Read-at-Home Mom Report: August 2024 Wrap-Up

August Favorites

This was my biggest reading month of the year because of the Sealey Challenge, for which I read one poetry collection every single day of the month. The first few favorites on my list are the best of the 31 poetry volumes I read.

Andalusian Hours: Poems from the Porch of Flannery O'Connor by Angela Alaimo O'Donnell
I was really skeptical about these sonnets written in the voice of Flannery O'Connor, and they completely blew me away. I teared up at the end of the book. This book is every Flannery fan's dream.  

Someone Somewhere Maybe by Sophie Diener
These poems reminded me of everything I like about my favorite YA novels. 

Goldenrod: Poems by Maggie Smith

There wasn't a word out of place in a single poem in this collection. 

In a Time of Distance: And Other Poems by Alexander McCall Smith
I thought I didn't like this author because his detective series didn't appeal to me, but these poems were so interesting and readable. 

Jupiter Rising by Gary D. Schmidt|
This sequel to Orbiting Jupiter is so emotional, and so satisfying. I'm convinced Gary D. Schmidt can't write a bad book.

Love in the Eternal City by Rebecca W. Martin
This is the Catholic romance novel of my dreams. It was an honor to be on the launch team.

Better than the Movies by Lynn Painter
This is my second book from this author, and the second one I gave five stars. There's some language but it didn't bother me. I loved the characters.

Mother to Mother: Spiritual and Practical Wisdom from the Cloister to the Home by Mary Elizabeth Cuff
I reviewed this for Catholic Mom. You can read what I loved about it in my review over there.

Going Short: An Invitation to Flash Fiction by Nancy Stohlman
This is one of the most inspiring writing craft books I've ever read. 

Sealey Challenge 

• Break Your Glass Slippers by Amanda Lovelace (2 stars)
• Ten Poems for Difficult Times by Roger Housden (4 stars)
• Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets by Kwame Alexander (4 stars)
• Everything Comes Next: Collected and New Poems by Naomi Shihab Nye (5 stars)
• Pessimism for Beginners by Sophie Hannah (4 stars)
• Questions About Angels by Billy Collins (5 stars)
• How to Fly in Ten Thousand Easy Lessons by Barbara Kingsolver (4 stars)
• A Piece of Good News: Poems by Katie Peterson (4 stars)
• Summer Snow: New Poems by Robert Hass (3 stars)
• Dearly by Margaret Atwood (4 stars)
• Cautionary Verses by Hilaire Belloc (4 stars)
• Celebrations: Rituals of Peace and Prayer by Maya Angelou (4 stars)
• American Melancholy: Poems by Joyce Carol Oates (2 stars)
• You Are Only Just Beginning: Lessons for the Journey Ahead by Morgan Harper Nichols (4 stars)
• Some Things I Still Can't Tell You: Poems by Misha Collins (5 stars)
• Aimless Love: New and Selected Poems by Billy Collins (5 stars)
• When the Pie Was Opened by Jean Little (4 stars)
• The sun and her flowers by Rupi Kaur (4 stars)
• The Knopf National Poetry Month Collection (4 stars)
• Love Poems by Pablo Neruda (4 stars)
• Carver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson (4 stars)
• Harbinger: Poems by Shelley Puhak (4 stars)
• Classic Poems for Girls by Naxos Junior Classics (3 stars)
• Classic Poems for Boys by Naxos Junior Classics (4 stars)
• Zoom Rooms: Poems by Mary Jo Salter (4 stars)
• Swimming Lessons: Poems by Lili Reinhart (4 stars)
• The Milk Hours by John James (4 stars)
  

Read-Aloud Books 

• Spider Sparrow by Dick King-Smith (4 stars)
• The Little Grey Men by BB (4 stars)
• Mystery at Witchend by Malcolm Saville (3 stars)

Series and Sequels 

• Beany Has a Secret Life (Beany Malone Book 5) by Lenora Mattingly Weber (3 stars)
• Plotting Summer (Falling for Summer Book 3) by Jess Heileman (4 stars)
• Beauty and the Beach (Falling for Summer Book 5) by Gracie Ruth Mitchell (5 stars)
• Rebel Summer (Falling for Summer Book 7) by Cindy Steel (3 stars)
• The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike Book 2) by Robert Galbraith (4 stars)

