Book Lovers Club
Comments
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The Reading Mother by Strickland Gillilan
I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea.
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth;
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath.
I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.
I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness lent with his final breath.
I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch.
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be --
I had a Mother who read to me.
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Ruth.....Thank you for sharing that poem....Made my day!
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nowdays we would, of course, add 'boys and girls' 0
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With all the technology that the younger generation have its great to hear that a teenager loves books. My DH only reads from the internet or a newspaper.... I just dont understand it.
Great poem Ruth.
Well as today is beautiful and sunny (tomorrow forecast rain) I am going to be kind to myself and sit in the garden and read - all day.
Peace and hugs to you all and hope you are having good days.
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My son, who hadn't been much of a reader, began reading Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympian series when he was 9, the first book was a gift from his grandmother, he's now 14, he's read each of the 5 books at least 6 times and is also reading Riordan's new series The Kane Chronicles. Last summer I took him and his friends to a book signing with Riordan, they stood in line for 2 hours to get a special edition of his newest release signed. He and his friends thought the books were "way better than the movie!" Love it!!! He's also hooked on the Hunger Games series, and said the same about that movie. Interestingly he doesn't care for Harry Potter or any of the vampire series. He seems to react well to books with characters he can relate to. Percy Jackson, is, I think 12, comes from a broken family, never knew his father (Percy is a demi-god; a son of Poseidon and a mortal), and is a bit of an outcast at school. These books are full of adventure, fantasy and a modern twist on greek mythology. Highly recommend the series for both boys and girls (there are strong girl characters in the books as well). The content is age appropriate for elementary school ages, but adults enjoy them as well.
Thanks for all your recommendations, I'm heading to NOLA for reconstruction next week and have loaded on my new NOOK tablet a few of the books I've learned about on this thread.
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glostagirl-those are the same books that got my son started! And he has also read them a half a dozen times. LOL He liked the Hunger Games and the Cassandra Clare series The Mortal Instruments. He is reading the Kane Chronicles and The Lost Hero series also. Love it when we saw the Percy Jackson movie and on the way home he said "that wasn't like the book at all, they messed it up." Enjoy all your new books!
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I am almost embarrassed to admit that while growing up, my oldest son enjoyed reading all the Choose Your Own Adventure books when he wasn't reading Mad Magazine. He also enjoyed C.S. Lewis's series beginning with The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Younger son wasn't much better... Besides reading a 500 page Star Wars book, he loved and STILL loves to read Maxim Magazine. The DD reads popular "Women's Lit.". Posted awhile ago about what the great women's author, Meg Wolitzer thinks about "Women's Lit."
Honestly, I don't care what my kids read so long as they read. The younger son just moved back to Texas and one of the first things he did when he got there was to find his neighborhood library and obtain a library card. I guess you can say I did a great job of instilling MY love for reading in him.0 -
lostinmo....my son said those same words about the Percy Jackson movie and he did not like that they portrayed Percy as an older teenager. I must admit I did enjoy Uma Thurman's stylish portrayal of Medusa!
voraciousreader....I hear you. When my son was in 2nd grade I was appalled that he was reading Captain Underpants for a school book report. His teacher echoed what you said, she didn't care so much what they were reading, just that they WERE reading! I saw her point and from then on learned to relax my standards and follow his lead. He loved the Diary of a Whimpy Kid series too. I just gave all his copies of the aforementioned books to a family with 2 young boys who don't like to read, hoping that changes.
I read to my son every night when he was younger, don't know if that's what made the difference but I like to think it did. He's been having trouble falling asleep at night, I'm thinking of going back to reading to or with him rather than letting him watch tv until he falls asleep, which is what he's been doing lately, we've been staying up late watching the Celtics in the play-offs! So much for that :-(
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glostagirl... My Mum used to read to me all the time when I was young, taught me the ABC before I went to school so i could read early.... seems a connection between you Mums who read to your kids. And of course, when I was a kid we didn't have computers.... Wow.. only one tv and that was black and white with 3 channels.
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I am going to let you all in on the secret of how my younger son learned to read....when he was 3 years old... He used to sit in front of the TV in his bedroom. Yes dear readers... VR had televisions in her children's bedrooms and actually let them watch whatever they fancied. Anyway...I noticed that he was ALWAYS WATCHING CARTOONS WITH THE CLOSED CAPTION SETTING ON. When I asked him if he wanted me to show him how to turn it off, he replied,"No! I AM LEARNING HOW TO READ!"
