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Tuesday, August 16, 2011

So......Whatcha Reading?

When I was a very young girl, I loved it when my mom read to me. I remember 18 Cousins, Old Black Witch, Christina Katerina and The Box and of course my little brother's endless requests for Green Eggs and Ham. I loved those stories, and the countless others she would read to us, and I loved the time with her. Trips to the library were mini adventures and I can still picture the tiny parking lot behind the building and the low bookshelves of the children's section clearly.
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I continued to enjoy reading as I grew. From the time I was proficient at it, until my mid-teen years I would have trouble tearing myself away from a good story. It was amazing to me how real a fictional story could feel.....how completely drawn into a story I could become. But then my life got busier. More school work, friends, and a steady boyfriend. The drama of my teen years left little time to read, not to mention a major lack of interest. There just wasn't time to read for fun and it became less and less important. After I got married, I was busy working and just lost interest in books in general.
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Then we had children. The fond memories of my mom reading bright, colorful children's books to my siblings and I came rushing back. I wanted that for my children. So began my renewed love of reading....to them.
We put money, time and effort into getting some wonderful picture books for our children. I would read to them at least twice a day, if not more. My children seemed to look forward to this as much as I did.....the snuggling, the shared adventures, the laughs. This benefited not only our relationship, but also their interest in books.
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As each of the children grew and learned to read on their own, they still continued their love of books. All of my girls love to read. The library is still one of their favorite places. And Alexa, although she's 9, still enjoys sharing stories with me. We take turns......one of us reading while the other is doing the readers hair. Then we switch.
At the end of the chapter, we have had some laughs....not only at the story, but also at each others new "do".
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And Evan looks so forward to our story times together. The promise of stories is what gets him to cooperate every night for bed! And he'll sometimes just sit and look through a stack of books in his room or on his bookshelf. Even though he hasn't learned to read yet, he still gets completely immersed in a good book.
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Since becoming a parent, I have read countless picture books, children's chapter books and parenting/homeschooling books.
But I haven't read for fun,
just for me
in a long,
long,
long,
long
time.
Until this summer.
This summer I picked up a book off our bookshelf.
It was the first in the series of the Letzenstein Chronicles.
It was a little hard to follow at first....the characters and how they are related
and know each other. But I worked through that and quickly became
immersed in this story, this time period and the adventures involving these people.
Luckily I had bought the whole series (4 books) some time ago, because
at the end of that first book, I was sad it was over, so I comforted
myself with the fact that book 2 was waiting for me on our bookshelf.
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I went through the entire series of those books, then 4 more from our bookshelves that are mostly historical fiction adventure books. This might not be a big feat for other adults but for me this is major progress. I am just working the way through the books we have, then I'll have to start using the library.......for ME. How cool is that?
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Any recommendations?
I'd appreciate it. I can put them on hold at our local library and have my Fall reading list all ready to roll. I'm not excited about summer ending this year, but I am psyched for this!
So, watcha readin?
TTFN
Have a great day! Make it special!
~Tina

3 comments:

Theresa said...

For me it's Patricia Cornwall...I too wanted to get back into reading a few years ago...wondered around the library looking lost when the librarian came over and asked if she could help. I said...I want to start reading again but not sure where to start....she asked what TV shows I like and I told her I found certain aspects of crime dramas interesting (like CSI, criminal minds, etc.)...she recommended Cornwall and I've read her entire Dr. Kay Scarpetta series (in order)and still re-read the one's I had bought or gotten as a gift. If this doesn't appeal to you, you could still ask the librarian and she can help out...with great suggestions! Happy Reading!!

Grandma Jo said...

Glad to know you enjoyed the reading as a child - I thought you did!! I enjoyed it, too! Glad to hear you got back to it, although I knew you were reading some when you could ("The Wedding")! ;)
You know my favorite authors are Nicholas Sparks, Richard Paul Evans, and Debbie Macomber. I also like many spiritual or inspirational books like "The Cloud of Unknowing," "Life and Holiness," (Thomas Merton) "No Man Is An Island," (Thomas Merton) "Something Beautiful for God," (about Mother Teresa and includes some of her own words), and John Michael Talbots books: "Changes," "Blessings," and Robert F. Morneau's "Spiritual Direction," "The Bible" plus many, many more! I'm now reading "Flowers on Main," by Sherryl Woods, a book I borrowed from my friend Sandy when I was visiting her in Georgia. I just received a new book by Richard Paul Evans called "Michael Peyton: The Prisoner of Cell 25." It just came out and already #1 on New York's best seller list! Can't wait to read it. It sounds intriguing! Good luck with your reading! Enjoy!!

Tina said...

I am going to have to write all these authors down! I rarely watch TV anymore (unless you count Phineas and Ferb with Evan or glimpses of ICarly while making dinner). All summer, right after I put the kids to bed, I make sure everythings in order for the next day, check my email, then get into my latest book! Thank you both for the suggestions! <3 ya!