What My Kids Are Reading: Spooky Edition 2017!
Vampirina Ballerina
In honor of Halloween being just a little more than a week away, I thought I would share some of the spooky (but not too spooky) books we’ve been reading this week! My kids love reading seasonal books as much as I do, and we found some great new ones this year, in addition to one of our standbys. (That Berenstain Bears book was brand new . . . in 1989.)
This is the story of a little girl who wants to be a ballerina. That’s hard enough, but as a vampire? It seems impossible. Vampirina has to overcome all kinds of obstacles (trying not to turn into a bat in front of the other ballerinas for one) to realize her dream of becoming a ballerina. It’s cute, funny, and has some great, spooky illustrations. Even my boys (6 and 8) enjoyed it! I believe it’s also a TV show on Disney Jr., so kids will definitely love this one.
This was my 6-year-old’s favorite of the bunch! Gilbert is a little ghost going to ghost school, where everyone learns how to haunt and be scary. The only problem is that Gilbert doesn’t want to be scary. He is banished to an abandoned tower, where he finds a friend and learns how to make his own place in the world. This book is SO cute, and I wish we’d found it sooner.
How to Make Friends with a Ghost
This was my 8-year-old’s favorite! It is written like an instruction manual: the care and feeding of your ghost. It’s funny, a little spooky, and the illustrations are fantastic. This is a must, especially for slightly older kids.
The Berenstain Bears Trick or Treat
For me, it’s not really Halloween until we read this book. It’s one of my favorites, and my kids request it several times throughout October. Brother Bear and Sister Bear go trick or treating with a group of their friends, and when one of them decides to play a trick on the scary old lady at the end of the lane, things don’t go quite as planned. This is great for all ages, and such a wonderful classic.
What My Kids Are Reading: October 13, 2017
Happy Friday! The format is a little different this week. Instead of featuring three books my kids are loving, I’m going to review one, because I loved it so much and because I think it remains an extremely important book for kids of all ages today. (And to be honest, I think some adults could learn a lesson or two from it.)
The Story of Ferdinand
I bought this book because I wanted to read it to my kids before the Blue Sky movie version is out in December. Book before the movie, kids, always remember that. I was expecting a simple book about a happy bull that didn’t want to fight. And it is that, but it is also so much more. I was so taken with the message of this book that I did a little research about it. Ferdinand was first published in 1936, and was immediately labeled a pacifist story. Hitler ordered that all copies of this book be burned in Nazi Germany, but Stalin allowed it as the only non-communist children’s book allowed in Poland. It has been called everything from fascist to communist to pacifist to a story about gender nonconformity. And of course, it’s been banned in many countries.
Sounds a little more interesting than a simple story about a bull.
The story is set in Spain. Ferdinand lives on a farm with other bulls. All the other bulls want to socialize and run around and show how tough they are. Ferdinand is perfectly happy sitting under a tree by himself and looking at the flowers. When a bee stings him one day, he runs around in pain, snorting and stamping the ground. He is immediately recruited for bull fighting, and thrust into the ring. Instead of getting angry or scared, he simply sits down and enjoys the flowers all the ladies in the audience are wearing on their heads. He is poked and prodded many times, but he never gives the audience what they want. Ferdinand stays true to his nature.
What immediately struck me was how fantastic this is for kids who are happy being by themselves. Not lonely, and not by themselves against their will, but kids who prefer to sit quietly rather than be in a crowd. Kids are so often told or forced to go play with other kids, to go be social, to play sports. And those things are important. But some kids really, truly aren’t comfortable with any of that, and that’s ok. Ferdinand the bull shows them that even a big, tough bull needs quiet time as well.
It is also a wonderful example of how it’s ok to be different, even though everyone around you acts the same way and expects you to act like them. Ferdinand didn’t let anyone, not even bull fighters with spears who poked at him, change who he was or how he wanted to live. I think that’s a lesson we can all appreciate.
If you’re like me and are new to Ferdinand
EXTRA!
This is a great article on Huffpost about how to talk to kids about the deeper meanings in Ferdinand.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/lori-day/the-story-of-ferdinand-ta_b_5504402.html
[Top]What My Kids Are Reading: Fall Books 2017!
Since Wednesday’s post was about seasonal reading for adults, I thought I would include a kid-centered post as well! Fall is also a great time for kids to read seasonally, and there are plenty to pick from! In addition to all the classic kids’ picture books, there are some great books that are perfect for fall. Whether your kids want to read on their own or you read these to them, here are a few choices we’ve been enjoying, and will continue to read, in the next month!
