It’s becoming more difficult each year to ascertain who is profiting more from our daily “Treasures and Teatime” on the couch ‒the Captain (age 8), Goldilocks (age 5), or me. Privilege is the only word that comes to my mind when we cozy up fireside each morning to read together.
Reading time is pure indulgence for me as a mom; an hour where nothing is required of me other than to brew a hot pot of tea, read the words on the beautiful page before me, and snuggle my suddenly giant babies. Best of all, I alone get to witness each of their new discoveries as they sip, giggle, laugh, blurt out realizations, gasp, bury their faces in their hands, and even weep in turn.
I would give up every part of the homeschool day before I’d loosen my grip on this one. Not only is reading time the most luscious part of our family’s home education, I maintain it is consistently the most powerful as well.
From history, to literature, to science, to religion, to logic, to character-building, to wisdom ‒there is nothing which cannot be gleaned from within the bindings of a vast and varied home library.
So, if I’m allowed a word of encouragement to any parent or grandparent reading this . . .
Push a little less.
Pull back a mite more.
Stay home a while longer.
Hold on a tad tighter.
Sit, settle, stay, savor.
And just read.
Treasures & Teatime 2023
~what we read, what we loved, plus one title we’ve shelved for a year or three~
I cannot begin to count the far-off places and extraordinary times we’ve traveled to together, donned in flannel pjs on the couch. There is no more expedient course I know of to prepare our children for the real, wide world.
Frog and Toad Collection by Arnold Lobel, read by the Captain (at age 7) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 3 and up
This year, our read-aloud team expanded by one as the Captain began conducting a special “sibling read-aloud” time with Goldilocks. What a blessing this has been to the entire family. It’s an absolute mercy to pop a load of dishes into the dishwasher to the soundtrack of child narration and giggles. The Captain read Goldilocks many, many, many picture books this year along with a few early readers and chapter books. He got to practice his fluency, she gained additional story time, and I was permitted more tidying time. But all of these pale in comparison to the biggest advantage this practice earned our family. Our kids bonded over books and shared moments together that were theirs alone. As the year unfolded, I got to see our kids’ relationship unfold more as well.
Frog and Toad is a sheer joy to children. And hearing our son read it to our little girl made that joy come alive for me in an entirely new way.
Bambi by Felix Salten, read by Mama to the Captain (at age 7) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 9 to 99 (if experienced with literary violence and death)
Bambi is a rite of passage. A thousand life lessons bound from the pages of Felix Salten’s four-season novel, each in soul-stirring clarity.
However, I admit I was the only one of the three of us who was ready for this book. Wrongly, I had assumed that it’s content couldn’t be much more severe than the Disney movie depiction of the death of Bambi’s mother. Little did I know that Walt Disney majorly tamed Salten’s brutally realistic and breathtaking forest tale of survival of the smartest. The Captain was moved and provoked to tears by our read-alouds almost daily. Some chapters were particularly painful for him, but I believe he is the better for it even if it came maybe a year too early. Read my full review here: 🦌Bambi Book Review🐿️ Felix Salten’s classic novel is definitely not Disney!
The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner, read by Mama to Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 4 and up
The Boxcar Children is as winning as ever of the child heart; making her fall head over heels in love with reading before she even knows it.
This was the first chapter book I read exclusively to Goldilocks and she was positively tickled pink. “Just me?” she asked. “A chapter book just for me?” We read it through the first week of January and then she proceeded to listen to the audiobook every day at nap for a month straight. She played with dishes and pretend cooked all the while asking if Papa and I could please get her a boxcar to play in. Who needs a pony? The rest of the year she followed in big brother’s footsteps and listened to almost the entire audio collection of Boxcar Children audiobooks on Hoopla (well over one hundred titles).
The Tales of Uncle Remus as told by Julius Lester, read by Papa to the Captain (at age 7) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 6 and up (if able to handle dark content)
Cold plunges are all the rage these days but only the daring try their literary counterpart. Reading The Tales of Uncle Remus is like popping back and forth from an ice-cold pool to the hot tub. Some of the stories are warmth and comfort and others are positively bone chilling. Quite often while reading them, my hubby would pause mid-sentence and then say “ok! I guess we’re not finishing this one.” And in case you suspect he is Mr. Censorship, I assure you, he is not.