....He grew up to become an aerospace and nuclear engineer! Who would have guessed???!!!0 -
VR... when I read what you wrote I thought to myself "Hmm...likely did that so the kids would leave her alone to read" ha ha ha ha!
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One more thing... I am always amazed by parents who DON'T bring their children to the library, EVER. And I am surprised by parents who go to the library WITHOUT their children and pick books for them. I always BROUGHT my kids to the library and had them choose their own books to read. And guess what? Just CHOOSING books was READING! When choosing books they were exploring what their taste in books were. Furthermore, when they were finished choosing the books, I had them wait in the children's room while I was in the adult non-fiction section picking my own books. Naturally, when I went to pick them up, either they weren't finished selecting books or they were sitting quietly reading while waiting for me. I think just bringing them to the library once or twice a week reenforced their reading enjoyment.
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Yes, Tazzy. My kids like to kid me that when they picture me in their minds... All they are my eyes and the rest of my face obscured by a book!
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All of you are making me smile. I used to work for Scholastic Book Fairs and many of the titles you mention were on the fairs. There was a segment of teachers who complained about "media/commercial" books and others who said whatever they choose to read is fine (unless parents object). Reading is reading. And right on about not taking kids to the library - why do you think there are so many story hours? The younger a child learns to love books, feel them, touch them, smell them, the more likely they will become lifelong readers and lifetime learns.
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I have a child with special needs and he has extremely low muscle tone. Using his hands has always been a challenge just cause he doesn't have the strenght. So we read a lot. Now that is truely one of his greatest joys. He actually can read pretty much anything... not necessarily comprehend, but he can read like crazy and loves it. Just sent him off to camp and he packed 20 books! He will only be there 10 days - LOL! Yes most are short but still made me so happy to see him bring me this huge pile of books!
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20 books in 10 days... now that's a bookworm - how wonderful. Doesn't even matter if he reads them all or not.. the fact he took them.
For me reading is like travelling - it just broadens our horizons and opens the mind.
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Tazzy your right about books being like traveling, I can get into a book and be there not in the real world.
bubble- I like your "reading is reading". At a school my DS attended he wanted to read a book and they would let him because he wasn't at that reading level. I was upset and told his teacher to let him read what ever he wanted. They retested him and he was above the book they wouldn't let him read. I get upset when a child is told they are not good readers. This just discourages them. sorry for the rant!
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A modern take on reading: My 4-year-old grandson learned to read, sitting in the back seat of his parents' SUV, in his car set, watching the names of songs and artists show up on the display of the Sirius radio on the dash! So what if some of his first-read words were "Black Keys"!
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All my kids are avid readers. .. i am surprised that vampire books are even books, but i m glad my daughter loves them.
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Funny WaveWhisper... I was read to by my mother nearly every night, in turn, I read to my children nearly every night and at nap time. Sadly, none of them are readers, much less avid readers... I am happy to say that my 9 year old granddaughter requested a Kindle for her birthday!0
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wavewhisperer- that is funny!
I don't remember being read to, I just remember reading a lot as a child and my mother eading alot. I do take the kids to the library and have them pick new books every two weeks or so. We read when ever they want to during the day and we always read before bed time. I am looking forward to when they are older and we can read a chapter a night.
I am loving Mudbound. About 3/4 my way through and don't want to finish it- but can't stop myslef from reading!!!
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I can remember my grandmother reading the JM Barrie verison of Peter Pan to me, that was when I realized that reading could transport me to another place. Reading is still the best escape for me.
I remember when my son was very young and I was trying to get him to sleep in his own crib. I read to him out of Parents mgazine about how it was best for children to get on a good sleep schedule and sleep in their own bed. You could say I was rounding out his reading choices. He has dyslexia and it took him along time to learn to read on his own, so we spent lots of time together with what ever material could hold his interest. Now he is a college senior majoring in history. He has the memory of an elephant. I on the other hand can't remember squat.
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Macatacmv....At Yale's School of Medicine, they have a center devoted to dyslexia. Their website contains an article regarding litigator, David Boies, who is best known for his Microsoft case AND Bush V. Gore (he represented Gore). Boies has spoken publicly about his dyslexia and below is an article devoted to him. It begins with a quote by him, followed by a blurb about him and then a story about him. I have always found the story about him inspirational! I hope you do too! And I congratulate you on raising your son. Two of my three children have learning disabilities, so I can fully appreciate your experience. I wish your son well in his future endeavors.
