Recommended Book List

Welcome to the Wylie's recommended booklist!  This project started after my husband, Scott Wylie, and I spoke to Colonial's MOPS groups in October 2007.  Our assigned theme was the "family room" and we spent a good deal of time talking about BOOKS and reading aloud as a family.  This is not something that either of us grew up with, but we are so very grateful for the influence and encouragement of others to make "reading time" an integral part of our family's life.  The rewards are great!  So, with that said, the very first thing I recommend is that you get a copy of the book Honey for a Child's Heart, currently in its 4th printing, by Gladys Hunt.  Gladys Hunt will explain to you, much more eloquently than I can, what some of those great rewards are.  Read all of Part One, including the foreward and introduction, and I guarantee you will be inspired, motivated and excited about the possibilities!  If both spouses will read it, or one listen while the other reads parts of it aloud, all the better.  But whoever reads it will be eager to get started.  In Part Two, Hunt will give you a substantial, user-friendly, annotated booklist.  You'll be armed with dozens of good titles, authors and illustrators to look up when you visit the library.  In addition to Hunt's recommendations, I humbly, but enthusiastically offer our own!

Our Booklist:

Our booklist will be presented in stages, so please check back for updates and additions.  This first installment will cover upcoming holidays, namely Thanksgiving and Christmas.  While I am starting with books that are appropriate for the younger crowd, don't assume that your older children or you and your spouse will be bored.  I think you will quickly dispel that notion, particularly if you read Stories of the Pilgrims by Margaret Pumphrey.  In fact, that would be a great one to start right away, as it is a chapter book that can take you through the month of November.  The important thing, beside picking quality books, is to get started!  Don't be overwhelmed, thinking you have to read them all or buy them all this year.  This is a journey that will, Lord willing, last for many, many years.  Take your time and enjoy the scenery.

Accessing the books:

Go to the library!!!  Please, if at all possible, don't buy a book I recommend unless you read it and know it's one you want to own.  Most, but not all, of the books on this list are going to be available at Colonial's library or your public library, or both.  Start there.  It is such a blessing to have access to libraries and Colonial is privileged to have such a fine library and library staff!  Here is some information about the libraries, plus a few other ideas for accessing books:

• Colonial's library: Patrons do not have to attend the church; Sunday, Wed. evening, and Thurs. hours; search, reserve & renew online; seasonal section in the children's area.  (Colonial's new, spacious library is on the first floor of the Children's Center.)
• Wake County libraries: Books in the system can be requested online and sent to the library of your choice.  Books can be renewed up to nine times if they are not requested by someone else.
• If neither Colonial nor Wake County has the book, then request an inter-library loan at your public library.  (This can be done online, but you may need a librarian to walk you through it the first couple of times.)  This usually takes some time and they may not be able to get the book for you, but it's worth a try.
• Check with area bookstores.  Lifeway, Barnes & Noble, Borders and others may be able to order a book for you to look at if they don't have it in stock.  There is no obligation to buy, but you can preview the book to see if you want to purchase it or not.
• Check with used bookstores in the area. 
• Ask any "book people" you know who might have the book to loan you.
• Go online to see if you can locate it, read reviews and decide if you want to purchase it sight unseen.  In most cases you should be able to return the book if you decide you don't want it, but you would be out the shipping costs for both ways.  You could donate the book instead.  (Keep in mind that donations to libraries may not make it on their shelves.   But, at Colonial, I think you can find out and even opt to pick up any books they are not going to use.)
• Share the cost and the book with a friend!
• Start a book "wishlist" to take with you to garage sales, thrift shops, library book sales, etc.   Give book titles to grandparents and others who want gift suggestions.  Purchase books for your children and spouse for those gift-giving occasions.  Our experience has been that, as books become a valued part of family life, books become valued gifts, even to the children.  We have even given used books to our boys (at Christmas, no less!) and they didn't mind a bit.  If the used book happened to be an out-of-print book they really liked (having previously borrowed it from a friend), then they knew they had received a true treasure!
  Here are some web sites to check for new and used books:
  amazon.com  (This is the one I am most familiar with.  Amazon offers free shipping on qualified orders of $25- or more.  You can often find great deals on used books from third-party sellers on Amazon.  But, you will have to pay shipping on those.)
  A "bookperson" friend offers these suggestions:  "The websites I use most often to buy books are amazon marketplace,
  half.com, and alibris.com. I have also heard of abebooks but I haven't used them personally. I generally write the seller first and ask if the book is from a non-smoking home, if there is any writing inside or damage to the binding/cracking of the spine, or any rubbing on the edges. I've had good experiences with all those sites."

