How to Enjoy Reading to Your Kids

You know that feeling you get after you read one of those flashy, gaudy books to your kid?  Something of a mix between, Boy, I actually feel dumber now, and Can I just throw this away?

You know the type of book I'm talking about, right? The pictures aren't exactly art, and the prose is...  well...  Dumb.

Not exactly the stuff that makes you want to read to your kids, is it? Read on to find out the wonderful, simple solution...

Dear Mama, you are suffering from a literary condition known as twaddle. And suffering is the right word for it!   

There are enough books in the world that you can afford to be choosy!  In fact, you should be!
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Living Books Vs. Twaddle

A very brilliant lady named Charlotte Mason started an education movement built around what she called Living Books.  

Basically Charlotte believed that children were capable of admiring great beauty, in both art and literature.  She would have loved the line, A person's a person, no matter how small.

Brambly Hedge is a beautiful
​example of a Living Book.

Living Books: Well-written books that draw you in (this includes non-fiction!).  They are written by an author who has real knowledge and passion about a subject. Reading a Living Book is like sitting down and learning about something from a gifted story teller.  Often include beautiful illustrations, but not necessary.  

*When choosing Living Books, look for books that build your kids up.  You want them to think about what is excellent, praise-worthy, right and pure.

But a word of caution: Do not exclude books just because they have villains, but rather look for books where good is good, evil is evil, and good triumphs (even if it must struggle to do so)!  You can read more of my thoughts on fiction here.

Brambly Hedge is full of beautiful illustrations and well-written stories! It is a treasure that we all enjoy.

Twaddle:

• Anything watered down, patronizing, or talk down to children (assuming that they can't understand anything).  
• Books that were edited/patched together by someone who knows little and cares less about the subject (many text books fall into this category).  
• Books that are poorly written or play on sensationalism.  These can be very popular, but so is junk food, and we know that you can't live well off of that either.

What To Do With Twaddle...

1. Try not to let it into the house.
2. If it sneaks into the house, get it out of the house.  Yes, it really is okay to throw a book away.  

Did she really just say you can throw a book away?  Yipes!  But yes, I did say that!  Me, a book-writing, book-loving author, really did say that not all books deserve a place in your home & heart.  

Does It Really Matter?

Yes.  Books are brain food.

A little junk food here and there, no biggie. But we all know how addicting junk food is. If your kids fill up on cheap calories, they will have no appetite for what is good and right and true and lovely.

It's okay to be choosy about your reading list.  Get fun stuff.  Gather well-written tales.  Weed out the twaddle.  You just might enjoy reading to your kids again...  While you still can!

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