What I've Been Reading

Well, hi there! I haven't forgotten you; I just didn't feel like I had much to say! ...for months....

We've been at our temporary location since the new year, and I'm definitely looking forward to getting back home. Being out of the normal routine and sort of lonely without my buddies and my buddy-related activities has afforded me an opportunity to tear through some reading material. Also, I got a Kindle for Christmas (yay!), so I've got easy access to lots of different things now. Pretty handy when I can't really go anywhere without a significant effort.

So here's what I've been reading.

• Home Education by Charlotte Mason. She was a 19th-century British educator whose writings on educational philosophy are giving me a little extra boost of confidence about...educating the kids at home. This book lays out her basic principles of what education is (a discipline, an atmosphere, a life...). Don't let the Victorianness stop you. Volume 1 of 6.
• A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson. Poems for kids. I read this because Noelle wanted me to read her something from the Kindle.
• Parents and Children by Charlotte Mason. This one is more her thoughts about parenting itself as it pertains to education, though there is a weird chapter about Beowulf being the ideal English hero. I read selections of that out loud to Mark and we laughed and laughed...because we're really big nerds. Haven't quite finished it yet because I got tired. Volume 2 of 6.
• A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I got to this one from a referral in the Andreola book below. I really enjoyed this story about a little girl and the resilience with which she bears difficulty, though it tore my heart out. Oh those Victorians.
• With Lee in Virginia by G.A. Henty. This man wrote an historical novel to correspond with about every major event through history. I'm told they are all (70 of them) centered on a young male protagonist who finds himself in the middle of whatever major thing is going on, and emerges with virtue and heroism. This one's about a young Virginia planter who finds himself in the middle of the Civil War (on the confederate side) and...emerges with virtue and heroism. It was so fun for me to read this book because it's tracks all over Virginia, and now I have some faint idea of the terrain, the locations, and the sentiments. Henty made me feel sympathetic to the confederate cause; I couldn't believe it! I'm a yankee by heritage and training.
• Back to Basics: Raising Self-Sufficient Children by Barbara Frank. A quick read about needing to teach one's children to sew, cook, do chores, etc.
• A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola. This would be a great starting place for one interested in Mason's ideas but not in her prose. Good summaries of all the major ideas joined with Andreola's real-life examples from her homeschooling.
• Choosing to See by Mary Beth Chapman. Whoa. The Bible study leader at the church we've been going to up here has been plugging this book for the last couple of weeks. When I walked by her Tuesday, she said, "Here? Want to read it?" and handed it to me. Though I had been interested since the first mention of it, I had been NOT reading it on purpose--because I cry when I read cereal boxes these days. Well, so I read it and bawled the whole way through. This woman is the wife of Steven Curtis Chapman, and basically she tells her life story of how the Lord has allowed her to go through a lot of pain (including the tragic death of her 5-year old in 2008)...but that even though she's still suffering with it (and yes, she WOULD change it if she could); she's choosing to SEE that God is using all these things redemptively. On one hand, I heartily recommend this book to you and am even pondering whether or not to mail you a copy (yes, you). On the other hand, I don't wish bawling upon you. It was a good crying; mostly.
• Sacred Marriage: What If God Designed Marriage to Make Us Holy More Than to Make Us Happy? by Gary Thomas. I just started this today. Chapter 1 BLEW my mind. I think I'm going to love it and be super encouraged, even as it pokes me with thorns.