Library Haul and What I'm Reading Now Vol II

It’s been a while since we’ve talked about books. I’m working on wrapping up the last installment in the Build a Family Reading Culture series. In the meantime, I thought I’d share a recent family library haul and a little bit of what I’ve been reading lately.

My oldest is being kept fairly busy with homework and class reading requirements (on top of all the other sports, activities, club, etc). But, he’s been working his way through a few “leisure” novels as well. He just finished up the most recent “Wings of Fire” and “Last Kids on Earth” installments.

He loves historical fiction, so I picked up “Foster’s War” at the library last week. I also grabbed “Ghost” which I’ve been hearing good things about the last few years. 

 My five-year-old is nothing if not consistent and continued his selection routine of:

•    A mini Beatrix Potter

•    Something in a series (this time Arthur)

•    A “holiday” book (seasonal appropriateness be damned)

•    Something random

 We did start" “Little House in the Big Woods” as our new chapter book, which I am ecstatic about. I loved all the Little House books growing up, but this one and “Farmer Boy are my favorites”. I’m sure I read “Little House in the Big Woods” at least a dozen times as a child and I reread it every few years now as an adult. 

 Introducing your child to a favorite book is liking giving them their first bite of ice cream. Of course, unlike ice cream (which is almost universally loved), not every childhood favorite stands the test of time or connects with every reader. “Homer Price” did not go over nearly as well with my boys as I thought it would. 

 Luckily, my youngest seems to love “Little House in the Big Woods”. It’s a perfect read for this time of year. Lots of harvesting, chilly mornings and reflection on the changing of the seasons. 

 I grabbed “Hannah Coulter” by Wendell Berry. It’s been on my reading list for a long time and just kept getting pushed aside. I read “A World Lost” a few years ago and fell in love with Berry’s fictional Port William. The stories and characters seem familiar. Like listening to an older relative reminisce, reading Berry makes you feel connected to something from the past. They’re sweet, sad, nostalgic, familiar. 

 I also FINALLY got to “Where the Crawdads Sing.” Motherhood does a good job of keeping me socially irrelevant. Nevermore so than in reading/watching/listening to the latest “thing”. It’s how I ended up finally reading “Gone Girl” two years after the book originally came out. 

 Lately, though, I’ve had pretty good luck nabbing new/popular books thanks to a lunchtime reading club at my library. There are usually 10-20 copies of an “it” book available for club members or regular patrons interested in the book. As long as there are a few copies left for “official” members, I happily grab one. This is how I snagged “An American Marriage” and “I am Anastasia.”

 But,” Where the Crawdads Sing” had been eluding me. No lunchtime reading club option and a gazillion person long hold list. Finally this week, I broke down a forked over the cash. And y’all…

 It was amazing. There’s a reason Goodreads and Amazon both have thousands of nearly perfect reviews. The author goes deep into connecting the reader with the natural world of coastal North Carolina, but it never gets wonky or overpowering. The characters are complex and authentic, the narrative is familiar but still fresh. I flew through the book. A definite must-read.