The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller is a helpful book for educators and parents to gain ideas on how to help children embrace and love free reading time. The emphasis is on letting children choose their books while providing guidance as experts in children’s literature. Our goal is

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Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy is an inspiration inspirational book for anybody needing the motivation to put off procrastination and become more efficient in using their time, their energy, and their talents to improve their career or their life as a whole. I read Eat That Frog initially as inspiration for me and my small

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Tomorrowland by Steven Kotler (New Harvest, May 2015) is a collection of previously published essays about the new frontiers available in science. The subtitle suggests that the text provides examples of how science fiction has become “science fact.” I am not a scientist, so as I read, I found myself impressed with where humankind has

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I Am Malala by Malala Yousafsai (Little, Brown and Company, 2013) is a powerful story of a girl’s courage to stand up against wrong and demand an education in the Taliban-controlled regions of Pakistan. The work done by Malala, who still is a teenager, is so remarkable that she became the youngest receipt of the Nobel Peace

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The Giant Book of Creativity for Kids by Bobbi Conner (Roost Books, March 2015) is just packed full of creative ideas for engaging our kids of all ages in fun and educational activities. In more than 400 pages, Ms Connor shares insights for incorporating crafts, music, movement, drawing, pretending, building, and more into the daily

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Stuffocation by James Wallman (Spiegel and Wrau, March 2015) is an interesting analysis of the problem with materialism and a discussion of how seeking out experiences is more rewarding and fulfilling than buying things. I certainly appreciated the analysis of the problems of materialism (many of which I feel on a daily basis!) and I

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At first, I thought Teaching Kids to Think by Darlene Sweetland and Ron Stolberg (Sourcebooks, March 2015) had a deceptive title. I had thought it would be  about helping kids learn and logic through academics. Rather, Teaching Kids to Think is focused on helping parents raise children that think through the basics of everyday survival and life, emphasizing

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Dragonfiles by Pieter van Dokkum (Yale University Press, March 2015) is a gorgeous coffee table book about dragonflies. I admit, that, since I am not a scientific person, I wondered about this book. I have never once thought about dragonflies nor wondered how they develop, live, and eat. However, the gorgeous image on the cover

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The Mormon Tabernacle Choir by Michael Hicks (University of Illinois Press, March 2015) is a biography of the choir itself. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I’ve grown up with the choir: songs during the biannual general conferences, recordings in my home. Because of my background, I was interested

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The Sound of Music Story by Tom Santopietro (St. Martin’s Press, 2015) is a celebration and explanation of how a story about a “beguiling” novice becoming the stepmother to singing children became (or inspired), as the book claims “the most beloved film of all time.” It takes a true fan of The Sound of Music

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The American Plate by Libby O’Connell (Sourcebooks, December 2014) captures the essence of American cooking throughout by highlighting dishes that were essential or popular throughout history. It is truly American history meets foodie, and I love the end result. Beginning with the “Three Sisters” (Maize, beans, and squash), Ms O’Connell then explores the other sometimes unique

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I read How We Learn by Benedict Carey (Random House, September 2014) at much the same time as I read Born Reading, so I found the correlation between the two quite interesting. Both books were written for very different and unique reasons and for different audiences. But, since I’m a homeschooling mom, I found that

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