Stand-Alone Books

• Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis (5 stars)
• The Destiny Thief: Essays on Writing, Writers and Life by Richard Russo (4 stars)
• Guilty Creatures: Sex, God, and Murder in Tallahassee, Florida by Mikita Brottman (4 stars)
• My Life Begins! by Patricia Maclachlan (5 stars)
  
• Stella & Marigold by Annie Barrows (3 stars)
• The Zebra's Great Escape by Katherine Rundell (3 stars)
• Not Nothing by Gayle Forman (4 stars, but parents should screen content)
• The Children Who Lived in a Barn by Eleanor Graham (3 stars)
• Cue the Sun by Emily Nussbaum  (4 stars)
• Girls Who Burn by M.K. Pagano (4 stars)

Family Reading Lists 

M. (girl, 10 years, 9 months old)

• Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson 

C. (girl, 8 years, 11 months old)

• Andrew Carnegie and the Age of Steel by Katherine Binney Shippen
• Disaster at Johnstown: The Great Flood by Hildegarde Dolson
• The Story of Thomas Alva Edison by Enid Lamonte Meadowcroft
• Felicia the Critic by Ellen Conford
• The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis 

E. (girl, 6 years, 10 months old) 

• She is diligently working her way through Redwall, but not yet finished. 

R. (boy, 4 years, 5 months old)

Independently, he read these easy readers: 

• Harry by the Sea
• Frog and Toad 
• Dragons Love Tacos
• Chicken said Cluck
• Woodchuck
• What Have I Got?
• Let's Get Turtles 
• Seeds and More Seeds
• Benny's Animals
• Nate the Great 
• Happy Jack
• Terry and the Caterpillars
• Emmett's Pig
• Big Max 

He also looked at/listened to:  

• Mr. Men series by Roger Hargreaves 
• Mr. Putter and Tabby series by Cynthia Rylant 
• I Spy Fantasy by Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick 
• The Foggy, Foggy Forest by Nick Sharatt 
• Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin 

A. (girl, 4 years, 5 months, old)

Independently, she worked on sounding out the words in Rag. 

She also looked at/listened to:  

• Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin 
• I Spy Fantasy by Jean Marzollo and Walter Wick
• Picture My World by by Séverine Cordier (Illustrator), Cynthia Lacroix

My husband 

• Hill of Little Miracles by Valenti Angelo
• Spider Sparrow by Dick King-Smith 
• Paula by Marguerite Vance 
• Seeing Past Z: Nurturing the Imagination in a Fast-Forward World by Beth Kephart

Read-at-Home Mom Report: July 2024 Wrap-Up

July Favorites

Voyage to Alpha Centauri by Michael D. O'Brien
This fantastic Catholic sci-fi novel is a real page-turner. I almost chose not to read it for book club due to the length, but then I couldn't put it down. It felt like the perfect mix of The Sparrow and Canticle for Leibowitz. 

Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan 
This novella about the last night at a closing Red Lobster was recommended by Ethan Joella when he appeared on the Book Bumble podcast. I really enjoyed the writing style. 

Abominations: Selected Essays from a Career of Courting Self-Destruction by Lionel Shriver
I admire Lionel Shriver because she has the courage of her convictions even when they're unpopular, and because I think her concerns about first amendment rights are valid and important. 

The Feather Star by Patricia Wrightson 
My husband recommended this vintage Australian middle grade coming-of-age novel, and it was the perfect summer read. I really loved the introspective, descriptive style.  

Read-Aloud and Homeschool Books

• Hitty, Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field (with E., age 6) (4 stars)
• Over the Blue Mountain by Conrad Richter (5 stars)
• Katie John by Mary Calhoun (4 stars)
• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (with C., age 8) (5 stars)
• No Boats on Bannermere by Geoffrey Trease (5 stars)

Sequels and Series Books

• At First Spark (The Spark Brothers Book 4) by Liwen Ho (4 stars)
• An Extra Spark (The Spark Brothers Book 5) by Liwen Ho (4 stars)
• Murder at the Lakeside Library (Lakeside Library Mystery Book 1) by Holly Danvers (3 stars)
• Summer Ever After (Falling for Summer Book 1) by Kortney Keisel (3 stars)
• Beachy Keen (Falling for Summer Book 2) by Kasey Stockton (4 stars)
• Summer Tease (Falling for Summer Book 4) by Martha Keyes (4 stars)
• Love is a Roller Coaster (Sunkissed Summer Book 1) by Marie Soleil (4 stars)

