it something he likes to do. Our little book club has become even more important because of this. I still do most of the reading, especially since we've moved on to books that are out of his skill range, but I do ask him to read chapter titles or short paragraphs from time to time. My hope is that by reading him books that he finds exciting and interesting, I will encourage him to try harder to read on his own.
I don't know if my plan is working but I treasure the time Kiddo and I spend reading together.
If you'd like to check out all the Mom & Son Book Club post, follow this link.
It has been a long time since I've done a Mom & Son book club post. Kiddo has been working on reading independently and he is definitely improving (but still needs lots of practice). Of course that means we're reading fewer books together. But today we're talking about the book I read to him during August ... enjoy!
The Lightning Thief Book 1 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan 392 pages
*** About the Book ***
This is the story of Percy Jackson, a modern-day kid who finds out he is the son of an ancient Greek god. Oh, you didn't know that the Greek Gods were still around? And that they live on the 600th floor of the Empire State Building? Yeah, Percy didn't know that either. But now that he does, he's caught up in a dangerous quest, beset by monsters, and in the middle of an impending war between the gods. What fun (for us, not for Percy!).
*** Why I Choose It ***
Kiddo loves Harry Potter and he has already listened to all 7 audio books. When I heard about a new kids series that dealt with magic and adventure AND that was being made into a movie, I knew I'd have to check it out for him. So when Becky's Online Reading Group chose it for their August pick I decided to read it aloud to Kiddo and see how we liked it.
*** Kiddo's Thoughts ***
I'm letting Kiddo tell you about the book himself in this video - enjoy!
In case you couldn't tell, he really liked the book!
*** My Thoughts ***
Kiddo can't ever stay still, especially when I'm reading him a book. He was never a child to cuddle up on my lap for story time. BUT ... this book really captured his attention. We'd usually read one chapter per night and most times Kiddo would be totally engrossed in the story, eyes wide, and practically on the edge of his seat. The chapter titles made him laughing out loud (they were quite funny, I must say) too.
Since Kiddo is almost completely unfamiliar with ancient mythology our reading time was usually interrupted by me giving him short history lessons (which he really enjoyed). I used to love mythology as a kid and my recent time spent listening to The Iliad and The Odyssey (my current audio book) definitely came in handy with this as well.
So Kiddo loved the book and I loved reading to him. But I didn't love the book.
Let me rephrase that. As an adult reader, I could definitely tell this book was written for middle grade kids. My biggest complaint is that the plot was really predictable. I had things figured out almost from the beginning and nothing took me by surprise. Of course Kiddo didn't figure things out like I did, so the book was successful in that way. But whereas I really enjoyed reading the Harry Potter books for myself, my enjoyment of this book came from seeing how much Kiddo loved it.
*** The Movie ***
The movie is coming out in February 2010 and has some amazing actors in it. (Poseidon will be played by Kevin McKidd ... can we say eye candy for mom?!) My family will definitely be seeing this in the theaters. You can check out a really short trailer here if you haven't seen it already.
*** Your Thoughts? ***
Are you interested in either the book or the movie? Why/why not?
If you've reviewed the book let me know and I'll add your link here.
Booking Mama's mother/daughter book club read this
Kids' Picks is coming up on 9/15 at 5 Minutes for Books. Since that is in the middle of Book Blogger Appreciation Week I'm going to post this now and simply link up to it then.
I received this book from the publisher and have really enjoyed reading it to kiddo. I'll let kiddo do his review first (with my comments in italics, as usual) and post mine later in the day(update: here's the link to mine). Kiddo's review comes with a spoiler warning though - he gives lots of things away in his answers.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. Did you like this book? I liked it except for two parts. Why did you like it? Because it had lots of exciting parts and lots of "what's gonna happen next?! what's gonna happen next?!" - those kind of parts. Ah, suspense - its like a drug to us book addicts!
2. What was your favorite part? All of it except for two parts. Any thing specific? Oh yeah! When Max was fighting the snake and when the four animals got eternal life.