Regarding racial content, these stories do not hold up to the waterspouts that Disney stirred up. After all, the character of Uncle Remus in the old, long-banned Disney cartoon is what caused so much controversy. Since the stories are narrated by Uncle Remus, his character is more or less anonymous in the reading, beside the dialect in which these tales are written, of course. I would say any concern regarding racial content is minimal. That’s my personal take. There is undoubtedly some room for good cultural conversations to be had along the way, however, if anything the tales beautifully celebrate the African American storytelling heritage. That being said, there is still plenty of room for other concerns, namely, the excessive amounts of violence, gore, and even horror that abound in these tales.
And yet . . . we do not recommend you miss this collection of tales. It is worth skipping over brutal bits and terrifying tid-bits to share with your kids these delightful stories that are truly unlike any others you will ever come across. The wit and humor and charm and subterfuge and mischievousness are all simply perfect.
Babe the Gallant Pig by Dick King-Smith, read by Mama to the Captain (at age 7) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 5 and up (if able to handle the death of “Ma” an elderly sheep)
We eat a homemade, raw oat cereal six days a week for breakfast. It’s something we’ve done for a decade now and something that my grandmother actually began in our family. It’s just the easiest, healthiest breakfast. But by Sunday, we’re all ready for something a bit softer and more indulgent. That’s when I fry up fresh sourdough English muffins and a melt-in-the-mouth egg scramble. It may not be half as nutritious a breakfast but it’s so delicious none of us care. It’s the same with Babe. He may be gallant but that’s about the most of it. This book is not a great work of literature by any stretch. But it’s delicious. While some books take us a month of toothsome reading to complete, Babe the Gallant Pig is easily consumed in a few lip-smacking days. Best of all, you can finish it up by taking in together the fabulous movie version which our family all agrees actually improves slightly on the book.
Beatrix Potter Collection, read by Mama to the Captain (at age 7) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 3 and up (skipping some of the more frightening ones until maybe 5 or 6)
I realize that these are picture books but by the time I read all of them, it felt like a chapter book and a half. What can I say about something as iconic as The Beatrix Potter Collection? Every last tale is almost as enchanting as the artwork on each page. Often when I’m reading these tales, I have to just stop a moment to gaze at the gorgeous watercolor animals living and breathing on the page. For beauty alone, I would have to note The Tale of Jemima Puddle Duck, The Tale of Tommy Brock, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, and The Tale of Tom Kitten as standouts but it really is a stiff competition. As far as the stories themselves, The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy Winkle and The Tale of Jeremy Fisher are family favorites. But why choose?
My mom gave us this gorgeous box collection when the Captain was born and wrote him a sweet little tribute on the inside cover of each little book, detailing what makes each particular tale a treasure. So, now it’s a keepsake for two reasons. We implore you to indulge in the whole collection which is as enticing to dip into as a box of Swiss chocolates.
Winnie the Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner by A.A Milne, read aloud by The Captain (age 8) to Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 4 and up
As much as I adore Winnie-the-Pooh, I wasn’t sure if I was up for the workout that is reading it after having had read it a few years back to the Captain. Don’t be fooled by Earnest H. Shepherd’s endearingly approachable illustrations; reading aloud Winnie-the-Pooh is the capstone project of nursery literature. Thankfully, I didn’t have to take it on again because the Captain himself was up for the challenge. I wasn’t sure how he would manage so many character voices in dialogue, but he and little sis have listened to the audiobook so many times that half the time they were merely trying their hand at dramatic recitations in reading this book together. The giggles these chapters evoked say it all; I the enchanted, solitary spectator. If anyone can rival the timeless beguilement of Beatrix Potter, it might be A.A. Milne. Anyway, the two are a match made in heaven on any bookshelf.
The Hobbit by J.R.R Tolkien, read by Papa to the Captain (age 8)
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*Age to read aloud: 9 and up
I bought my husband this beautiful gift set of The Lord of Rings Trilogy for his birthday this year. He had said he wanted to read them again . . . to himself. When he got his hands on these, however, suddenly he was dead set on reading The Hobbit aloud to the Captain. I argued that our son was still a little young for it and that maybe my hubby should wait a few years to read it to him. Wasted breath. The Captain had already taken a peek at the haunting yet gorgeous illustrations, and my hubby was just so excited to share this childhood favorite with our boy, he couldn’t wait a month let alone a whole year.
