“Then shall we carelessly allow the children to hear any old stories…?”
Plato, Republic
Summer is a time for stories. There is a great tradition of taking stories seriously, even, and sometimes especially, ‘non-serious’ or leisure reading. Stories are food for the soul, for young and old alike. They should nourish.
Age-appropriate reading can be part of the summer plan for every member of the family. Yet there is something magical and irreplaceable about reading together as a whole family. How many of us have indelible memories of stories read-aloud as a family? It can, however, be challenging to find a story that will hold everyone’s attention. A piece published yesterday by my friend William Fahey reminds us of one such classic for the whole family, as well as a couple of good reads for mature readers.
As we, and especially our children, can find ourselves drawn in by the ease and glitz of video entertainment, we will need to exercise discipline and make an intentional effort here. I hereby resolve to read-aloud (again) this summer the book Fahey recommends, to anyone in the house who will listen.
Images: George Dunlop Leslie’s Alice in Wonderland; and N.C. Wyeth’s illustration of Treasure Island.
Orginally posted at Bacon from Acorns
