Weekly book shelf, 7/3

Thanks to a somewhat impromptu weekend trip I'm behind on pretty much everything, especially the laundry. But vacation means travelling, and that means lots of reading in the car (though not for me, that's something I've never been able to do with out getting vertigo), on top of other reading times. Calvin is definitely all set for his weekly library reading, and he got lots of extra read aloud time with his Oma on this trip, who was sitting next to him in the car.

What Calvin read to himself this week...still on his Magic Tree House kick, he explored Indpendence Day and some others that focused on the history of the United States. Actually, he spent a lot of the trip rereading these to anyone who would listen. He really enjoys these books, and I have yet to find anything in them about which to complain.

As mentioned, we had plenty of read out loud time this week. Calvin's Oma, Jon's mom, brought with her for the car ride, on our way to a family reunion with a bunch of other Dutch folk, three books about Dutch artists Van Gogh and Rembrandt. All three of these books were wonderful. They are based on historical facts and bring the artists to life, engaging the reader in their stories, and the illustrations are very enjoyable. I was especially pleased with the two Laurence Anholt books and I see that he has a whole series of books on master artists.

Having finished the Royal Book of Oz, we started a new bedtime read aloud this week: The Little House on the Prairie. I have actually never read this series, so I am looking forward to discovering it along with my son.

And on my shelf this week...I am half way through The Women of Brewster Place, by Gloria Naylor, and I finished reading Swann's Way, the first volume in Proust. I am really enjoying Proust, and because I think I'll get more out of it a second time through, I've actually gone back to reread the first volume. Also, I'm in the process of starting a separate blog just for taking notes on the work as a whole.

Comments

[Natalie]

Thanks for joining WMCIR! We have to read those Anholt books. I think we read one of them some time ago, but daughter has been too young for it.

[Margaret]

Great choice for a read-aloud!! We listen to books on tape in the car, and the first series we went through, over a year ago, was The Little House series. It was a HUGE hit for both of us - we listened to some chapters so many times that Patrick memorized them. Enjoy!

A couple of notes about the series - Farmer Boy was definitely one of Patrick's favorites (a year in the boyhood of Laura's husband). It's usually listed as second in the series, with Little House being third. It is definitely worth reading, but be aware that the first few chapters of Farmer Boy revolve around the stress Almanzo experiences while waiting for the big boys to make their move and beat up the teacher - they do this every year and killed the most recent teacher. The resolution of that problem involves significant violence as well. Just wanted to let you know so you can be prepared if you wish. :)