In my booklist, I sometimes give an additional web site for where to purchase a book.  Occasionally I'll state that a book is available from Amazon, but it's probably at several other sites as well.  Or I'll mention that a book is at Colonial's library or at the public library.  But the libraries are always a good place to start, regardless of whether I mention the library for a specific book or not. 
ONE FINAL NOTE about getting books:  Please check back with Colonial's library from time to time as they are always adding new titles.  They often purchase patrons' suggestions and I will be suggesting they purchase books from this list which they do not currently own.  I recommend trying to check out books from libraries during the "off-season" when they are more readily available.  Then you can decide if there are one or two that you would like to purchase for that year.  It is nice to have a few of your favorite holiday books on hand.  You cannot always get them when the time comes.  Check with christianbooks.com (CBD) for good prices also.  They generally discount remaining books even further after the holiday.  

Tips for reading aloud as a family:

While it's a lovely picture to imagine our children all gathered around us on the couch listening with rapt attention, that may not be reality!  Young ones, and particularly boys, may need something in their hands to help them pay attention.  Very quietly pushing a little car, working on a LEGO project, doing a puzzle, drawing or knitting are some quiet things children can do to actually help them attend to a longer reading time.  Some families have an art/craft table set up in the family room for just these times.  You can have special "reading only" toys or crafts.  You may be surprised at how well they listen while they do these other activities.  Stop occasionally and ask one to narrate part of the story back to you.  Don't be afraid to at least try books that you may think are beyond your children. They will probably understand more than you expect, plus you are building valuable listening skills, vocabulary, communicating values and truths, all while spending time together as a family!

Read the BIBLE!

In our enthusiasm over such great books, let's not forget to hold up the one and only Book that has the words of eternal life!  If you only have time to read a few minutes with your children each day, then read God's Word!  I'll write more about Bible translations, children's story Bibles, etc., in my next "installment."  But cultivate the habit of feeding on God's Word together, talking about it, and talking to God about what you read!  (Gladys Hunt, in Honey for a Child's Heart, offers excellent suggestions for reading the Bible together as a family.)   Compare everything else you read with Scripture.  For the holidays, read Scripture passages that correspond with what we are observing.  Make sure you and your children know which parts of a Christmas story, for example, are actually in the Bible and which parts are the author's elaborations.   You will be training your children to evaluate everything by God's Holy Word, protecting them from deception, and showing them how the Scriptures speak to every part of our lives.  (Helpful Hint:  Kids love acting out the Bible stories you read and having the parents act it out with them!)

My Disclaimers:

Finally, before we get to the booklist, please do not just go by my word or Gladys Hunt's word (Honey for a Child's Heart) or anyone else's word.  As highly as I recommend Gladys Hunt, there may be issues we disagree on or books from her list I might not want my children to read .  But I consider her book far too valuable to not recommend.   It is always best to preview books before reading them to your children.  Pray about everything!  Allow the Lord to lead you or to stop you.  Keep Philippians 4:8 in mind.  "Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things."
Please e-mail me if you have questions or concerns about something you read from this booklist.  I will do my best to answer you.  loriewylie@gmail.com    Also, I do not mean to slight the excellent illustrators of these books.  To save myself time and work, I have listed only the authors.  But if I specifically refer to the illustrations, then I do include the artists' names.