Family Read Alouds {Jan-April 2020, Age 5 and 7}

We’ve been slowly meandering through books as a family. Each of these hold special memories now- of life both pre and during quarantine. I now fondly remember listening to audiobooks in the car while running around town and back and forth to co-ops and activities. Those seem like distant memories. We’ve also built some sweet memories of snuggling on the couch and reading during the long, dreary, endless afternoons of “shelter in place” life.

(The first 4 books on this list are pre-quarantine and the last two have been completed during-quarantine, if you’re curious.)

Caterflies and Ice by Asia Citro (Zoey and Sassafras series, a perennial favorite!). A re-read, but we haven’t read this since last Winter. It was a nice cold weather read to start the year! We just love the Zoey and Sassafrass series of early chapter books. In this installment, Zoey and her sidekick cat Sassafrass learn about host plants, properties of water/salt, and the scientific method as they race to help magical caterflies and their eggs during a spring snow storm.

The Sword in the Tree by Clyde Robert Bulla. I found this at a Free Little Library and snatched it to go along with our history studies. We read this 100-page book in 3 sittings! The boys were captivated by the story of bravery of a young boy who dreams of being a knight one day, but first must go on a quest to reclaim his father’s castle and seek help from King Arthur himself!

The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden and The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue by Karina Yan Glaser.

We finished the first in the series in December and the kids immediately begged to jump into the next (and following!) books.  The Vanderbeekers are the family you want to move in with, or at least visit quite frequently. The characters are so vivid, the family so real and endearing. We can’t wait for the fourth installment to be released in Fall 2020! Note- These books have less “elevated language” than some, with characters describing how a circumstance “sucks” or “blows,” some “stupid” name calling and the like. I found the stories to warrant reading as those instances weren’t constant, but more sensitive readers might want to give pause.

Winnie’s Great War: A Novel Based on the Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattick & Josh Greenhut. The last few months we’ve read through the original Winnie the Pooh stories, along with the picture book version of this novel, Finding Winnie which tells the true backstory of A.A. Milne’s Pooh character. I stumbled upon the novel version and decided we’d give it a go. The boys have been very interested in this time in history, and it held their attention. I found it a bit boring and grasping to make a novel out of what was a fascinating and wonderful picture book. My kids, however, didn’t seem phased and did ask for more at each reading. So, this one was for them 🙂 

 More Adventures of Geraldine Woolkins by Karin Kaufman. When we finished this, we were all a little sad. Not by the conclusion, but at saying goodbye to our friends and their adventures. This book, and the first installment, are such sweet, wholesome stories. There are a lot of philosophical/spiritual depths to mine, but overall we just enjoyed each episode and the exciting challenges Geraldine faced. My sensitive boy found the dangers to be juuust tense enough. Taking place in late winter/early spring, Geraldine finds herself in “the season of scarcity” and learning about savoring and patiently waiting for the next season. ⁣This was so timely for our quarantine life:
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From today’s reading: “Geraldine’s mama had told her once that if she was patient, something good could come from something bad. When Geraldine thought about that, it put her mind in a whirl. How can something bad turn out good? How can something not-good have any good at all in it? And if it does have good in it, why can’t it all be good? Why do things have to be not-good?” ⁣

What have you been reading lately? I’d love to hear! Connect with me in the comments below, or on my Facebook or Instagram accounts.