3. What was your least favorite part? When they had to leave Gillamon and when we found out that Charlie was bad.
4. What did you think of the illustrations? The pictures were ok. The frog singing was not so good but the one with Henriette is good. I'd like the pictures better if they had color. I was going to - if you say ok - I was going to color in some of the pictures. No kiddo, I'm sorry, you can't color in books. I'm such a mean mom, I know. Do you think the book needed more pictures or did you do ok with imagining things? I did ok imagining but most of the animals, since I didn't know what they looked like, it was hard to imagine them. Actually, I think kiddo did really well with this. Often when I was reading and I thought things might be a bit confusing, I'd tell him to close his eyes and imagine what was happening. I'd read one sentence at a time then ask it he could "see" it. Sometimes he could and other times he needed some additional explanations. But always, when he opened his eyes, I could see the excitement, the light that went off - he "saw" it happening in his head. It was so cool to watch!
5. Would you recommend this book to your friends? YES. As long as they read it quickly. Why? Because if they didn't read it quickly they might forget what happens or they might lose the book. Did we read it quickly? Kind of, except for parts. We started it then stopped then started another book then came back to it. Um, yeah, kiddo's sense of time is a bit off here. We started this book way back in October and we finally finished it earlier this week. But I will say that the story did not drag nor did we put it aside because we tired of it. It took so long simply because we read only 1 or 2 chapters every couple days. And we only picked up another book because kiddo got WIZARDOLOGY for his birthday and really wanted to read it. And for the record, kiddo didn't forget anything that happened in this book..
6. Is there anything else you'd like to say about this book? These are the animals I liked: Max, Gillamon, Kate, Al, Liz, Jaques, Georgio, and Don Pedro. And these are the people I liked Noah, Shem, Japeth (kind of) and Ham (kind of), and out of the girls, Noah's wife and Shem's wife. Japeth's wife and Ham's wife were ok. What did you think about the author adding to the story in the Bible? I liked that. Do you think it's ok to add to the Bible story when the Bible story doesn't give you the details? YES. In fact, I might add something to it. What would you add? Well, I'd like to have the story of Jesus when he died on the cross with Max and Liz and Kate and Al and Gillamon and God speaking would be in it as well.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kiddo also wanted to send an email to the author, Jenny Cote. He thinks that since I get signed books from authors and that some authors comment on my blog, I can talk to any author I want whenever I want. I wish! But anyway, here's kiddo's message to Ms. Cote: The book was a very nice book. I would love to read it again and get the new book that you are writing, The Dreamer, The Schemer and The Robe. I'm happy to help you make more stories when you are ready.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I hope you'll come back later today for my review. There are lots of things I'd like to discuss about this book!
For his birthday in January, one of the gifts kiddo received from us was the book WIZARDOLOGY: A GUIDE TO WIZARDS OF THE WORLD, as told by Master Merlin. Although it took a while to read (because we only had a short time each day) kiddo really enjoyed this book. Below are my questions and his answers, along with my commentary in italics.
1. Did you like this book? Yes. It is a very good book. Good to learn how to become a wizard, which I've always wanted to do. Me too kiddo, me too.
2. What was your favorite part of the book? When they showed about the dragon. Why? Because dragons are very cool and I've seen one, it's called a Hungarian Horntail. Hmm, do you think we watch Harry Potter much at our house?
3. What was your least favorite part? I don't have a least favorite part. Except that they didn't tell us if Dumbledore was Merlin's friend. Ah, Harry Potter references again ... 4. What did you think of the illustrations? That would be a MAJOR WINNER. The dragon illustration was awesome.
5. Would you recommend this book to your friends? If they want to become wizards.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ On the whole, this is a fine book for kids interested in magic. It talks a bit about the various magical traditions around the world (from India to China to Western Europe and many other places) and includes info on several magical creatures. There is a list of supplies required for all apprentice wizards too. But perhaps most importantly for kids there are repeated warnings that magic should only be used to help other people, not to harm anyone or get things for yourself. Kiddo has a wild imagination - as many other kids do - and I appreciate that even fantastical books like this remind him to reign in that imagination and to use it for good.
