Story Time

This is a sequal to Sarah, Plain and Tall which is a good book for readers beginning chapter books. It has a Lexile Level of 560, is 58 pages long, and is intended for ages 8 to 10. Caleb's Story has a Lexile Level of 290, has 116 pages, and is intended for the same age group. If you've never heard of the Lexile Level and want to check it out you can click on it above.

The Lexile Measure is a reading test to measure a childs reading level. I have no idea what Lizzy's is exactly, but I have used the website to find books that are in the similar ball park of books that are challenging and fun. I use 2 other resources: One is the Charlotte Mason Twaddle Free List which is a list books that combine good morals and full body content. My other resource is to ask friends and their kids :)

In Caleb's Story you learn that Papa's father abandoned him when he was Caleb's age who is maybe 12. It is around the age my father abandoned me and my siblings and also around the time my mother remarried, which followed alot of abuse for my my siblings and I. In this story Caleb has a great relationship with his father. At a certain point Grandfather comes back to town and Papa has a hard time forgiving him. Here is the exert:

"My birthday is coming," I said.

"And I don't want books or tools or even a horse of my own for my birthday."

Papa looked up, surprised.

"You've always wanted a horse fo your own, Caleb."

Not this year," I said. "What I want this year is something different."

"Different?" repeated Papa.

I nodded.

"This year I want most of all for you to forgive Grandfather. I want you to forgive Grandfather so I can grow up and be just like you," I said.

Papa stared at me. He said nothing. He lay back on the bed, and, after a moment, I went away. I closed the door behind me.

(Caleb's Story, Patricia MacLachlan)

Laura Ingalls Wilder

We have been reading the Laura Ingalls-Wilder's books and have really been enjoying them. When I was a kid no one in my family liked watching the series on tv. The books are amazing to read with children.

Respectable Sins

I finished reading Respectable Sins, by Jerry Bridges... and wow. This book addresses sins that many Christians tolerate, including me. The book begins with an important foundation and then it goes through the list chapter by chapter.

Here is the list:
* Ungodliness
*Anxiety and Frustration
* Discontentment
* Unthankfulness
* Pride
* Selfishness
* Lack of Self-Control
* Impatience and Irritability
* Anger
* The Weeds of Anger
* Judgmentalism
* Envy, Jealousy, and Related Sins
* Sins of the Tongue
* Worldliness

A friend of mine read this book with his Sunday School class. His wife told me on the last day they talked about the book, he asked the class, "How can you keep mindful of these lessons/chapters? What would your guide be?" After people mentioned different things he had everyone look at 1 Cor 13:4-8.When she told me I was really struck at how those verses beautifully wrapped up the whole book.

4Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant,
5does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered,
6does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;
7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.

If I were to recommend a good book to a Christian wanting to grow in sanctification, this would be it.

Twaddle-Free Book List

I met some women at Borders Book Store a few weeks back with some of the homeschool moms I know. My friend, Melissa introduced me to the Twaddle-Free Book List and I thought it would be great to pass this along and have it here next time I look for it.
Twaddle means dumbed down literature.
Here is the Charlette Mason Twaddle Free Book List
She includes direct links to Amazon so you can get a better idea of a book before you buy it or look for it at the library. If you've never bought a book from Amazon, I'd like to say that they offer free shipping to any order over $25. If you buy a second hand book through Amazon the free shipping does not apply. I've bought books from both Amazon and their venders and have never had trouble.

Here is part of her list:

Kindergarten / Grade 1
Amelia Bedelia, by Peggy Parish
Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey
Bread and Jam for Frances, by Russell Hoban
Billy and Blaze, by C.W. Anderson
A Chair for My Mother, by Vera B. Williams
Corduroy, by Don Freeman
The Courage of Sarah Noble, by Alice Dalgliesh
Curious George, by H.A. Rey
Frog and Toad All Year, by Arnold Lobel
Frog and Toad are Friends, by Arnold Lobel
Harry the Dirty Dog, by Gene Zion
Little Bear, by Else Homelund Minarik
The Little Engine that Could, by Watty Piper
The Little House, by Virginia Lee Burton
Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans
Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, by Virginia Lee Burton
The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats
Stone Soup, by Marcia Brown
Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf
Story About Ping, by Marjorie Flack

Grade 2
The Boxcar Children, by Gertrude Chandler Warner
A Child’s Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson (illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith)
Little House on the Prairie series, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Railway Children, by E. Nesbit
The Random House Book of Fairy Tales, by Amy Ehrlich
Tikki Tikki Tembo, by Arlene Mosel
The Velveteen Rabbit, by Marjery Williams
Winnie-the-Pooh, by A.A. Milne