So, they set off on a journey of their own, my boys did. And unlike Bilbo, they never looked back.
Who wouldn’t want to go on an epic journey with a troop of dwarves through a fantasy wilderness? Who wouldn’t want to face off against trolls and giant spiders and woodland elves and a fire-breathing dragon? And who wouldn’t want to do it all beside a comfort-loving little hobbit? As always, The Hobbit is as delightful as it is daring.
The very best books to read aloud, I believe, are the ones we loved as kids and can’t wait to share with our own children. There’s just something about spilling out pre-loved words and tales that fulfills that longing we have to pass on the good things to our children. Plus, that love of ours is contagious. When our kids see us drooling over the binding of a book, suddenly they understand. It’s a secret club, and they want in.
A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park, read by Mama to the Captain (age 8) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 7 and up
This was the one I couldn’t wait any longer for. I first read A Single Shard when I started teaching Middle School Language Arts a decade or so ago. We were a few years off from starting a family and I already wanted to read it to my nonexistent kids. Just like my hubby with The Hobbit, I probably should have waited another year or two to share this one with our kids. But frankly madame I, uhhhh . . . didn’t want to.
We were reading around the world last year, literally, and ancient Korea was calling to me. I brewed a pot of green tea to set the mood and we set off.
Like a master potter herself, Linda Sue Park shapes a story for her readers that allows us to transcend oceans and centuries. An ancient Korean landscape flies up like a thousand cranes from the unillustrated pages, and the rich, soul-stirring culture drips from the binding like pottery slip into your lap.
Don’t miss the absolute gift of sharing this priceless gem with your kids. And then, make a bee-bim-bop dinner to celebrate! Check out this lovely picture book below for a great recipe and equally delicious read.
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes, *began* by Mama to the Captain (age 8)
*Age to read: 12 and up as a personal read, we do not recommend as a read-aloud
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For a book to keep its spot on school reading lists for over seven decades, it has to be doing something right. We made it about a third into the book and were enjoying the compelling plot and creative intertwining of revolutionary-set characters. We shelved the book for two reasons. Firstly, it is not an easy book to read aloud. In fact, I was dreading our morning readings which is never a good thing! Enjoyability matters for kids and adults alike. Some books just roll off the tongue when you read them to your children, and some should just wait to be read privately. It is my opinion that Johnny Tremain belongs in the second category. Secondly, the content in Johnny Tremain was yet too dark and depressing for our eight-year-old. I’ll let him pick this one off the shelf in a few years if he feels drawn to it.
Gooseberry Park by Cynthia Rylant, read by Mama to the Captain (age 8) and Goldilocks (at age 4)
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*Age to read aloud: 4 to 10
I read this aloud to the Captain at least twice some years back when he was maybe four years old. Ever since I had been trying to get my hands on a good hardcover copy and finally found one earlier in the year. The Captain snatched it up without hesitation and read the whole thing through in a few consecutive mornings as the rest of us normal people slept. When he was done with it, I picked it up to read aloud to Goldilocks thinking that the Captain would do something else with his time. But no. He plopped himself on the couch next to us and wouldn’t miss a morsel. Goldilocks was in love at the first glimpse of sweet Stumpy the squirrel and then once we met Murray, the world’s most side-splitting bat, it was all over. I ended up reading almost the entire thing in one go a particularly awkward morning where we found ourselves stuck in the truck waiting for Papa to finish a lecture he was giving. I nearly lost my voice after reading about seven chapters without a break, but the kids didn’t complain all that time trapped in a stuffy car.
As far as read-alouds go, Gooseberry Park is among the top of her class.
The Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, read by Mama to Goldilocks (at age 4) and the Captain (age 8)
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*Age to read aloud: 5 and up
You know a book is good when you read it as a child, read it to your own first child, and still can’t wait to share it with your subsequent children. I adored reading this series to the Captain a few years ago now, and I wrote “Little House in the Big Woods” onto Goldilocks’ first reading list this past year with a nostalgic smile on my face. I just knew she’d be smitten with Laura and Mary and all the lovely, satisfying work they put their little hands to. Once again, the Captain would not be left out. He said it didn’t matter he’d listened to the audiobook version by Cherry Jones about fifty times, he wanted to hear me read it again. Is there any compliment quite so touching as that?
We tucked in and nibbled at it for a few weeks, only allowing ourselves to read one chapter each morning. The peaceful smiles on our faces would have said it all if you could have peeked through the frosty panes of our living room. Goldilocks’ cheeks glowed from the warmth of the fire and her little hands rested in her lap, waiting diligently for everything Laura had to say. She slurped it all up like a mug of frothy hot cocoa until the very last words.
“She was glad that the cozy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now is now. It can never be a long time ago.”
Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder, read by Mama to Goldilocks (age 5) and the Captain (age 8)
*Age to read aloud: 6 and up
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The Little House in the Big Woods hadn’t even made it back to its shelf before the begging began for the next book. Goldilocks was hooked on Laura and couldn’t wait to start. But her exuberance quickly dissolved as we started that first chapter of Little House on the Prairie.
As the Ingalls family packed their wagon and drove away from the little house in the big woods, Goldilocks’ contented smile dropped and her cheeks fell so low they wrenched tears right out of her eyes. When I finished the first chapter and left the Ingalls family making their first camp away from their little house in the big woods, those tears slid off her jaw bones and ignited a fire in her very soul. She began weeping and yelling. In full disclosure, she attempted to harm the book and yelled some child obscenities at its cover.
I sat there torn between laughing, devising a suitable discipline for her, or simply joining in and yelling some child obscenities myself. After all, isn’t this why we read? To experience those things we perhaps never would, or at least haven’t yet, and try on all the feelings of those characters?
Finally, I assured Goldilocks that they would build a new house on the prairie. I may have committed a literary sin at this point and fanned the pages ahead until I settled on a lovely wooden house set amongst rabbits and wildflowers which worked like balm on an open wound. Soon her sobs turned into the hiccups and she consented for the reading to continue. It took a few chapters, but soon her soul was caught up on the prairie and swept up among all the grasses. At long last, Pa Ingalls was soundly forgiven.
We spent nearly a month on that beautiful, rugged prairie with the Ingalls family. So many events were lived through from fires to the fear of war to Goldilocks’ belligerent discovery that “Ma Ingalls hates the Indians.”
This brings up an important point of review. As to the recent flack this book has received in the racial content department, this last reading reassured me that somebody didn’t read carefully enough before they made that call. Ma Ingalls, Mr. Scott, and Mrs. Scott are absolutely awful in the way they speak about the Native Americans in this story, a point that certainly needs to be discussed with little readers along the way. However, they are most certainly not the heroes in this story, a fact obvious enough even to Goldilocks. The authorities in this book are decidedly Pa Ingalls and Laura and by the end it is clear the respect, reverence, and severe heartache that the entire family feels for “the Indians” including Ma. In fact, without giving too much away, a certain event involving the misfortune of a particular Native American tribe causes Ma to become so overcome with grief that she doesn’t feel like cooking or cleaning. If you’re not familiar with Ma Ingalls and her habits, this is a BIG DEAL . . . basically the end of the world as she knows it. And Pa doesn’t feel like eating which is equally shocking. Anyway, read it and make up your own mind, but as for me, I find that this book celebrates Native American history and culture and even makes several statements lamenting their treatment by the American government and white settlers. I find Laura Ingalls Wilder quite the visionary for her time.
Suffice it all to say, our time on the prairie was enjoyed even more than our time in the big woods. That is until the Ingalls family abandoned their house on the prairie and Goldilocks lost her ever-loving mind . . . again.
A Pioneer Sampler by Barbara Greenwood, read by Mama to Goldilocks (age 5) and the Captain (age 8)
*Age to read aloud: 6 and up
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A fabulous companion read for the Little House on the Prairie Series, Caddie Woodlawn, Prairie Lotus, and other such pioneer literature, A Pioneer Sampler is full to bursting with history, culture, and activities from the American Frontier. Even better, all of this is tied together with the continued story of the fictional Robinson family, all brought to life by truly exquisite charcoal work by Heather Collins.
