A Family Reading Round-Up

Lauren’s Reads

This is the third Kate Morton book I’ve read, and it didn’t disappoint. Full of family secrets and many different storylines in different time frames, I truly didn’t know how the book would end. So many possibilities went through my head, keeping me intrigued as I read. Kate Morton is an amazing mystery novelist, and I always know I’ll get a good read when I read her books. Whenever I recommend her books, I hear that the book is hard to get into. Yes, they are. But stick in there! It’s worth it. She has a way of pulling everything together. It’s pretty impressive.

Get out of your Head by Jennie Allen

This book has been a book that when I was deep in the throws of spiraling anxiety, I would pick a page or a chapter- whatever I could handle and read that. When I got to the other side of that intense anxiety, I was able to fully read this book and take it in for all it’s worth. Whether it’s a page, a chapter, or the whole book, Jennie helps put your spiraling brain into a visual where you can combat those spiraling thoughts with truth so you can get out of the muck and mire and live more fully in God’s grace, peace and love.

A Long Walk to Water

I had read this book before, but the connection between the two characters is amazing. The story is heartbreaking but filled with resilience and hope, making you look at your life differently.

Upon Waking by Jackie Hill Perry

It is an amazing, easy-to-read devotional that provides quick encouragement and faith-building truths. Jackie Hill Perry has incredible wisdom and insight, and her writing reflects that. This is a 60-day devotional, so I’m working through it for the next few months. I gave this to one of my friends for Christmas because it’s a great way to get into a habit, especially if you don’t have much time.

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom

I have two books on here that I have read previously and read again because they are so good. The Hiding Place is one of those. With my love for historical fiction and, in this case, nonfiction, The Hiding Place keeps my attention, reminds me not to lose faith, and keeps a greater perspective. Corrie has some great nuggets in there to highlight and remember.

Jordan’s Reads

A big win for me in the last few months was getting Jordan into reading fiction. I got him started on a mystery; believe it or not, he enjoyed it! When he finished, I wanted a full synopsis. When he told me about the plot and what happened, I was guessing what happened along the way. I didn’t even have to read the book, and I was fully in! He asked if I wanted him to spoil the ending, and I remember saying an emphatic YES! I needed to know how the crazy story ended.

The book he read was:

Never Lie by Frieda Mcfadden

Quinn’s Reads

Quinn is a little reader. If she could choose only one book genre to read for the rest of her life, she would read nonfiction. She loves reading about animals and telling us everything she is learning about them. It’s pretty amazing to see her remember and be able to divulge all the details she just read.

Books she’s reading:

Junie B. Jones

She has every Junie B. Jones book. We got her the first set last year for Christmas and the second set this year for Christmas. These are easy reads for her that bring the humor only Junie B. can bring! She can read a Junie book in one day, so she’s definitely grown out of them with her reading level, but she still loves the stories, and having an easy read is always nice.

Ranger in Time

Taking after her mom in historical fiction, she loves these books. She told me the other day, “I love how it ended because Ranger reunited (the mom) with her kids.” Hearing her be into the storyline and want to tell others about it is fun.

The Animal Book by Smithsonian

She is learning a lot from this book; the pictures are amazing. This is an amazing book to look through, let alone read, to learn about a certain animal. It is a great nonfiction choice for ages 3-8. The text is for older kids, but there isn’t much text compared to all the pictures so that younger kids can enjoy this and a picture book.

We are also working through The Chronicles of Narnia this year as a read-aloud to Quinn at night around the fire with some tea or hot cocoa. We started doing read-aloud last year with her, and it’s been such a sweet time we get to spend as a family instead of watching TV. Currently, we are on The Horse and His Boy, which has started out slow, but we are working through it. Each book has about 15 chapters, and we read one chapter, sometimes two when we sit down to read the book. I was thinking the other day about how quickly we could get through this book if we read one chapter a night. It would only take two weeks! This made me want to read it even more and be more intentional with getting back into the habit of reading aloud before she goes to bed.