~Bona Vita~

Our children have not been given the opportunity to read much in the way of pop literature.  They have missed out on ”The Babysitter Club”,  “The Saddle Club”,  and even the “Harry Potter” collection.  They rarely read Christian pop-literature such as “The Mandie Series”,  Janette Oke’s ”Women of the West”,  and Tim LaHaye’s ”Left Behind: The Kids” series.

It’s not that I have anything against J.K. Rowling.  On the contrary,  I’m rather impressed at her ability to entertain the masses and make millions out of it!  Our children have not missed Tim LaHaye’s children’s series simply because we don’t agree with his theology. Rather, our choice of children’s literature is primarily a result of time management.  Children have enormous selections of fabulous literature to wade through.  There simply isn’t enough time to spend on large amounts of pop literature.

Every year I create reading lists for my children.  These lists include the literature I think they need for their particular reading level.  These lists are substantial.  I do leave room in my children’s lives for what I call “reading candy”.  This includes literature that is fun and quick to read.  I utilize the “candy” as a reward for making progress on their general reading list.

Selections from my “candy” list include but are not limited to Beverly Clearly’s works, The Boxcar Children series, Encyclopedia Brown, The Redwall series, and the original Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series.  Another fabulous series that we have all enjoyed as “candy” throughout the years is Maude Hart-Lovelace’s ”Betsy, Tacy and Tib” books.

Here is an example of my method.  After my 7th grader  read “Carry On, Mr. Bowditch”, “Johnny Tremain”, and “The Witch of Blackbird Pond”, he was given the opportunity to choose something fun and easier to read.  In this case, it probably was “Henry Reed, Inc.” for the fourth time!

We all consider what our children eat and how it nourishes their bodies.  How much more should we consider what nourishes their minds?   Take time to select reading material for your children.  There are numerous sources of classical and modern reading lists.  Your local librarian is a great consultant.  Veritas Press is a terrific source for grade appropriate book lists.  Jim Trelease’s “The Read-Aloud Handbook” is full of ideas.  “The Book Tree: A Christian Reference for Children’s Literature” by Elizabeth McCallum and Jane Scott is another favorite source.

“…Whatever is is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.” -Philippians 4:8