Summer reading list

I worked very hard on finishing a pile of books I planned to read over the summer. Got through some, gave up on some, read parts of some, and still reading some. As usually not many fun books, but mostly educational. Here is some of what I read.

Free-Range Kids, How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry)   I didn't realize how over protected parents can be until I read this book. I was really surprised on how misinformed we are as parents on the safety concerns for our children (thank you media!). I am not one of the "extreme" cases that was mentioned in the book, but I am not as "free-range" as I should be with my boys. I did disagree with some things said in the book, but overall I am glad I read this and recommend it (some of you more than others and you know who  you are!)    ; )

I wanted to try my hand (or brain) at some Jane Austin. This is one I am still reading. Boy, this was a challenge! I felt like I was reading a foreign language. I gave up on Sense and Sensibility because I couldn't keep all the characters straight and I felt like it was going no where really slow. I found Emma on Netflix and watched it and loved it! I started reading this book and I'm enjoying it tremendously. It is going much better since I know all the characters and have a mental picture of scenes when the language is hard to "translate". 


Kids, Parents, and Power Struggles: Winning for a Lifetime has been one of my top reads for the summer. I learned so much about my kids and this should be a great help with parenting. I learned more about myself and husband too. This book explained a lot. Be sure to put it on your reading list!

Educating the WholeHearted Child is a book that has been on my wishlist for a while. I have read many good reviews of this book. My local library purchased this book after I requested it. I got to be the lucky first reader! But, I was disappointed! I put it aside and skipped forward and put it aside again, but I just couldn't get into the mood of this book. Hopefully some local homeschoolers will enjoy checking this out from the library. It just wasn't for me.

Little Britches by Ralph Moody  was a wonderful read! I was laughing, worried, and crying throughout the book. I assigned this for reading to Caleb. He didn't get too far before it had to go back to the library. I am putting it on our Christmas wishlist and plan to read them for read aloud.

Well, that is all I have to share about books today.  : )