May books

The total for May was 11 books and 5 magazines finished, and 1 book abandoned.
(That makes a total of 95 books, 29 magazines finished, and 5 books abandoned this year so far.)

A Paradise Called Texas

Willow Creek Home

Spirit of Iron

by Janice Jordan Shefelman

This trilogy of books tells the tale of a German family who emigrated to Texas in the 1840s.  It is historical fiction based on the life of the daughter of the author's great-grandfather.  Excellent stories, especially for those familiar with the Texas areas of New Braunfels and Fredricksburg.  We'll be using these as read-alouds when we study Texas history next school year.

Comanche Song

by Janice Jordan Shefelman

This book tells the story of interactions between Comanches and Tejanos in Texas in 1840, from the perspective of a 16 year old Comanche boy.  I abandoned it in the middle of the 6th chapter because it was too graphic in the description of a battle.  Realistic, but too much gory detail for me.

Inferno in Tokyo

by Marianne Hering

This is the 20th book in the Imagination Station series.  Cousins Patrick and Beth continue their adventures through time and history with a visit to Tokyo during the 1923 earthquake and tsunami.  My kids love these books and have learned a lot of about various historical events through this series.

Madman in Manhattan

by Mariane Hering

Book 21 in the Imagination Station series.  Still in 1923, Patrick and Beth learn about Nikola Tesla and his frustrated life as an inventor competing with Thomas Edison.

Freedom at the Falls

by Marianne Hering

Book 22 in the Imagination Station Series.  This time Patrick and Beth meet Mr. Lincoln on his inaugural train and help a runaway slave in the process.

However Imperfectly

by Andrew Pudewa

This is a collection of articles and essays by Andrew Pudewa, founder of Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW).  He is an engaging writer and speaker.  The articles are mostly about teaching writing, but also touch on music (he was a violin teacher before becoming a writing teacher), homeschooling, motivating students, and education in general.  Excellent book!  Highly recommended, especially to anyone who is homeschooling.

Last Child in the Woods

by Richard Louv

I think this book can be summed up in this quote from the introduction: "...a growing body of research links our mental, physical, and spiritual health directly to our association with nature -- in positive ways...As one scientist puts it, we can now assume that just as children need good nutrition and adequate sleep, they may very well need contact with nature."  

He explains the benefits that interaction with nature provides for adults and children alike.  He emphasizes that children need to have opportunities for unstructured play in natural areas. (In other words, organized sports and man-made play structures are not enough.)  He discusses some of the current barriers that discourage that interaction, such as electronics, neighborhood and city design that favors man-made structures over natural areas, fear (of crime, injury, lawsuits), busyness, restrictive homeowners covenants, etc.  He proposes ideas for how to overcome those barriers in order to provide children with more opportunities for unstructured play in nature.  He starts with what parents and families can do, and goes on to suggests changes that communities, businesses, lawyers, schools, and governments can make to encourage, preserve, and protect the child-nature bond.

I found the first 15 chapters and the first part of the "field guide" at the end to be the most useful parts of the book. Chapters 16-23 were a bit harder to slog through as they seemed a little less personally relevant to me.  He approaches the topic from an evolutionary viewpoint, while I would make some of the same points from a Biblical worldview.  With that caveat, I would recommend this book for thoughtful discussion.

One point that stood out to me was the importance of exploring and getting to know the areas of nature that are nearby on a regular basis, not just far-way places on once-in-while or once-in-lifetime trips.

Personal reflection: I remember my own elementary school years (from age 6-11) when my family lived in a town surrounded by forest and wilderness.  I remember spending hours and hours and hours roaming the woods near our homes : climbing trees, picking wild blueberries, building forts, and just exploring.  I had no fear of injuries, ticks, snakes, or crime.  I also immersed myself in books that depicted both the beauty and harshness of the wilderness and its animals, thanks in part to my mom's choice of read-aloud books that got me started.  I wish I could give my children the same freedom to roam and explore that my parents gave me, but sadly, these are different times.

However, there are some things I can do for my kids (many that I've already been doing):

• Let them build forts in the backyard (even if it doesn't look pretty)
• Let them dig holes in the backyard
• Let them get dirty and muddy
• Let them climb trees (even if they tear their clothes)
• Let them participate in the planting and harvesting of the backyard garden
• Let them build and maintain bird and squirrel feeders
• Learn with them to identify plants, birds, and animals
• Let them explore a little more freely at our neighborhood park and pond
• Take them more often to parks built along a major creek near our home
• Continue to frequent a nature preserve 30 minutes away and learn from the friendly and helpful staff
• Be a little more adventurous in our family camping trips
• Continue to severely limit their screen time
• Kick them outside when the weather permits
• Continue to provide wholesome books that provoke an appreciation for God's creation 
• and more...

And for myself...

• Even before I started reading this book, I began a habit of sitting out on my back porch each morning to read, pray, and journal before joining the family for the tasks of the day.  I've found it calming and refreshing to watch the birds, squirrels, and bees; listen to the birds and the wind; watch the clouds and the changing light as the sun rises; feeding on God's words and responding to him in song and prayer.  My attitude and peace just aren't the same on days when I have to skip this time.  It may be a challenge to continue this outdoors as we move into the heat of a Texas summer and some unwelcome wildlife (i.e. mosquitos) proliferate. :-)

UPDATE 6/30/2019  You can listen to Andrew Pudewa give a talk about this book and this topic at this link here.

Troubled Minds

by Amy Simpson

Through relating stories of her own experiences with her mom's mental illness and through the stories of others, the author discusses how prevalent mental illness is (defined as "medical conditions that disrupt a person's thinking, feeling, mood, ability to relate to others, and daily functioning, often resulting in a diminished capacity for coping with the ordinary demands of life").  She discusses how mental illness is stigmatized, especially in the church and offers suggestions on how people in the church can walk alongside and support those suffering with mental illness (their own or someone else's).  A difficult topic, but written in an engaging manner.  I read it through quickly the first time, but there is a lot to digest, so I'm going back through more slowly with pen and journal in hand.

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch

by Jean Lee Latham

Historical fiction about Nathaniel Bowditch, who grew up during the Revolutionary War and came of age just after.  He was a bright boy, especially when it came to mathematics.  But family circumstances prevented him from getting much formal education.  However, he studied much on his own during his 9 year apprenticeship as a bookkeeper.  Even though he was too small to be a sailor like his father and brothers, he ended up going to sea as a navigator.  He made many improvements in the art of navigation at sea.  To him, everything was a "simple matter of mathematics."  He does suffer the loss of many people he loved, and that might turn off some people from the book.  But this was an EXCELLENT book, well worth the Newberry Award it received in 1956.  The audio version by Jim Weiss was excellent as well.  The whole family enjoyed it.

Charlatan's Boy 

by Jonathan Rogers

If you liked the Wilderking Trilogy, you'll enjoy this additional adventure set in the land of Corenwald.  Grady is a boy growing up with a huckster known as Floyd.  Grady has no idea who his parents are or how he ended up with Floyd.  Floyd has told him many different stories, but he's not known for his truthfulness, so Grady doesn't know what to believe.  He doesn't quite like the charlatan's life -- lying and tricking people-- but he doesn't know any other life.  He sometimes longs to settle down someplace and really belong. In the end, he finds out the truth about who he really is, and it couldn't be more beautiful!  Highly recommended!

And finally, I managed to make it through 5 magazines...