Stand-Alone Books

• Not If You Break Up with Me First by G.F. Miller (4 stars)
• The Summer Book Club by Susan Mallery (3 stars) 
• The Same Bright Stars by Ethan Joella (3 stars)
• No Way of Telling by Emma Smith (4 stars)
• The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann (3 stars)
• The Unbearable Likeness of Bean by Dianne R. Thomas (4 stars)
• Hearts Overboard by Becky Dean (4 stars)

Family Reading Lists

M. (girl, 10 years, 8 months)

• The Black Riders by Violet Needham
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling 

C. (girl, 8 years, 10 months) 

• Lincoln: A Photobiography by Russell Freedman
• The Perilous Road by Willam O. Steele 
• Kathleen, A Yankee Girl at Gettysburg by Alice Turner Curtis
• The Wound of Peter Wayne by Leonard Wibberley

E. (girl, 6 years, 9 months) 

• Clover's Luck by Kallie George 

R. (boy, 4 years, 4 months) 

Independently, he read these easy readers: 

• Father Bear Comes Home
• Barkley 
• A Fly Went By
• The Happy Birthday Present
• And I Mean It, Stanley
• This Is the House Where Jack Lives
• I Am Better Than You!
• Little Bear’s Visit
• More Tales of Oliver Pig
• Johnny Lion’s Bad Day
• Johnny Lion’s Book
• Johnny Lion’s Rubber Boots
• Chester
• Little Chick's Big Day
• Red Tag Comes Back
• Robber Raccoon
• Love is in the Air 
• Who's a Pest?
• Stop, Stop 
• What Have I Got? 
• Mr. Pine's Purple House
• Mr. Pine's Mixed-Up Signs 
• The Last One In is a Rotten Egg 

He also looked at/listened to:  

• The Bustletown series by Rotraut Susanne Berner 
• Big Stuff: Dozer, Excavator, Mixer & More! by Joan Holub 
• Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Life by Anusuya Chinsamy-Turan
• An Anthology of Aquatic Life by Sam Hume
• An Anthology of Intriguing Animals by Ben Hoare 
• Little Miss/Mr. Men series by Roger Hargreaves 

A. (girl, 4 years, 4 months)

She has started reading consonant-vowel-consonant words grouped into families.

She looked at/listened to these books: 

• The Cats' Museum by Viviana Falleti 
• Bubble Trouble by Margaret Mahy
• Baby Dear by Esther and Eloise Wilkin 
• Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo 

My husband 

• The Feather Star by Patricia Wrightson 
• Conversations with Maurice Sendak by Peter C. Kunze
• Lands End by Mary Stolz

Homeschool Update, March-June 2024

Group Activities 

Geography/Art 

From The Complete Book of Marvels by Richard Halliburton, Dad read these sections, and the girls watched accompanying videos: 

• Parthenon, Temple of Athena [video]
• Mt. Athos, Country of Men [video]
• Moscow, Heart of Russia [video]
• Santa Sophia, Mother of Churches [video]
• Ephesus, City of Ancient Temples [video] 
• Halicarnassus [video]
• Colossus, Statue of Helios [video]
• Pharos, Towering Lighthouse [video] 
• Pyramids, Huge Man-Made Wonders [video]
• Knossos, Buried Cretan City [video]
• Timbuctoo, Desert City [video]
• Victoria Falls, Sounding Smoke [video]
• Mecca, Sacred Moslem City [video]
• Petra, Enchanted City [video]
• Dead Sea [video]
• Jerusalem, Rock of Abraham [video]
• Baalbek, City of Marvelous Ruins [video]
• Palmyra, Zenobia's Domain [video]

We also used historical and current world maps to locate different countries that came up in our reading in other areas.

Latin 

We finished Getting Started with Latin: Beginning Latin for Homeschoolers and Self-Taught Students of Any Age by William E. Linney. We spent some time reviewing some of the translation exercises by translating from English to Latin, then started Keep Going with Latin. 

