Reading Fun

My mom read all the time to my brother and I as kids. Such warm memories when I look back on the number of books she patiently and lovingly narrated.

I’ve enjoyed doing the same with Liam, as we’ve progressed from picture books, to children’s books, to chapter books. When Liam was younger, he would often want to read the same book over and over. Now, we re-read the same book less but we enjoy finding an author and doing a deep dive. And occasionally, he’ll still request the 101th reading of a book he read 100 times before.

It’s special to read books that I enjoyed as a kid and to see that they still hold up and capture the attention of a child. Books like “The Boxcar Children” series, “Danny, The Champion of the World” and Judy Blume’s “Fudge Series all come to mind among others.

I remember how much I liked checking out books from the school library in elementary school and it’s exciting to share in Liam’s excitement when he comes home with a stack of books.

As Liam’s reading progresses, he’s getting into the act himself. I will read most pages of a chapter but I will ask him to read a page or two. It’s exciting to watch him go from sounding out the words a year ago to now pronouncing most of the words correctly and even doing a bit of the acting and voices on occasion.

I’ve noted that when we read a book together, our contributions are the inverse correlation of jigsaw puzzles. Liam finds about 80 percent of the pieces and I would say that’s about what percentage of the reading I do.

We also enjoy audio books, particularly in the car but lately at home as well. I’ve never liked audio books for myself, but it’s fun to see how into the narration and acting Liam gets.

This is another example of something you may not enjoy yourself but do through the eyes and ears of a child.

All right Liam, what should we read and listen to next?

Whatever you choose, I’m looking forward to it.