As a side note, this book sparked a discussion of the difference between an "epilogue" and an "appendix" in a book. I love when I can teach kiddo little things like that.
The Tales of Beedle the Bard by JK Rowling 108 pages
Hubby bought this book supposedly for kiddo, but I think he really bought it for himself. That's ok though, because we've all been enjoying it!
I read this to kiddo over about a week. My rule was that I'd only read if kiddo had already taken his shower and was quickly getting ready for bed, so that meant we skipped a few nights. On the nights we did read, we'd sit on the couch together - he eating a snack, me reading - then I'd follow him to the bathroom to read while he brushed his teeth.
Each night we'd read one of the Tales along with the accompanying commentary by Albus Dumbledore. The five Tales are:
The Hopping Pot
The Fountain of Fair Fortune
The Warlock's Hairy Heart
Babbitty Rabbitty and the Cackling Stump
The Three Brothers
After we finished reading last night I told kiddo that we needed to do our Mom & Son Book Club questions. His response? "Oh yeah! 'Cause they've been missing me on your blog, right?" Yes, dear readers, even kiddo knows about you and is concerned what you think!
Now, on to the questions. Oh, and as a reminder, I write out kiddo's answers just as he gives them to me and I add my comments in italics.
Did you like the book? Yes, but I didn't like some of the stories.
Which was your favorite Tale? The Three Brothers - it was a really exciting tale, and because it was in the Harry Potter books. I liked this one too, but I don't think I can say it was my favorite. Not sure I HAVE a favorite myself.
Which was your least favorite Tale? The Hairy Heart one - it was creepy, it was a scary story, and it was weird. I don't think anybody under age 6 (my age) should have that story read to them. Oh I agree! This one was quite creepy. *shiver* And rather difficult to explain to kiddo as well.
What did you think of the illustrations?(I used to say "pictures" but kiddo learned about illustrators this year and now he asks about the "illustrations" and the "illustrators" all the time.) I would like it more if it had more color, but otherwise it is fine. Color is a big thing with kiddo - black and white illustrations never get his full approval.
Would you recommend this book to your friends? Only if they liked Harry Potter and they weren't afraid of creepy stories. If they aren't afraid of creepy stories then they should go ahead and read it.
Is there anything else you'd like to say about this book? Hmm, not very much. This book is a very good book but some of it is a little scary. Anything else? Nope, that's it.
Thanks kiddo! I really enjoyed reading this book with you. I'm so glad you like Fantasy as much as your momma does. :)
(I'm adding a link to this post for Movie Madness ... I hope the combination of books/audio/movie is OK for this!)
For the past month I’ve been reading the 5 books of The Spiderwick Chronicles to kiddo. Because there was more than one book, I didn’t do the regular Mom & Son Book Club questions each time.Instead I asked him his thoughts at the end of the series.First I’ll give you his impressions (with commentary from me, as usual) then I’ll give you mine.After that, I’ll give you some info on the audio books and the movie.I know this is a long post but I hope you’ll stick around (or at least skip to the sections that you’re most interested in!).
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My questions to kiddo …
Did you like the books? Yes, they were good.I know he really liked them because he’s carried around the Field Guide and pretended to be battling ogres for the past month.
What was your favorite part? I don’t have a favorite part because there were so many books.Maybe I should have asked this after each book …
What was your least favorite part?I don’t have one.
What did you think of the pictures?They were good but they need more color.This was the first book we’ve read that didn’t have pictures on every page. Once I explained to kiddo how to close his eyes and think about the words, he did a great job imagining what was happening. He didn’t mind the lack of pictures, but as always he’s not a fan of black and white illustrations.
Would you recommend this book to your friends?Hmm.I’m not sure.I don’t think so.Why? It might be too scary for them.Was is too scary for you? No, but my friends might be scared.I agree! But more on that in a minute.
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My thoughts on these books …
I have mixed feeling about this series.