Shakespeare

We read a children's version of As You Like It and the girls watched the animated adaptation.  We will soon watch a version of the play as well. 

Read-Alouds

Dad read aloud these historical fiction titles:

• Children of the Fox by Jill Paton Walsh 
• Hostage to Alexander by Mary Evans Andrews 
• The Eagles Have Flown by Joanne Williamson
• Runner for the King by Rowena Bastin Bennett 

I read aloud these titles: 

• A Swarm in May by William Mayne 
• Noodlehead Stories (excerpts) by M.A. Jagendorf
• The Cottage at Bantry Bay by Hilda van Stockum
• The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge 
• Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfeld
• Swallowdale by Arthur Ransome 
• Magic or Not? by Edward Eager 
• The Whale People by Roderick L. Haig-Brown 
• Barefoot Days by Anna Rose Wright 
• Over the Blue Mountain by Conrad Richter 

We listened to these books on audio: 

• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl 
• The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare
• When Marnie Was There by Joan G. Robinson 

Catechism 

We continued practicing questions and answers in our Catechism books.  

Science 

C. and E. listened to me read aloud The First Book of Trees by Margaret Wiliamson and Here a Plant, There a Plant, Everywhere a Plant, Plant: A Story of Luther Burbank by Robert M. Quackenbush, and they finished science for the year with the Green Planet documentary series.

M. and I finished reading Secrets of the Universe. 

The Van Cleave experiments started getting old, so she wrote up her last few lab reports on demonstrations from ExperimentArchive that were too dangerous to try at home. 

Health

Both M. and C. visited the orthdontist. M. visited the pediatrician and also accompanied A. to several appointments after she broke one arm, and a month later, the other. 

History 

C. read The Year of the Horseless Carriage and Abraham Lincoln's World. 

M. read The Ancient Greek World, The Ancient Roman World, and The Ancient American World and completed related pages in the accompanying workbooks. 

E. continued reading A Child's History of the World by V.M. Hillyer through the Fall of Rome. She started listing to The Story of Civilization Volume 1 for review of this year's history topics. 

All three girls went in period dress on a field trip to a one-room schoolhouse. 

English

In Critical Thinking Co.'s Sentence Diagramming program, M. completed level 1 and level 2. C. finished the beginner level and moved on to level 2.  E. did some adjective worksheets to help her practice. 

M. finished Vocabulary from Classic Roots level 6 and started level B. 

R. finished reading all but the last of the Hooked on Phonics readers. A. started reading consonant-vowel-consonant words.

Math 

M. continued working on Challenging Word Problems 3 and finished Singapore Primary Mathematics 6B. In Life of Fred, she continued with Decimals and Percents and she worked on 7th grade math and Algebra 1 on Khan Academy. She is working on Algebra this summer. 

C. finished Singapore Primary Mathematics 4A and made significant progress in 4B, as well as in fifth grade math on Khan Academy.  

E. finished Singapore Primary Mathematics 1A and started 1B. She finished early math and is worked quickly through 2nd grade math on Khan Academy and is now making significant progress in third grade math. 

Music 

M. and C. continued working on the music theory exercises in Practical Theory by Sandy Felstein. All three girls practiced piano and recorder daily. C. started learning ukulele and M. started guitar. 

Physical Education

Now that pool season is here, our main focus is swimming at the pool. The girls played freeze tag and other group games with friends in the neighborhood. M. and C. learned the basics of baseball from their aunt while watching Mets games on our visit to NY. 

Read-at-Home Mom Report: June 2024 Wrap-Up

June Favorites

Theology of Home: Finding the Eternal in the Everyday by Carrie Gress and Noelle Mering 
This looks like an interior decorating book, but it's not! I loved this look at the concept of home from the Catholic perspective, and now I want to read the others in this series.  

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson
The writing in this was beautiful, and it was a great way to ring in the summer season.  

Cole and Laila are Just Friends by Bethany Turner 
I loved these characters, the New York City setting, and all the pop culture references. 

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center
I have seen mixed reviews of this book, which was a surprise to me. I loved the characters and the peek into the screenwriting life. 

