Reading to Kids

Treasure Island

weegee — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:10:21 +0000

Robert Ingpen illustrated this edition of Stevenson’s original text. We’ve been reading this over the past couple of nights and it is an ideal bedtime story. Each scene and character tingles with suspense, from the mysterious, scarred and paranoid captain who appears one day at the Admiral Benbow Inn to the compassionate, fatherly Dr. Livesey with whom young Jim Hawkins embarks upon the adventure of a lifetime. And it’s an adventure that still resonates in the imaginations of young boys. After all, it’s not the bags of coins which the captain leaves behind in his chest that propels this story; it’s the mysterious notebook and map which point to far richer and more dangerous treasures hidden in a faraway place. My son, who is eight, and I take turns reading the short, thrilling chapters. He understands it all, although when I read, I do improvise some word substitutions to make the narrative a smidgen more contemporary to the ear – both his and mine.

“Hugo Cabret” Wrap-Up

weegee — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 19:32:26 +0000

I’d arranged for our three participants to each focus on an aspect of the book:

J: The art.
M: The narrative.
T: The characters.

The assignments were made to their individual strengths. J,who is artistic, explained that Selznick’s materials consisted of pencil and charcoal and that he favored a crosshatching technique. Indeed, Selznick’s proficiency in this technique is one of his hallmarks: He is able to create great detail using a pencil, cross-hatches and values (which relate to thickness and darkness of line and are controlled by a combination of pressure, angle and hardness of the graphite).

M selected the opening sequence of illustrations to explain how Selznick created narrative out of wordless pictures — the emotion created by Hugo’s bounding through a train station during morning rush hour, distinguished from the crowd by a highlighted glow, lack of luggage, hat or overcoat, and furtive, over-the-shoulder glances. T added that he is also moving in the opposite direction of the crowd. Details in the drawings such as train smoke, long hallways, holes in Hugo’s shoes — all of these contribute to the telling of the story.

T discussed characters and challenged the others to tell her who the three main characters are. The obvious choices are Hugo, George and Isabelle. But T says that Hugo’s father, even though he has died before the story begins, is a major character because he motivates the main character. Great point!

No art and crafts activity yesterday: They were engrossed in the discussion itself and our book club went on for ninety minutes.

Wonderstruck

weegee — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 00:52:38 +0000

Brian Selznick’s new book. Just bought it for my son. Hope to have more information by the weekend, but based on the reviews and description, Mr. Selznick has authored another compelling and innovative story. He is staking his claim as a unique sort of graphic novelist whose technique and visual vocabulary are highly cinematic.

Next Book Club: “The Invention of Hugo Cabret”

weegee — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 23:33:26 +0000

We were in a bookstore earlier today and a woman asked us if we knew where there was a copy of “Hugo Cabret“. When we pointed to it, she remarked, “There’s no way I’m getting that for my daughter.” It’s a big book. In terms of physical dimensions, I mean. And she was clearly put off by the size of it. We explained that the book was comprised of 300 pages of illustrations and around 200 pages of minimal text. In fact, my son read it in two days. He loved it. So did the other two children who will participate in this month’s book club. Since the participants are now eight years old, I’ve decided to pass the mantle of leading the discussion to them. There will be three leaders, one of whom will discuss the art, one of whom will discuss the story and one of whom will discuss the characters.

Tin Tin

weegee — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:54:27 +0000

We went to the library last weekend for a children’s gardening event. A lovely and enthusiastic master gardener named Emi taught the kids how to plant radishes and carrots, which we now have growing on the patio in small egg containers (soon to be placed into soil boxes). This was a local library in an adjacent neighborhood and my son wanted to find a book that he could read between the larger volumes he is reading (currently, the larger volume is the second in the Mysterious Benedict Society series). He selected a volume of Tin Tin stories and was instantly absorbed in the stories of the adventurous young spy and his dog. Blazed through Volume I in an afternoon. With the film version coming out this Christmas, except Tin Tin to land on your children’s radar, and guiding them to the books will prove a worthwhile complement to the film experience.

Next Book Club: Mr. Popper’s Penguins

weegee — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 00:45:51 +0000

We actually selected this book before we realized it was being released as a summer film starring Jim Carrey. Otherwise, we would have chosen it despite it being released. Heh heh. I haven’t yet read it, so I’d better get moving. We’re going to have one or two new members join us on Sunday, so we’re excited about that. In the meantime, I’ve found some good resources online for discussion. Usually, we do an art project relating to the book. However, this time, I think we will do something related to science — either penguin biology, or climatology or geography.