Where the Wild Things Are
This is such a classic children’s book, and with beautiful illustrations of monsters and Max’s wild rumpus of a story, it’s so perfect for fall. (It’s even more fun if your kids are wearing monster costumes while you read it!)
Grimms’ Fairy Tales
This one is definitely for older kids, at least age 8 and up. With the Disneyfication of most fairy tales, it’s easy to forget their more gory origins. Violence, deception, and plenty of good vs. evil is a perfect fit for some Halloween reading. Don’t get me wrong, I love Disney! But if you’re looking for some scary stories, the Grimm brothers can’t be beat.
The Magic Tree House Haunted Castle on Hallows Eve
If you have elementary-aged kids, I’m sure you’re familiar with the Magic Tree House books. They are fantastic for kids who are ready for chapter books, as well as for kids interested in history. (It’s simple historical fiction for younger kids.) These two (one about a haunted castle in Camelot, the other about ghosts in New Orleans and Louis Armstrong) would be great to pull out this month to get a little cozy, not too scary, reading in.
The Witches
This is another one for slightly older readers, age 8 and up depending on their level of comfort with witches. Witches who hate children. The Witches is about a little boy who lives with his grandma. She tells him scary stories about real witches who hate children, and who hide among regular people. When they go on vacation in Norway, the end up staying at the same place as a witch convention, and the Grand High Witch discovers the little boy spying on them. If you love Roald Dahl, this is a must, but be aware that the book does deal with death and the potential death of a beloved grandma. But it’s one of my favorites, and witches and Halloween go hand in hand.
The Monstore
This is a fun picture book that both of my kids love to read every year. (They love it so much that it never stays with our seasonal Halloween books for long, and always ends up next to their bookcases.) Zach visits the Monstore for all of his monsterly needs, but when his little sister discovers it too, his plans go awry. This is a cute, fun book that’s not scary, and the illustrations are great!
The Graveyard Book
For older kids! Age 10 and up, for sure. I haven’t read this, but I would like to very soon. Neil Gaiman is the king of fantasy, a great genre for fall, and this one covers all the creepy Halloween bases as well. Bod lives in a graveyard. He is the only living resident there, and was raised by werewolves, ghosts, and other fantastical creatures. He has to balance the world of the graveyard with the world of the living, and the dangers that lie in each. If you have a child who likes fantasy and suspense, this would be perfect for them.
Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery
This was one of my favorite books as a kid, and I can’t wait until my kids are old enough to read it. It will definitely be required fall reading for them very soon. It’s such a simple story: a dog and a cat living in the Monroe house must figure out if the new pet, a bunny with fangs, is a vampire or not. This book. This book! I really hope kids today still read it. It’s funny, not too scary, and it’s about a vampire bunny who sucks the color out of vegetables! What more could you want?
The Magnus Chase series
This is my recommendation for a fall fantasy series. Rick Riordan does this so well, and the Magnus Chase series, about a boy who must save the world and Viking myths, is fantastic for fall. (Or anytime!) This is for older kids, and kids who are fans of Percy Jackson and the Avengers series will love this one. (The third book in the series, The Ship of the Dead
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Illustrated Edition
Fall is my favorite time to re-read the Harry Potter series, and this book will make a wonderful edition to any Harry Potter collection, and will be fun for any Harry Potter fan. I know the illustrations will be beautiful, and kids (and who am I kidding, adults too) will have a good time cozying up under a blanket and looking at all the magical beasts J.K. Rowling has written about. (Out November 7, 2017)
The Eerie Elementary series
This is a new series for me, and I’m going to be checking them out for my kids. These are chapter books for new chapter book readers, and for older readers who want a quick book to read. (And obviously, with a name like Eerie Elementary, excellent for Halloween!) Eerie Elementary is a scary school, and Sam Graves has to protect himself and his friends from all the weird things that happen at the school. There are 6 books in the series, and the 7th one (Classes Are Canceled!
What My Kids Are Reading: September 29, 2017
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire
This week we have both new and old books on our radar, and my kids are learning that books can serve more than one purpose. My 8-year-old is using them to learn more about history, as well as using them to understand why bad things happen in the world. (This is truly a foreign concept to most kids.) My 6-year-old is now reading required books at school and using an educational website to read books for school at home, so when it’s time for fun reading, he just wants a fun and silly book. (Which I completely understand!) What are your kids reading this week? Let me know!
