Reading books aloud will bond you together. In the culture of family, books are part of what make us…us.
In studying Scottish folklore, I learned of a historical character from the distant past called a seanchai (shan-a-khee in Gaelic). A seanchai was an itinerant storyteller/historian who earned his keep in the tradition of the ancient bards. When a seanchai would pass through a village, all that were able gathered to hear recitation and often singing of innumerable stories, legends and poems of which their history was comprised. Because of their role as custodians of valued oral tradition, the seanchai was highly respected. His words informed listeners of where they had come from and what they might become. No child or youth gathering close around the fireside with a seanchai would leave that night without a yearning to do great and noble deeds, valiantly protect his family or be stirred to ambitions of chivalry or courage. Seanchais kept the values and dreams of whole generations alive.
What if parents decided to be the seanchais for their family, intentionally bond with their children, and through them, future generations?
I believe you will find that, even though you read aloud already, you will become more intentional about reading. In fact, you may all get hooked! It would be a beautiful thing if your sons and daughters have a bond with you that cannot be broken because of the books you’ve read.
You will see in this wonderful video how much fun you can have reading even at the youngest ages:
Throughout the years we’ve enjoyed many books together. I thought I’d share what 15-20 minutes a day can accomplish in one year of books. Soon you will find them wanting more! It’s a wonderful incentive (notice I didn’t say bribe) to motivate them to finish their work first. This list doesn’t include books we all read independently or for school subjects.
Bond With Books
- Centerburg Tales: More Adventures of Homer Price – Robert McCloskey
- Frightful’s Mountain – Jean Craighead George
- Three Months Under the Snow – Jacques Porchat
- Anne of Green Gables – L.M. Montgomery
- Across Five Aprils – Irene Hunt
- Stories from Grandma’s Attic – Arleta Richardson
- More Stories from Grandma’s Attic – Arleta Richardson
- Betsy-Tacy – Maud Hart Lovelace
- The Borrowers – Mary Norton
- Weight of a Flame: The Passion of Olympia Morata – Simonetta Carr
- The Black Star of Kingston – S. D. Smith
- The Golden Plate – Bernadette Watts
- Two Little Confederates – Thomas Nelson Page
- Little Pilgrim’s Progress: From John Bunyan’s Classic – Helen L. Taylor
Amazon Reviews: “Fifty-five years ago, Helen L. Taylor took John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress and simplified the vocabulary and concepts for young readers while keeping the story line intact. The result was a classic in itself, which has now sold over 600,000 copies. It’s both a simple adventure story and a profound allegory of the Christian journey through life, a delightful read with a message kids ages 6 to 12 can understand and remember. A new look and fresh illustrations for today’s children enlivens the journey to the Celestial City.”
The Chronicles of Narnia 7 book set including:
- The Magician’s Nephew – C.S. Lewis
- The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – C.S. Lewis
- The Horse and His Boy – C.S. Lewis
- Prince Caspian – C.S. Lewis
- The Voyage of the Dawn Treader – C.S. Lewis
- The Silver Chair – C.S. Lewis
- The Last Battle – C.S. Lewis
- Gorilla Hunters – R.M. Ballentine
Amazon Reviews on Gorilla Hunters: “Do not let the review by Richi sway you. This book was written in the 1800s when gorillas were not endangered and hunting them was considered as appropriate as hunting deer.” Simply explain this to your child – so they have perspective. And, “The Gorilla Hunters continues with the adventures of Ralph, Peterkin and Jack in the dark continent of Africa where they hunt for Gorillas in the dark interior. Those were the days when much of Africa was unexplored and myths abounded about mysterious animals inhabiting within its jungles. The author takes us on a roller coaster ride of swashbuckling adventure, bravery and some very descriptive observations of the flora and fauna found by the three heroes. The author also takes a dig at the evil practice of slave trade and its effects on the tribes of Africa. This book is really a treat to read even all all these years!”
More Books, please!