“Half Magic” by Edward Eager

weegee — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 21:18:40 +0000

It’s a pleasant surprise when a chain bookseller associate is a fellow reader and able to converse intelligently about the volumes in his or her section. I’ve had several good experiences at the Barnes and Noble in the Westside Pavilion, including a generous manager who allowed us, on a recent visit, to exchange a gifted copy of one of the “Wimpy Kid” books for another book, though we had no receipt in hand. The associate in the children’s section steered my son toward several prospects and after great deliberation, he selected this book. It’s about four siblings who are often on their own, as their mother works full time and they are under the supervision of an indifferent nanny. One day, they discover a magic coin and through trial and error discover that it fulfills half the wish made by the person who is in physical custody of it at any particular moment. Like a manual shift automobile, it takes the children some time to gain control of the coin, and in the process, they find themselves in a series of adventures and coping with funny, mildly suspenseful and often unintended consequences. The magical coin takes them to the Sahara and to King Arthur’s court among other places. The emotional thread that runs through this tale involves Jane, the eldest sibling, coming to terms with the death of her father. She alone among the siblings has a memory of him and when her mother is met with the possibility of matrimony anew, it is Jane who must open her heart to what initially feels like a betrayal of her father. But this thread is textually a light one — it is the subtext which is so effective leading to a fulfilling reading experience for both you and your child. By the way, the writing craft here is wonderful. The author was a playwright as well as a children’s novelist and his literary skills is an added treat. While I’m not familiar with his other works, there are several other books listed in the frontispiece and some appear, from the title alone, to be related to this particular volume. Enjoy reading, “Half Magic.”

Einstein’s Dreams

weegee — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 22:57:14 +0000

One of the sure fire ways to get a child interested in a book is to tell him its story, verbally, while driving somewhere in the car, or out for a walk. Children are curious, so they’ll be inclined to want to explore the story in more detail and will be excited about the prospect of reading the entire story along with you. You don’t have to fake being interested in the story — choose a story you yourself are interested in and they will pick up on your enthusiasm.

A surprising example involves the above-named title which is hardly a children’s book, although it’s theme would capture the imagination of any young child. In “Einstein’s Dreams,” the iconic genius is portrayed in young adulthood, when he had worked as a patent clerk. His dreams involve all sorts of fantastical permutations of time, each conveyed in short stories and chapters. A man lives simultaneously in three worlds, each yielding a different ending to his romantic life; a woman is transported into the distant past where she is terrified of impacting anything which might irrevocably alter the future. Time travel? Sure, my seven-year-old son is all-in, and now we’re tearing through this poetic and educational book.

“Millions of Cats,” by Wanda Gág

weegee — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 20:58:56 +0000

Newbery Medal Winner, in print since 1928

The very best books for very young readers contain the following elements: Captivating and distinctive artwork; a clever narrative which focuses on a strong and basic emotion (delight, loneliness, longing); characters to whom a child can relate (children, old people, animals, fantasy figures); a syntax that is in its way rhythmic; and finally, beneath the surface, a dark element. “Millions of Cats,” encompasses all of these elements. As a result, it has endured for nearly a century and is one of the few (perhaps only) picture book to have been awarded the Newbery Medal, which is usually reserved for chapter books. This book tells the story of an elderly, childless couple who live in a small cottage in the country. The man heads to the countryside looking for a kitten to adopt as a pet. He finds a hill filled with, “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats,” and, having a difficult time choosing, takes them all home where, in a contest for the couple’s affection, they battle, and ultimately devour each other. All but one cat, the ugliest of the lot, whom the couple take in, groom and nourish to health and beauty. The pictures were composed through intricate etchings; the lettering is handwritten by the author.

How to Talk to Children About Art

weegee — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 19:09:42 +0000

Wonderful art book for kids -- and their parents.

I just added the $18 cost of this to my budget program’s “outflow” column. But it occurred to me, as I was entering the information, that the “inflow” is of much greater non-monetary value that the cost of the book. My son is very enthusiastic and excited about this book — he’s been carrying it with him everywhere to share with his friends. The kicker, though, is how much I’m learning from it as well. It seems like there should be a name for children’s books that have equal value to parents — let’s coin one: Not right now, though.

Rather than describe that parent-appreciation aspect of this book I’m now on, I’m going to quote from this enlightening reader review over at Amazon which precisely captures my own feelings:

‘I don’t know much about art, had no art appreciation classes in school. So when I would go to art museums, I never really got it. I was one of those who thought, “what’s so great about that, my 4-year-old daughter could have painted it”. I have tried to read college level art appreciation books, but found them so boring, I couldn’t stay awake. I bought this for my daughter but I, myself, have gotten much more out of it. A children’s book about art was the perfect pace for me, it taught me on the level I needed, the very basics. This book has completely changed how I look at art and now I love to go to museums. I have given several copies to family and friends. Now I look at art books with my daughter all the time. She loves museums.’