The 8-Year-Old
I Survived the Attacks of September 11th, 2001
We hadn’t talked to my 8-year-old about 9/11, but he found out about it this year and had a ton of questions. While we answered as simply as we could and focused on how many people helped after, he still wanted to know more. Finding books about 9/11 for this age was harder than I thought-most of the books are written for ages 10 and up. But he loves the I Survived series, so when I saw there was one for this event, I knew it would be perfect. It’s about an 11-year-old boy who goes into Manhattan to find his friend’s dad, and he just happens to do this on 9/11. It is told from his perspective, and covers a wide array of issues and emotions. The book is well done, and handles 9/11 sensitively and honestly, and it also opened up some great discussions about that day. This can be such a hard topic to navigate, especially since most of us still remember that day very clearly, and this book does a great job in making 9/11 a bit easier to understand for the younger crowd.
The 6-Year-Old
The 52-Story Treehouse
We are continuing with the Treehouse series, and have started the 4th! As I’ve said before, these books are wild and crazy, and perfect for elementary aged kids who like funny and silly stories. In this one, Andy and Terry’s publisher, Mr. Big Nose, has gone missing, and they have to figure out what happened to him before they publish their next book. Their new iteration of their treehouse includes a make your own pizza parlor, a detective agency, and a ninja snail training academy. Sound ridiculous? It is, and that’s why it’s great!
What We’re Reading Together
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire
We are still working our way through the 4th Harry Potter book! This is a long one, and we only read it together before bed, so we don’t have as much time to read it as we did during the summer. That’s ok with me, though, because this is my favorite Harry Potter book! I do think we’ll take a break after this one and move on to The Chronicles of Narnia, because I think books 5-7 are a little too dark and scary for now. (Unless my 8-year-old talks me into them. Which he probably will!)
[Top]What My Kids Are Reading: September 22, 2017
Since we have been reading longer books together lately, my kids are still working on The Wizard of Oz and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire this week. Instead of posting what my kids checked out at the school library, I thought I would write a quick post about a genre that’s really been working for us the past year, and why I think it works particularly well for a lot of kids.
Fantasy.
A few people I’ve talked to about books automatically say, “Oh, I don’t read fantasy. I just can’t get into it.” But when I mention books like Harry Potter, they make an exception. Fantasy definitely includes books that are heavy with dragons, fairies, different realms, and a good dose of magic, and I can understand why people might not care for that specific category of fantasy. But when comes to a more realistic approach to fantasy, I think there are a few books that appeal to a pretty large group of people, and can help children understand and work through some big issues. These books feature regular humans who have special qualities, or animals who function as humans. They use regular characters and put them in extraordinary situations that just happen to include magic, but they are more easily relatable than characters in more hardcore fantasy novels.
As an adult, I enjoy reading books that are based in real life and deal with real issues. I like to see how different types of people react in tough situations. I love reading fantasy, but it’s more of a fun escape for me. For kids, however, while they may also like reading books about “real” people (The Baby-Sitter’s Club will always have my heart.), fantasy is a way to read about tough subjects while still keeping themselves a bit emotionally separated.
I’ll use Harry Potter as an example, since we’re all probably familiar with that story. The series covers some BIG topics, including the loss of parents, bullying, feeling weird or not like everyone else, being good (or not so good) in school, and the fact that there are evil people out there who seem to have no reason for it, and who don’t learn a lesson and reform themselves. Readers, those are major topics that could upset the toughest of adults. But in a fantasy setting, kids can identify with those characters, and see how they handle those difficult situations, but there is a bit of protection in place. Magic, other-worldly creatures, and invisibility cloaks all provide a bit of separation, and that allows kids to process those big ideas without becoming emotionally overwhelmed.
My 8-year-old and I have talked about how it isn’t magic that protects Harry from Voldemort, but his mother’s love, and how his mom is always providing whatever protection she can, even though she’s not there. That is a big, impactful subject, not necessarily easy to understand. But in the world of Harry Potter, it becomes a more manageable topic. My son couldn’t really be in Harry’s situation, because we aren’t wizards, but now he understands how a parent tries to protect a child, no matter what.
My 6-year-old has been loving The Wizard of Oz more than I thought, and he has made several insightful comments about Dorothy wanting to go home and why the scarecrow, tin woodman, and lion might want what they want from the wizard. It also illustrates the idea of good versus evil, and how terrible accidents can happen, even when you didn’t mean for them to. (Dorothy really didn’t mean to kill either witch!)
If you think your kids won’t like reading fantasy, or you’ve always viewed it as a fluffy genre, give some of these books a try! Especially if you have a highly sensitive, or more sensitive, child, it might be a nice way to read a fun book and have some great conversations at the same time. These books all feature characters who must overcome some kind of adversity and deal with big, important issues in a fantastical way that is way easier for kids to understand than a more straightforward book might be.
The Harry Potter series
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Matilda
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
James and the Giant Peach
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1)
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
The Land of Stories series
The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread
