What I've Been Reading--December

Well, it was a busy month for us with Christmas. Some of our reading time was sacrificed to making crafts, baking, and wrapping presents, but we still managed to squeeze some books in. This is what I read in December:
I read The Tightwad Gazette II by Amy Dacyczyn in bits and pieces over the course of probably two months.  This is a compilation of newsletter articles and letters from readers concerning everything frugality.  I have really been inspired by reading this book to first consider what I have on hand before purchasing something.  For example, I needed more bibs for my super-messy eaters, a.k.a. Matthew and Jonathan.  So, I repurposed some old, worn-out cloth diapers into bibs.  I have also picked up some helpful tips from this book and its predecessor.  One is to hang your clothes on hangers before hanging them on the clothesline to dry to maximize space.  Ingenious.  I especially enjoyed the final article of the book, "Wealth, Poverty, and Frugality."  It is really worth checking thsi book out of the library just for that article.  Since the author has twins, I also feel that I have a special bond although we have never met!

  Justin Morgan Had a Horse is another wonderful book by Marguerite Henry that we enjoyed during read-aloud time.  This is a fictionalized account of the Morgan horse breed.  In this story, a schoolmaster, Justin Morgan, and one of his pupils, Joel Goss, take a long journey to reclaim a debt from Farmer Beane.  Although Farmer Beane does not have the money to repay the debt, he gives schoolmaster Justin Morgan two horses.  Joel falls in love with the little horse at first sight and gentles "Little Bub" who turns out to be a strong and fast workhorse.  Joel never stops loving Little Bub.  Eventually, he is able to purchase Little Bub whose name has been changed to Justin Morgan upon the schoolmaster's passing.  In the end, this spirited horse even served as a mount for President Monroe!  We really enjoyed this book, especially reading the accents!

My friend, Michele, loaned me The Door in the Wall by Marguerite De Angeli.  This story is set in medieval times.  Robin is the son of a nobleman, who has gone off to fight the Scottish wars.  His mother has gone to serve the queen.  The servants have all fallen ill with the plague and have left poor Robin alone, who himself is taken ill and loses the use of his legs.  A monk rescues him and takes him to the monastery where he cares for him physically, spiritually, and emotionally.  Robin fears that, with his lameness, he will never be able to please his father, who expected him to be a knight.  Brother Luke encourages him to find the door in the wall.  In the end, Robin does indeed find the door and, in spite of his inabilities, is able to serve his country and please his father!

One Wintry Night by Ruth Bell Graham is a book that I enjoy reading to the children each Christmas.  What I really like about this book is that it tells the Christmas Story, the story of Jesus' birth, beginning with creation.  The author explains that we needed a Savior because Adam and Eve sinned against God.  The author recounts the history of the Old Testament and God's promise to send His Son to rescue the Israelites.  Moreover, this Christmas story does not end with Jesus' birth but much later with his death and resurrection.  That said, the author does take quite a bit of liberty with details not provided in Scripture.  For example. she describes people pounding on the ark and wailing.  That may really bother some people.  I just explain to my children that she is imagining what things may have been like, but the Bible does not give those details, so we don't really know if it's true or not.

My husband thought I was off my rocker when I borrowed Entreleadership from the library. After all, I do not own a business nor do I have plans to start one.  But, I really enjoy reading Dave Ramsey's books.  I found that this book is more than just a business book.  He actually discusses leadership principles, so I think everyone can glean something from this book.  Inspired by this book, I plan to develop a mission statement for our homeschool and make sure that what I am currently doing with the children fits in with that mission statement.  I also found myself reading portions of this book and thinking, "Yes, that's the kind of work ethic I want to instill in my children!"  I didn't exactly find the chapter on compensation packages terribly useful in this season of life, but I thought it was interesting to think about.  I also found myself telling David about some of Dave's ideas thinking he may find some of it useful for his research group. You may want to check your library's policies, though, before checking this one out.  Since it's in the pop section at our local library, I could only have it for two weeks!  It reminded me of my college days:)

I read the children's portions of The Advent Jesse Tree by Dean Lambert to the children during our morning devotional time for the first 25 days of December.  This book begins with the creation of the world and goes through Old Testament history showing the need for a Savior, God's promise of a Savior and the fulfillment of this promise in Jesus Christ.  For each day, there is a short reading designed for children, Scripture passages that can be read, a memory verse, a selection of songs that correspond with the day's teaching, review questions and a prayer.  I was really happy with this devotional book and that I was able to obtain the Kindle version for FREE.  There were a few instances that I changed the wording as I read it to the children, but all in all I was pleased with this as a devotional book for the children.  I plan to use this again next year!