On the pro side, the story is quite adventurous, the plot is exciting, the magical world is unique in some ways, and kiddo really enjoyed it.The illustrations are lovely, and the companion book, The Field Guide, is a real treasure. I'm planning to buy it for kiddo. (Yes, I said BUY, not swap. It's a miracle, I know.)
Then there are the cons.First off, I didn’t appreciate some of the language.One character’s favorite phrase is “Oh crap!”.That’s not something I want kiddo to say.*Then there’s a Cheshire Cat-like character who speaks in riddles, one of which contains the word “ass”.In the context it isn’t clear if it means donkey or not.Seriously, is that necessary in a children's book?The nice thing about reading aloud is that I could change the words whenever I thought they were inappropriate.
Another con is the way that the children speak to each other.In the story, their family is going through a divorce and things are hard for the kids (who never really got along anyway).I know kids are mean to each other – my sister and I were the same way! – but again, is it really necessary to keep saying “shut up” or “you’re so stupid” to each other?And I mean ALL THE TIME, people. I think it was apparent from early on that the kids don't get along; why not just leave it at that?
Then, of course, there is the creepiness factor. The goblins eat CATS and other small creatures!If your kiddo is an animal lover then this book is not appropriate.They have creepy teeth and the attack the kids more than once.In my opinion, there were some really creepy things that happened in these books.Kiddo, however, didn’t get creeped out at all.He loved every part of it.And when I thought more about it I realized that I was 7 years old when I read The Hobbit for the first time and I didn’t find it creepy or strange or anything.I guess 6 year old kiddo is a lot like me at that age.
So, to summarize the books, if you have an extra sensitive kiddo then don’t read these.But if you have an adventurous kiddo – and you don’t mind the language I mentioned earlier – then you’re good to go.
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On the audio books …
After finishing the books, we got the audio version from the library.Kiddo listens to it when he’s getting ready for school, taking a shower, brushing his teeth, or any other time he can.It was definitely helpful to him that we read the books first; he gets distracted when he’s listening sometimes, but he can always pick up the story again quickly because he already knows what's happening.
The downside of audio books is that you can't change the words like you can when you're reading aloud. Kiddo was quick to point out when the kids said not nice things. "I know that's not nice mom," he'd say, as if I were expecting him to start saying it too. Well, at least he knows the difference between acceptable and unacceptable language in our house - that's a good thing.
Huge coolness factor for us is that the narrator is Mark Hamill – you know, the guy who played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars movies?Star Wars is kiddo’s biggest passion (alongside Legos) so this was an extra bonus for him. (Yes, I chose a picture of Mark when he was younger. Sorry, but he's just not that cute now!) Mark did an excellent job with the narration, changing his voice to portray a wide variety of crazy characters.
Has your kiddo ever listened to audio books? In general I highly recommend them – they're better than TV, that’s for sure!
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On the movie …
After reading the books I was shocked to see that the movie is only rated PG.But once we watched it I can totally see why.The movie is a watered down version of the book!Crazy, right?I mean, this discussion of The Water Horse (which continued in the comments) made it clear that THAT movie was way more intense than the book. But that’s just not the case here.
The movie removes most of what is most creepy in the books.Yes the goblins still eat cats, but they don’t TELL you that; you see something in the background cooking over a fire that you may or may not recognize as a cat (and your kids probably won’t - I only did because I was looking for it).The kids still get attacked but it’s not as bad as in the book.The hobgoblin character is made out to be a good friend to the kids, rather than a sometimes good-guy sometimes bad-guy as he is in the book.The ogre is still big and dangerous but not nearly as much as in the book.The dwarves and the wormy-dragony things don’t appear in the movie at all.And the ending is different too – much more “happily ever after” than the book.
Kiddo really enjoyed the movie, and I did as well.It’s not fantastic but it is fun. After we watched it kiddo and I had a discussion about the ways that movies are different from books.He liked both the books and the movie equally, but he could easily point out all the ways they were different.Of course, this led into a discussion of Harry Potter movies vs. books.Can you guess which big book we’ll be reading together next?!
