Salon.com > Building a Bookworm

Great audiobooks for your kids

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:58:00 +0000

As a child, I always wanted to read in the car during long road trips. But somehow reading in the back seat of our wood-paneled Aspen station wagon usually left me dizzy and heaving on the side of a highway. Plus my mother said it was bad for my eyes (that part might have been right, judging from my contact lens prescription).

My own children are blessed with a built-in DVD player in our minivan. But a parent can only take so many animated features during a long car ride -- and so much whining and poking of little brothers. And what if we have to drive Dad's (more, err, "rustic") vehicle?

That's where audiobooks comes in. OK, they're technically not reading, but it is listening to literature read aloud -- verbatim -- by people who can do the voices much better than Mom or Dad, and they lack the noisy sound effects and soundtracks of most kids entertainment. Plus, there's usually a good supply of high-quality stories available at your public library.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Best fantasy books for children

Mon, 21 Jun 2010 15:40:00 +0000

I confess: I have no children, and yet I read children's books. Sometimes I simply don't have the mental energy to crack open a serious adult book (think "The Wind-up Bird Chronicle," by Haruki Murakami, or "Truth," by Simon Blackburn) or even a piece of light fiction (think Carl Hiaasen or James Hynes). Instead, I'll turn to some old favorites from my childhood, along with a few newer ones that have joined the ranks in recent years. Because my tastes ran to science fiction and fantasy when I was young, these recommendations all share that flavor.

I've always been a fan of Roald Dahl, for both his children's books and his adult offerings. "The BFG" is one of his most charming books for children. The BFG (for Big Friendly Giant) is a giant who kidnaps a little orphan, Sophie, and takes her off to his cave. The BFG turns out not to be a bad sort, however -- in part because he doesn't share with his monstrous giant brothers "a most squackling whoppsy appetite" for eating children -- and teams up with Sophie (and the Queen of England) to do battle against those evil brothers of his: Bloodbottler, Bonecruncher, Childchewer, Fleshlumpeater, Gizzardgulper, Maidmasher, Manhugger, Meatdripper, and Butcher Boy. The BFG's creative use of language is the best part of the book, though Blake Quentin's illustrations make a close second.

10 great “grownup” books for kids

Wed, 16 Jun 2010 14:55:00 +0000

The idea makes sense: If you want to raise a kid with broad horizons and good writing skills, encourage said kid to read books that offer diverse perspectives, explore deeper themes, and resonate with excellent prose. This might mean sometimes encouraging your kid to read books intended for adults. And suddenly the idea sounds scary.

As a writing teacher, I ran into the same problem time and time again: I'd find the "perfect" book to assign to my students (ages 10-12): a short novel with accessible yet brilliant writing and apparently appropriate themes, only to discover a steamy sex scene halfway through my preview reading.

Many kids are ready and willing to read books intended for adults, but selecting books with both kid-friendly style and content can be time consuming. Here are the results I've compiled through a process of trial and error. I decided not to include authors who are generally accepted as appropriate for young readers (J. R. R. Tolkien, Sir Arthur Conant Doyle, Jules Verne).

"Animal Farm" by George Orwell

Age range: Middle grades to young adult

Your kids’ globally aware reading list

Sat, 12 Jun 2010 00:20:00 +0000

Are your kids bored? Are you tired of their obsession with Hannah Montana and Disney princesses? Here's a list of books that will open their minds and imaginations to the rest of the world -- and help them better understand their own.

How Do People Live Around the World?

1. "Material World" by Peter Menzel and Charles C. Mann, all ages

This beautiful book of photographs and cultural anthropology is a fascinating exploration of how families live around the world. In 1994, the U.N.-sponsored International Year of the Family, photojournalist Peter Menzel conceived of this project to capture the lives of typical families in 30 nations across the globe. In each vignette, he and his collaborators photographed families posing in front of their homes and literally alongside all their world possessions. The photographers spent a week living with a "statistically average" family in each country and interviewed them about their lives, their work and their attitudes toward their possessions. The stark visual contrast between the portrait of the average family in Texas with their multiple televisions versus the family living in a dirt house in Mali is enlightening and thought-provoking. Sometimes a picture truly can say a thousand words. The book also includes statistics on numbers of toilets and televisions, and GDP to further illuminate the disparities.

Your sons’ summer vacation reading list

Thu, 03 Jun 2010 13:03:00 +0000

Last week, we hoped to spark conversation -- and further suggestions -- with a list of five amazing books to hand daughters this summer. We’re not leaving the boys behind. Here is our list of five great books for boys of all ages (books that will also, of course, appeal to girls, too). If your (or your kid’s) favorite book has been left off this list -- John D. Fitzgerald’s "The Great Brain"? Norton Juster’s "The Phantom Tollbooth"? The Lemony Snicket books? Or, for the sports-minded child, Dan Gutman’s Baseball Card Adventure Series, or Kadir Nelson’s remarkable "We Are the Ship"? -- blog about it on Open Salon: Just make sure to tag your post "Building a bookworm," and we'll cross-post the best ones onto Salon itself.

Your kids’ socially conscious summer reading list

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:35:00 +0000

If you’re looking for summer reads that will give your child entertainment with a side of social awareness, take a gander at these books that offer nuanced takes on important issues.

Immigration

1. Cynthia DeFelice's "Under the Same Sky" (for ages 10 and up)

While working on his father’s farm, Joe learns about the prejudice and hardship that immigrant Mexican workers face. He discovers that some of the laborers are illegal, but also that many of the immigration laws are flawed. When he sees his deeply principled parents bending the rules for them, he starts to realize that sometimes people have to negotiate their own terms of justice.

DeFelice teaches her reader that the inequalities in labor and wealth distribution are almost impossible to remedy as long as the societal structures support them; and that, ultimately, when the standard ones fall short, people have to live by their own laws.

Racism and Apartheid

Your daughters’ summer vacation reading list

Thu, 27 May 2010 13:01:00 +0000

Memorial Day is just around the corner, and school is nearly out. Even if you've planned a full summer of activities for your kids -- camps, trips, days at the beach -- there may come a moment when they look at you, bored and beseeching, wondering how to fill those long, hot days. What then?

Hand them a book. A really good book. To help you out, we've put together two lists of great books for kids, one tailored especially for girls, one curated with boys in mind, though of course all the books on these lists may be enjoyed by kids of either gender. This week we'll start off with especially engaging reads for girls of all ages (the boys list will appear next Thursday):

"Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse" by Kevin Henkes (Ages 4-8)