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"Reading has nothing to do with intelligence. It's just one way of getting information. The important thing is how one processes that information, the kind of person they are,the contributions we make, and the kind of utility we have for society." (David Boies)
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David Boies, perhaps the nation's most highly acclaimed and sought-after attorney, is known for his brilliance, creativity and passion for justice. Boies has represented clients in many of the nation's landmark high-profile cases, including Bush v. Gore, where he represented Vice President Al Gore in litigation surrounding the controversial 2000 presidential election; the U.S. Department of Justice in its successful antitrust suit against Microsoft; and together with Ted Olson, represented gay and lesbian couples to overturn Proposition 8, California's ban on gay marriage. (BLURB)
Referred to by the New York Times as "the lawyer everyone wants," he has also written about his life, including some of his most prominent cases in his book, Courting Justice. Boies has been honored by his professional colleagues with numerous distinctions and awards, including Lawyer of the Year by the National Law Journal, Antitrust Lawyer of the Year by the New York Bar Association, and Commercial Litigator of the Year by Who's Who. For his advocacy efforts, Boies has also received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the LD Access Foundation and the Outstanding Learning Disabled Achievers Award from The Lab School in Washington, D.C. (BLURB)
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The fact that David Boies is dyslexic has never held him back. If anything, his dyslexia has been a motivating factor in his success. Although he did not learn to read until the third grade and is still a slow reader, Boies learned to compensate for his disability by developing outstanding powers of concentration and a keen memory. "I'm not sure how much slower a reader I am than the normal person-maybe one-half to one-third," he said recently. "But in the end, I will have learned a lot and absorbed a lot more than they would."Boies believes that young children mistakenly associate reading with intelligence. "Reading has nothing to do with intelligence," he says. "It's just one way of getting information. The important thing is how a person processes that information, the kind of person we are, the contributions we make, and the kind of utility we have for society."
The way Boies processes written information is by first skimming a text to pick out the salient points. Then, by slowing down and focusing exclusively on these, he is able to analyze them critically and grasp the essence of the text. It is this unique ability that enables Boies to handle the large volume of reading required for his work, and that helped him excel in college and law school, despite his poor performance on timed tests.
"Life is not a timed examination," says Boies. "There are very few times in life when what really matters is whether you can do something in 50 minutes, as opposed to 75. What matters is how well you're able to do it." He has stressed that message with his children, two of whom are dyslexic. "I tell them, ‘I know what you're going through, for I've been through that myself, and let me tell you from my own experience, it gets better.'"
Boies feels that dyslexia would be much less of a problem if students were given accommodations, particularly in the form of extra time and quiet surroundings, when taking tests and examinations. "I think we're moving in that direction, but we're moving painfully slowly, which is wasteful for them and for our society," he says.
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it seems i always knew how to read. no one ever asked me what anything spelled and I was ultra content to lay next to my mommy as she nursed a baby and listen to her read.
I think i volunteered in 1st or 2nd grade to read and started on the title page of the Bible.. the book was on my desk.
It's interesting that my rather severely handicapped brother who couldn't read AT ALL, back in the 60s......shoot, he still has trouble reading.* ....was able to memorize baseball statistics RBIS, ins, outs, home runs, batting averages, etc. at like age 4. I guess he got it from the newspaper he used to put under his blocks. he couldn't even talk back then... everything sounded like total gibberish... . but he knew everyone's batting averages.
* I'd say to him Johnny.. can you tell me the funny things in the story about the monkey and the banana. and he'd say. on page 14, the banana is squishy, on page 26, the cat laughs, on page 2, the word funny is printed twice .. he just doesn't have a clue. I was kind of his reading tutor. Some concepts he could never grasp. I still don't know that he knows what a vowel is. He's going to come out an make some REAL brownies for our family get together in a couple weeks. You have no idea how excited I am to be together with him.. he only lives about 10 miles away... might as well be 700.
He goes down to the casinos and plays penny slots. i've talked with the managers and he is on a strict 3500 cent diet or something like that. if he plays at the table he counts so they don't let him, unless they want to show him off to a big shot. he really is a bit of a genius in that regard, so he is on strict restrictions.. I think they give him gift cards to the buffet if he wins big time or they make out a check to the Catholic Church. We are in perfect communication. you know.. it's the Italians.. I used to work for those guys.. they're all good. well, pretty good. being professional criminals not a factore. I sure enjoyed working for those families. It's odd that these two guys and I used to 'run' this nightclub. They both are dead now, and i have stage 4 cancer. Must be something in the water.