- Indian in the Cupboard – Banks (this the only book in this series I recommend)
- Son of Charlemagne – Willard
- Freddy Goes To Florida – Walter R. Brooks
- Sign of the Beaver – Elizabeth George Speare
- Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage – Alfred Lansing
- The Green Ember – S.D. Smith
- The Dragon and the Raven: Or, The Days of King Alfred – G.A. Henty
- Rascal – Sterling North
- Around the World in 80 Days – Jules Verne
- The Once and Future King – T.H. White
- The Little Duke – Charlotte Mary Yonge
Do your children enjoy adventure? Do you want to guide their imagination? Is wholesomeness a must? Are you looking for a fun way to bond with your child? Do you want books that cultivate character? Do you want to train their minds to think biblically?
Now you know a way to achieve a special bond and more! Gather your children or grandchildren and share a book today.
(FYI: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.)
Some other booklists here at Deep Roots with completely different content.
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Heather
Thank you for sharing this. I have made many mistakes as a parent, but one of the things I did right was read, read, read with my kids. They all love reading and it has continued to be a bond that has carried into my relationship with my adult children. Even when my oldest son was going through a very difficult period we would sit on the couch together and read. It helped to have that special time together, fellowshiping over what we were reading – no conflict allowed.
Jacqueline
Heather, do I hear a past tense *was going* through? Oh, I pray so!! I have been praying dear one, the Lord bringing you and he to my mind occasionally! I was just talking about this with someone else. “…but the Lord works it all out! I’m thinking of “love covers a multitude of sins.” Actually, we weren’t necessarily sinning, just had yet to learn O.o God is so good!
RobinP
Wonderful post! Our Streak has been going strong for well over a year. I wrote about it at this post which has links to the previous two. 🙂
http://childrenslegacylibrary.blogspot.com/2015/11/the-streak-one-year-later.html
Christine
What are the age ranges for the books on your list? Are they all the same age range? Thanks so much for sharing! This is great.
Jacqueline
Hi, Christine! The books are really all over the place as for individual readers, but as for reading aloud by a good reader will be appreciated and understood by most everyone. Of course, for a very young child allowances are expected. Enjoy!
Also, Christine, if you go to the Amazon reviews, they almost always will indicate age range through close reading 🙂
Gwen
As a Scottish person living in one of the Gaelic-speaking parts of Scotland, I found your comments about the oral tradition really interesting. We have a lot of the books you mentioned, but some I had never heard of, so thank you for sharing them 🙂
Tina at Mommynificent
Another great list!!! Thanks so much for sharing this at Booknificent Thursday! I’ve struggled to find books that my 9- and 5-year old girls enjoy. They are very squeamish and don’t appreciate any conflict at all, and I don’t like to make reading-together time a battle. Right now, we’re enjoying some of YWAM Publishing’s biographies so I’m happy we’ve found something we can all appreciate.
Tina
Mother of 3
Such a great list; a good combination of many of our favorites (Narnia, Indian in the Cupboard, etc.) and new ones I’ve never heard of. We’ll have to check some of these out.
Trena
Great list of books. Found you on #LiteracyMusingMondays.
Mary Hill
Hi, wanted to let you know that I selected you as my favorite post on last week’s #LMMLinkup. Thanks for joining us. 🙂
Here is the link to the feature: http://maryanderingcreatively.com/literacy-musing-encouraging-emergent-literacy-in-baby/
Bette A. Stevens
Awesome post and book selection! Sharing on Twiter, FB and Pinterest. 🙂 Thanks…
Jacqueline
Thank you so much, Bette!!
Blessings! J
Carrie Mereness
Just a caution. Indian in the Cupboard is a good book. But there are more books in that series, and they start getting into strange religious stuff. I honestly can’t remember what, and I threw those books in the garbage. But please be careful…don’t assume that one is good so they are all good.
Jacqueline
Carrie, very good point!! I will put a caveat in the post next to that title!
I don’t want to cause anyone to stumble, for sure..
Thank you and God bless you for the warning,
Jacque