Sadly, ever so sadly, I enjoyed this companion text much more than our munchkins. I guess there was enough historical context for them in The Little House books to fulfill their cross-curricular appetites this past fall. Of course, our kiddos are entirely spoiled in this department since they have never laid eyes on a textbook. Anyways, we forged ahead like the fearless descendants of pioneers we are, apathy be darned! Mama knows best, after all. The kids were rewarded for their penance by some lovely surprises along the way including some very fun crafts and games outlined in the book which they thoroughly enjoyed . . . and even admitted it.
Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright, read by Mama to the Captain (age 8) and Goldilocks (age 5)
*Age to read aloud: 7 and up
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This book is like our county fair. It was good fun but I don’t think I need to walk through it again. The kids and I enjoyed reading the tales of the mischievous Garnett and all the light-hearted trouble she gets in to. More than anything, it was a soothing read, something like daydreaming under an apple tree on a hot summer’s day. However, the plot was not developed enough to entice us to read it again.
The Egermeier’s Bible, read by Mama & Papa to the Captain (age 8) and Goldilocks (age 5)
*Age to read aloud: age 5 and up
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Our Salt-of-the-Earth-Storytime often impacts my and my husband’s biblical education as much as it does our kids’. Every new child’s Bible we read through together provides yet another layer to our understanding of God’s Word in much the same way that every trip to the garden, mountains, or forest reveals yet another mystery of our Creator.
Out of all the children’s Bibles we have, this one wins the award for most comprehensive in terms of breadth. However, we do find is somewhat lacking in terms of depth. That being said, sometimes that lack of depth can be a mercy, especially with very young children. Some Bible stories really can go on. And on. This children’s Bible has served our family very well throughout their little years. Lately, however, as the Captain becomes increasingly inquisitive and critical in his thinking, we find ourselves reading more and more out of the (gulp!) unabridged, uncensored original.
The Aesop for Children by Checkerboard Press, read by Mama to the Captain (age 8) and Goldilocks (age 5)
*Age to read aloud: age 5 and up
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We’ve read it before, and we’re already reading it again. This was truthfully our little Goldilocks’ (age 5) favorite book of the year, chapter book or otherwise. She couldn’t get enough of Aesop! When I asked her why she wanted me to read it to her again and again and again, she replied “I like how there’s so much death in it!” At first, I was a bit taken aback and slightly concerned, but then I started to get where she was coming from. Usually, our little love hates stories with any sort of sad ending, with death topping the list. But death in Aesop is palatable. The tales are so short that you hardly have time to grow attached to the characters for it’s not really about the characters at all. Fables are, after all, all about the morals they tell. For Goldilocks, the Aesop’s Fables fill that curiosity cavern involving death and destruction but administers it in doses she can handle. It is my hypothesis that these daily doses of reality are helping her to build up her immunity to such dark content.
You can read our full review of the Aesop for Children here, but this basically sums it up:
Want your child to grow into an adult who can spot a wolf in sheep’s clothing? Or one who is willing to slow-and-steady win a race? Or one who understands that one in the hand is worth two in the bush? Or one who recognizes that unity is the only way to protect against a third enemy? Or one who knows from the mouth of Aesop himself, an islander slave taken to Greece, that freedom is worth more than all the riches in the world? READ AESOP’S FABLES.
Favorite Audiobooks of 2023 (as chosen by the kids!)
The Captain (age 8)
- The Boxcar Children Series by Gertrude Chandler Warner
- James Herriot’s Animal Stories
- The Barbara Robinson Collection (The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The Best School Year Ever, and The Best Halloween Ever)
- The Poppy Series by Avi
Goldilocks (age 5)
- The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne
- The Arnold Lobel Collection
- Frog and Toad Collection by Arnold Lobel
- The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
- The Boxcar Children Series by Gertrude Chandler Warner
- The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones
- Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing by Sally Lloyd-Jones
- Burt Dow Deep Water Man by Robert Mccloskey
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Thanks so much for reading! May many beautiful books bless your home this year!
Love, ~Candace Arden~
