Have you ever met a serious reader who wasn't read to as a child? Although I'm sure such people exist, I don't recall ever meeting one.
Over my just-finished time away, I asked my traveling companions - all serious readers - which books their parents read to them when they were children. As you might expect, their answers varied widely, although not a single one of them hesitated when answering. In my experience, this is not unusual. The bond built when a parent or other adult reads to a child is indelible. My own memories - both of being read to as a child and reading to my daughter - are among my most beloved. My Mom read most - if not all - of the Bobsey Twins series to me. Among many others, my wife read the first two Harry Potter books to our daughter. I'm certain I read Daddy Makes the Best Spaghetti to her at least one hundred times.
What did your parents read to you? What did you read to your children? I suspect few of you will have any trouble answering those questions and that most of you will enjoy re-living those memories.
Good morning, Pat. Reading to my children when they were young was, and remains, one of the fondest memories in my life. For my daughter - who has become one of the biggest readers that I know - there were so many different things she loved for me to read to her. Everything from the usual stories of course, but so many others. For my son, he absolutely loved the Billy and Blaze series - about a boy and his horse. So much so that his mother and I wound up buying the whole series so that we would always have the one that he wanted us to read ready to go. And now, whenever the opportunity arises, Rose and I love being able to read to our grandsons. It's a cycle that we are so glad to be able to continue.
ReplyDeleteBe well,
Bob
Bob; Thanks for the comment (#3 today). That "cycle" you speak of in your final sentence is a legacy that all parents (and grandparents) would be wise to aspire to.
DeleteReading to children is such a wonderful and bonding experience. My Mom read to us. I remember The Secret Garden but I am sure there were many more. I had a period where I lived with my boyfriend and his brother in the same house. We took turns reading to my daughter. The Narnia series stand out in my memories. And, she is to this day an avid reader. I read Harry Potter to my grandchildren. So as Bob says, the cycle continues!
ReplyDeleteInes; Thanks for the personal comment and sharing the specific book(s) that were read to you and that you've read to your daughter. Our daughter loved "The Secret Garden".
DeleteMy mom read to me often and often sang to me from the old Baptist hymnals. I spent many wonderful bedtime hours reading to Ali. Here is one of our favorite Halloween poems, the Bogeyman by Jack Prelutsky:
ReplyDeleteIn the desolate depths of a perilous place
the bogeyman lurks, with a snarl on his face.
Never dare, never dare to approach his dark lair
for he's waiting . . . just waiting . . . to get you.
He skulks in the shadows, relentless and wild
in his search for a tender, delectable child.
With his steely sharp claws and his slavering jaws
oh he's waiting . . . just waiting . . . to get you.
Many have entered his dreary domain
but not even one has been heard from again.
They no doubt made a feast for the butchering beast
and he's waiting . . . just waiting . . . to get you.
In that sulphurous, sunless and sinister place
he'll crumple your bones in his bogey embrace.
Never never go near if you hold your life dear,
for oh! . . . what he'll do . . . when he gets you!
Kim; Did you quote that whole poem from memory? Either way, thanks for making it part of your comment. I knew this post would speak to you.
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