* Yes, I know that kiddo is only 6 and that this book is designed for kids ages 9-12, but I don’t want kiddo using that language when he’s that age either.If that makes me sound like a prude, so be it (but you obviously don’t know me that well if that’s what you think! ~LOL~).
Kiddo and I did had another Mom & Son Book Club meeting in mid July, but I'm just now getting around to blogging about it ... oops. Our first book was Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French.
Did you like this book? Yes. I thought it was adorable! This is one that I wouldn't mind rereading several nights in a row. The wombat tells you what he does each day of the week and it's lots of fun to see what happens next.
What was your favorite part? Well, it's not my FAVORITE but it is the funniest part, ok? Sure, that's fine. When he is sleeping under the house. At one point, the wombat digs a new hole and is directly under the family's house.
What was your least favorite part? I didn't have a least favorite.
Did you like the pictures? Yes. And I thought they were great! I wanted to reach in a hug that cute little wombat.
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? No because my friends don't like platypuses. Kiddo, the book wasn't about a platypus, it was about a wombat. Oh, I meant wombats. How do you know they don't like wombats? They told me. Oh really? Well, I think Freddy likes wombats so he might like this book. I LOVED this book and highly recommend it! There lots of repetition - not annoying though - and kiddo was able to "read" along on those parts.
Our second book was Cork and Fuzz, Short and Tall by Dori Chaconas. Did you like this book? Yes. It was really cute - a great story about friendship.
What was your favorite part? I liked all of it, there wasn't really a best part.
What was your least favorite part? None.
Did you like the pictures? They were my favorite thing.
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? To Freddy and Kyle. Why? Because they're my friends.
Our final book was Hondo and Fabian by Peter McCarty. Did you like this book? I was a nice story. Ugh! I was totally bored. WHY did this one win an award?!
What was your favorite part? The dog. Yeah, the dog and cat were cute but BORING.
What was your least favorite part? When the baby was trying to hold the cat. Why? Because it's kinda mean ... I didn't do that to Lucy or Ethel. Lucy and Ethel are my sister's cats.
Did you like the pictures?Yes.
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? Yes because it was a nice book and all my friends like dogs and cats. Go figure! The ONE book I really disliked is the one he wants to recommend ... KIDS!
Did you notice the award on this last book? Kiddo sure did. That led to a discussion about book awards: who gets them, who gives them, and lots of other "why" questions. And then kiddo asked Has Eric Carle ever gotten an award? I don't know but I can look it up for you later. Why? Because I think he's a good writer and I like his books. All of them? The one with the fish, and the one with the caterpillar, and all of them. I like all his books. They're good. He has good pictures. I love Eric Carle too! And come to find out, he's won tons of awards - I should have known.
Kristen over at www.LitGuides.com posted an interview with me today! She wanted to know all about the Mom & Son Book Club and of course I was happy to share. Please head over there and check it out - she has a wonderful site. Click here to check it out.
Giveaway reminders:
Tomorrow is the last day to enter to win a copy of Cannery Row! Click here for details.
You have until Aug. 3 to enter to win the signed Mary Higgins Clark book. Click here for details.
And now, Mom & Son Book Club #5 ...
I've been trying to fit in more reading time with kiddo without much success. We seem to go in bursts - no reading, no reading, no reading, read 3 books, no reading, read 2 books, and so on. On this particular night we were able to read three books ... an excellent accomplishment!
Harold and the Purple Crayon, by Crockett Johnson - Hubby picked this book at the recommendation of the librarian. Kiddo wasn't thrilled because he doesn't like the cartoon based on the book - he says it's boring and it's for babies.
Did you like this book? It was nice. Did you like it better than the cartoon? Yes, much better. Kiddo's learning early that the book is ALWAYS better than the movie! LOL
What was your favorite part? When he fell off the mountain, but it was scary too. I think kiddo liked this part because it surprised him. He didn't see it coming (and he predicted several other parts of the book) and his little eyebrows shot up in surprise when I read what happened.