Here is a link to a news story about Mike.. really one of my favorite people i ever met, his criminality. and well, he died anyway.
william-cammisano-jr-and-michael-lombardo-get-a-year-in-prison-for-sports-betting-operationT
heir fathers were the old time gangsters. what cracks me up are their nicknames.. Most of them were killed in spite of their names. I am lucky I am so naive. I used to play the organ at their funerals. (great money). Tony 'the ripe'..well.. i guess he must have been stinky or something.... Willie, the Rat. Frank the Farter.... I didn't realize the extent of their criminality at the time. I loved my sporty job as a cocktail waitress. I would completely fill a large tray with drinks.. completely cover the drinks with more drinks, grab 4 bottles of Corona in one hand and one arm those drinks over my head and push my way thru the crowd. this one girl and i were in super competition with each other. We'd see between 1200 and 1500$ of liquor a nite.. making youngsters into alchoholics. we were bad.. but didn't really know it.
Everyone really loves my brother down there at the casino.. he'll just take out the trash if the need be. they watch over him and make sure he doesn't get into trouble. I've gone with him a couple times. not my type of atmosphere at all.. ick. and he he has never had a drink in his life.
peace and love, apple - ..... Mary Magdalen
Dx 4/10/2008, IDC, 5cm, Stage IV, Grade 3, 4/9 nodes, mets, ER+, HER2+0 -
OK Apple... you need to start working on your book - seriously.
VR - Thanks for sharing that article - really inspirational.
I find it quite fascinating that some who are seen to have 'learning disabilities/dyslexia' have such high intelligence and memories (that most of us can only dream of) in other areas - like your brother apple, like you son macatacmy. I remember a kid in the same class at me in school who, in English classes, would always be put to the back of the class as he was always 'slower' than the rest of us (something else I never understood - being put at the back of the class) anyway, turns out he was dyslexic but when I was at school in the 60's that wasn't really understood, but boy in math classes he was the whizz we all wanted to sit next too - also had the memory of an elephant.
I hope you all have wonderful days and get some reading done.
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One of my biggest regrets is taking away the Goosebump books my son, now 22, enjoyed reading when he was young. He has never been a reader but was developing the habit and I've felt I snuffed out his desire by that stupid and untimely action.
It also is of note that last year he blew the lid off the tovar test for inattentive ADD. Thankfully a med has made the difference and bless his heart, he has made an effort to show me he can and does read.
I literally yesterday received a copy of Lonesome Dove for him and just paused during typing to let him know I think he'll like it. And apologized again for taking away his Goosebumps books.0 -
Wow Apple, you can write well and are so interesting! I jumped down from reading about kids and books to post and am reading my way back up.
Seriously y'all, I've pop in this thread about two other times but am afraid I'll never leave if I continue to read it, and go broke to boot, ordering tons of recommended books.0 -
Oh what a blessing it is that we had a mommy who read to us--and recited poetry, sang opera, sang pop hits of the forties and made many, many funny remarks--thanks for the memories guys! xo
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Gosh, I haven't been here in a while; what a nice surprise seeing the kids reading conversation continue, warms my heart.
I thought of a few other books my son has enjoyed that surprised me a little, he loves the Jack London books, Call of the Wild and White Fang. I thought the language would be too old-fashioned for him, but he didn't seem to notice. :-)
This summer he has to read Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. I plan to read it with him. Last summer I re-read another classic ~ To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and loved it, again.
apple, love your story, your brother is fortunate to have such a loving sister. And the gangster stories, very funny. I'm near Boston where stories of the "mob", both Italian and Irish are legendary. They're definitely still around, we have a few not so notorious ones in our community, retired, to live out the rest of their days by the sea....
I've been reading The Sweet Life of Bees and am really enjoying it, thanks for the recommendation. I'd seen it often in stores but never picked it up thinking it wouldn't be interesting; ya just can't tell a book by it's cover! You'd think I'd know that by now!
A very different type of book I read a few years ago and enjoyed, despite it's depressing story line, was The Road by Cormac McCarthy. He has a very crisp, spare writing style, one of those authors who says a lot with very few words. His portrayal, in this book, of the love between father and son is beautiful.
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I know we have spoken about Julia Child books. I am now reading The Man Who Changed The Way We Eat.... Craig Claiborne and the American Food Renaissance. I am up to the part where the folks that were going to publish Mastering The Art of French Cooking asked him if he would be so kind as to review the book....It was such a pivotal moment in American cooking! Reading this book after reading William Grimes Appetite City makes one aware about those luminary moments that change the course of eating in our country and how a passionate handful of people can be recalled for their culinary gifts to us.
I just finished The Hunt for SKM which was very frightening. So a little light reading about food is keeping me balanced. I really have to stay away from non-fiction terrorism books. They give me nightmares!0
