Skip to main content

My Kids and Reading

You all see what I'm reading with Bit on a regular basis because she likes to share her thoughts with you. What I'm reading with the Little Man doesn't come up often. He is only four, and doesn't care to share his opinions as much as his vociferous sister.

He also has a very different relationship to and experience with books.

I have done pretty much the same thing with both of my kids and they responded to it completely differently. They are both being raised in a home where books and reading are highly valued and modeled. They were both read to since they were in utero. When Bit was four she couldn't get enough of books. She wanted to read all the time. She pulled novels off shelves and begged me to read them to her. We went through a shelf full of picture books a day at least as I read one after another.

The Little Man couldn't be more different. He loves books too, but he wants to experience them on his own terms. He will sit and occupy himself for hours looking at books, but rarely wants me to read them to him. I ask. I plead. I beg. "No thanks," is the response I most often get. At least he's polite. There are exceptions to this though and right now those exceptions are:
The Duckling Gets a Cookie by Mo Willems
Should I Share My Ice Cream? by Mo Willems
Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham
In that order. Every time. And it is a loooong process.

Because I can't just read them all the way through. We have to discuss every single page at length. Why do the cookies have nuts? Why is Pigeon mad? Why does Piggie like chocolate ice cream? Why? Why? Why? He has to compare the page with Gerald's long drawn out "Nooooooo!" to Pigeon's long drawn out "Nooooo !" When we get to Moose's rampage through O, P, and Q he compares it to the image of Pigeon freaking out. He talks about how he gets in trouble if he does that. Every. Single. Time. Which is to say every day. Sometimes more than once a day. It completely breaks up the rhythm of my read aloud and used to drive me demented. Until I stopped to really think about it and now I go with it and appreciate his way of taking in books. (Needless to say, I don't even attempt to take him to library story time.) 

And do you notice how those books all have themes of disappointment softened by friendship? He does that too. His book obsessions have themes. This is, by far, the most complex one yet.

Bit devours books. She scarfs them down and demands more. The Little Man savors his slowly, trying to figure out every spice and flavor that created them and his response to them. Is one way better or more beneficial than the other? I can tell you that the way each one reads fits their personalities to a T.

Comments

April said…
LOVE it! I wonder what Claire will be like.
Brandy said…
I'm eager to see what Claire will be like too.

Popular posts from this blog

Favorite Kissing Scenes

When thinking of a favorite things post I could do for February I decided it would have to be kissing. I've already done couples and I was feeling in the mood to do something fluffy and Valentine's related. So kisses it is. I read more MG than YA, and the YA I read tends to not focus on romance so this was actually harder than I expected it to be though a few jumped into my head right away. (And one of my choices does actually come from a MG book. One is adult. Gasp!) The actual scene from the book is quoted followed by my thoughts. The king lifted a hand to her cheek and kissed her. It was not a kiss between strangers, not even a kiss between a bride and a groom. It was a kiss between a man and his wife, and when it was over, the king closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the hollow of the queen's shoulder, like a man seeking respite, like a man reaching home at the end of the day . - The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner Turner doesn't write the

TTT: Most Recent Additions to My TBR List

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly themed blog hop created by  The Broke and the Bookish  and now hosted at  That Artsy Reader Girl . This Week's Topic: Most Recent Additions to My TBR List From Most Recent to Least: What books have recently caught your eye?

This Side of Home

What attracted me to This Side of Home by Renee Watson was the cover. The story hooked my interest. The characters made me fall in love. Maya has lived her entire life in the same neighborhood in Portland hanging out with the same group of friends: her twin sister Nikki, their best friend Essence, and Ronnie, Malachi, and Devin-three boys her father mentors. They have plans for the future that involve each other: prom, college, life. But things in their neighborhood are changing. People are moving in and starting new businesses. Property values are going up as a result. In addition to change, this is also causing trouble. Essence has to move out of her  house when the owner decides he can make more money selling it than renting it. The racial demographics of the school, which has been mostly African American, is shifting. This presents new challenges and choices for Maya and her friends. It brings new people into their lives at the same time. Maya has to figure out how-and if-she wa

Serafina and the Black Cloak

Serafina and the Black Cloak  by Robert Beatty is a thrilling tale of mystery and adventure set at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC in 1899. Having lived in Asheville and visited the house several times, there was no way I was going to pass up a chance to read this. (Also it's MG fantasy, always a bonus for me.) Serafina lives in secret in the basement of the Vanderbilt's spacious vacation home. She has lived there most of her life. Her father worked on the house as it was being built and is the mechanic who runs the massive generator and keeps the electricity going. Serafina is the chief rat catcher, slipping through the halls of her massive home secretly and quietly. She is light on her feet, sees well in the dark, and is quick enough to catch the vermin and keep them out. Serafina knows she if different and strange. Her father insists she stay hidden. But all that changes when one night Serafina witnesses a horrible crime. A little girl, a guest in the house, is fleein

Shorter Musings MG Fantasy

Here are some shorter musings on recent MG fantasy reads. Anya and the Dragon   by Sofiya Pasternack This book is fun. It is a book full of adventure, an obvious bad guy, some more complicated morally gray area characters, and a strong, brave heroine. It is also a book about friendships, community, and fighting for what is right. All things that usually work for me really well. While I enjoyed this, I did feel it was a little overlong and there were certain plot points at the end I didn't love. However, there were things I thought were done really well, such as Anya's Jewish faith and the idea that power needs to be challenged. In the end it was a middle of the road read for me, but it is one I will certainly be recommending to dragon and fantasy adventure lovers I know! R is for Rebel   by J. Anderson Coats This is tough because I usually really like Coats's books. I had such a hard time with this one though on so many levels. It's difficult to get into because t