What was your least favorite part? When he drew the dragon because it was too scary.
Did you like the pictures? Yes, but they need more color. I would like the book a lot more if it had more color.
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? Maybe, but only if they like the cartoon. No matter how I tried to explain it, kiddo just didn't understand that if HE liked the book but not the show, then his buddies might feel the same. You can imagine how THAT conversation went, so I just moved on to the next book. :)
Did you like this book? It was really nice! I thought so too - an adorable set of stories.
What was your favorite part? I had a favorite story, not a favorite part ... is that ok? Yes, of course. My favorite story is "Play with me! Play with me!" Hmm, I wonder if that's because it sounds so familiar? The dog wants the bear to play, and the bear wants to read a book!
What was your least favorite part? I didn't have a least favorite part. I liked all of it.
Did you like the pictures? Yes, I like them a lot. Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? Yes, but only to the nice kids. And those who like dogs and stuffed bears. Why only the nice kids? Because they're my friends. And this story is about friends? Yes!
How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night?, by Jane Yolen - another from the library's summer reading list. When we started reading kiddo said it was one they had in his Kindergarten class, but then he said that is wasn't the same book but another one by the same author; he recognized the different dinosaurs from the times they read it in school.
Did you like this book? Yes.
What was your favorite part? The first picture (a dinosaur is yawning and dragging blanket down the hall) and the one where the dinosaur is hugging his mom.
What was your least favorite part? I didn't have a least favorite part.
Did you like the pictures? Yes.
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? Yes, most of them would like it. Did your class like the other book by this author? Yeah, they really liked it!
As I'm writing this, kiddo is in bed talking to himself. Instead of letting him get to sleep I keep hollering down the hall, "Hey kiddo! What did you say about the pictures in the second book again?" "I liked 'em Mom!" "Ok, thanks! I think that's all I need ...." Yeah, can we say Blogging Addict?! Thankfully kiddo thinks it's really cool. :)
The past few weeks have been crazy at our house. Between the Boston wedding, kiddo's drama camp (highly recommended!), vacation bible school, running an all day scrapbook workshop (I'm also a Creative Memories Consultant), and my sister's baby shower, we've had very little time to read together. Summer is getting away from us though, so I'm making a big effort to get to kiddo's summer reading list.
Did you like this book? Yes! Kiddo definitely liked it more than I did; I thought the writing was a bit odd. Honestly, I didn't like it all that much.
What was your favorite part? Inside the cover, because there's a map. I agree! The map was quite interesting.
What was your least favorite part? The page with the Indian. Why? Cause he looks creepy, like he might be mean. Oh ... sure ... ok ...
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? If they like history, they will like this book. Smart kiddo!
(This question was suggested by Bookworm - thanks!) Did you like the pictures? Yes. I mean sort of. I don't like all the lines. Let me explain that. The pictures have lots of "pencil line shading" or at least that's what I'd call it. Personally I wasn't a big fan either.
One Green Apple, by Eve Bunting was on our library's summer reading list. Hubby really wanted me to read this one with kiddo because it's about a child from another country trying to adjust to life in America. Hubby thought it would help kiddo understand how kids can feel out of place or lonely, just like kiddo does sometimes because of his food allergies.
Did you like this book? Yes! This time we both really enjoyed the book.
What was your favorite part? When the boy tried to stop her from dropping her apple in. Again, let me explain. Each child picked a red apple, but our main character picked a GREEN apple. When they began to make cider from the apples hers was the only green one. One of the boys tried to stop her from putting in the green apple, but he wasn't quick enough. I asked kiddo why he liked this part and he said because the boy thought the apple was cool and he wanted to save it. Ok, so that's NOT what the author was getting at, but sure, why not?!
What was your least favorite part? I didn't have a least favorite part. Wow, that's a first!
Would you recommend this book to your friends at school? Maybe. If they like picking apples, then yeah. I love the logic!
Did you like the pictures? Yes. Better than the last book? Yes, much better than the last book.
In the last week of June kiddo and I had another Mom & Son Book Club. We read Three Stories You Can Read to Your Dog, by Sara Swan Miller. The illustrator is named True Kelley; kiddo thought True was a funny name.
This is an excellent book for early readers. Kiddo is not reading on his own yet, but he enjoyed it anyway. The idea is that a child could read these stories aloud to his/her dog, who by the way, only lays around the house because because it can't read and is bored! :)
So, on to my four questions for kiddo ...
Did you like it? "Yes." Easy enough.
What was your favorite part? "When the dog was barking at the burglar." This WAS pretty cute - the dog was convinced he scared the burglar away, but there was never anyone there to begin with.
What was your least favorite part? "When the dog was laying around being lazy." Hmm, that's what OUR dog does just about all the time ... are you trying to tell me something kiddo?
Would you recommend this book to your friends? "If they have a dog, yes. If they don't have a dog, they wouldn't like it." That seems logical to me!
I really enjoyed this book. The three stories are called The Burglar, The Bone, and The Wild Dog. They were adorable, and should ring very true to anyone who has ever had a dog. I'd love to hear a child reading this out loud to a dog!
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In other kids book news, hubby signed kiddo up for the Summer Reading Program at our library so now we have a stack of books to choose from for our book club meetings. I have to share this quick story about one of the books ...
Hubby brought home 5 books for kiddo and I. Of course I read the titles to kiddo right away so he could decide what he wants to read next. One book is called Jazz. As I started to get dinner ready, I began explaining that Jazz is a kind of music and he interrupts me with this:
"I know that mom. And there's a guy named Dizzy who plays jazz."
[Imagine dead silence and jaw dropping from me.] I turned around and very slowed asked, "Do you mean Dizzy Gillespie?"
"Yeah mom, that's who I mean."
"Why yes, that's right. There IS a guy named Dizzy who plays jazz. Did you learn about him in school?"
"No, not in school."
"Oh, I know, it must have been on that old music show on Blue's Clues."
"No mom, it wasn't on Blue's Clues. It was on Little Bill. His dad listens to Dizzy."
On Monday night kiddo and I held our 2nd Mom & Son Book Club. This time he chose a book I brought home from the library called The Prairie Fire, by Marilynn Reynolds.
After we finished reading I asked kiddo if he liked it and he said yes. Yea! This is a great improvement because lately all I've gotten is "it's ok."
I liked this book because it actually has real content. Kiddo and I talked about what a fireguard is, what oxen are, how in "old times" people didn't have running water to put out fires, and why you'd want to blindfold a horse during a fire.
His favorite part was the very last page where Percy's dad lets him come along to help, treating him like a grown man rather than a boy. His least favorite part was when the family hugged each other after the fire was over, because they were all dirty and kiddo said Percy looked like he was burned.
On the subject of recommending this to his friends kiddo was uncertain. He really liked it but he wasn't sure his friends would.
As a side note, I'm LOVING this book club thing with kiddo. My husband thinks it's funny/adorable/silly/sweet, and kiddo and I really look forward to picking out our books and reading together. What fun! Giveaways
Just a few reminders about the THREE books I'm giving away right now.
- Win a copy of Matters of Faith, by Kristy Kiernan! Click here to read my interview with the author and find out how to win this book. Drawing to be held on June 27. - Win a copy of The Avengers, or Ciao America!, two of my favorite books from this past year. Click here for more info on how to win. Drawing to be held on June 27.
Today is Special
Back in 1995, just after I graduated from high school, I met the man (boy? he was only 20 then...) who would become my husband. Today, June 18, marks the 13th anniversary of our first date. Hubby and kiddo are meeting me for lunch today, but I don't think hubby remembers what today is; he'll be pleasantly surprised when I remind him. ;)
Next month we'll celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary - go us!
*** About the Book ***
This review is part of Kids' Picks, hosted by 5 Minutes for Books. Check out what other kids are reading today!