Somehow: Thoughts on Love by Anne Lamott
I don't agree with Anne Lamott on everything, but boy do I love her writing.  

The Summer of Yes by Courtney Walsh 
This is my new favorite book by this author - her best yet. I love that it's a friendship story that fuels two love stories.  

Read-Aloud and Homeschool Books

• The Whale People by Roderick L. Haig-Brown (with all five kids) (4 stars)
• Barefoot Days by Anna Rose Wright (4 stars)
• Secrets of the Universe: Discovering the Universal Laws of Science by Paul Fleisher (with M.)(4 stars)

Sequels and Series Books

• Silver on the Tree (The Dark is Rising Book 5) by Susan Cooper (3 stars)
• Beany and the Beckoning Road (Beany Malone Book 4) by Lenore Mattingly Weber (3 stars)

Camp Bookstagram

My friend Kris hosted a great camp-themed reading challenge on Instagram in the middle of the month, and it was so much fun. I read seven books total! 

• Summer at Squee by Andrea Wang (4 stars)
• Camp Echo by Paul Theroux (3 stars)
• The Counselors by Jessica Goodman (3 stars)
• Baby-Sitters' Summer Vacation by Ann M. Martin (4 stars)
• Burnt Mountain by Anne Rivers Siddons (3 stars)
• The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey (3 stars)
• Hail, Hail, Camp Timberwood by Ellen Conford (2 stars)

Stand-Alone Books

• Domestic Extremist: A Practical Guide to Winning the Culture War by Peachy Keenan (5 stars)
• Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte (4 stars)
• Funny Story by Emily Henry (4 stars)
• George by Agnes Sligh Turnbull (3 stars)
• Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles (3 stars)
• Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan (4 stars)
• The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America by Sara B. Franklin (4 stars)

Family Reading Lists

Audiobook in the Car

• When Marnie was There by Joan G. Robinson 

M. (girl, 10 years, 7 months)

[M. did a lot of school reading, but didn't finish any books in June] 

C. (girl, 8 years, 9 months)

• Maida's Little Shop by Inez Haynes Irwin
• Florence Nightingale by Ruth Fox Hume 
• Curious Missie by Virginia Sorensen 

E. (girl, 6 years, 8 months) 

• The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting 
• The Third Planet from Altair (Choose Your Own Adventure Book 7) by Edward Packard
• George by Agnes Sligh Turnbull
• The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum 
• The Trouble with Jenny's Ear by Oliver Butterworth

R. (boy, 4 years, 3 months)

Independent reading: 

• The Fire Cat by Esther Averill 
• Robert the Rose Horse by Joan Heilbroner 
• Chester by Syd Hoff
• Thunderhoof by Syd Hoff
• Cowboys: What Do They Do? by Carla Green 
• The Whales Go By by Fred Phleger 
• Love is in the Air by Jonathan Fenske
• Father Bear Comes Home (first two stories) by Else Holmelund Minarik

Read-alouds: 

• The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle 
• Spectacular Spots by Susan Stockdale 
• A Piglet Named Mercy by Kate DiCamillo 

A. (girl, 4 years, 3 months)

Read-alouds: 

• Bubble Trouble by Margaret Mahy 
• When Grandma Came by Jill Paton Walsh
• One Lighthouse, One Moon by Anita Lobel
• Richard Scarry 

My husband

• The Whale People by Roderick L. Haig-Brown 
• George by Agnes Sligh Turnbull
• Curious Missie by Virginia Sorensen
• Runner for the King by Rowena Bastin Bennett
• Barefoot Days by Anna Rose Wright 
• Bandit's Moon by Sid Fleischman

Read-at-Home Mom Report: May 2024 Wrap-Up

May Favorites 

Summer Sweethearts edited by me and Rachel Lawrence
My friend Rachel and I put together this collection of sweet romances written by friends from our flash fiction writing community, and we're giving it away free in our newsletters on June 10th! This was such a fun experience, and everyone's stories are so adorable. (You can subscribe to my writing newsletter on Substack if you want to receive the book in your email on Monday.)

The Critic's Daughter: A Memoir by Priscilla Gilman
This author was my professor in college, and I really enjoyed her previous book about her son, so I wanted to try this one as well. The writing is beautiful, and I enjoyed hearing the author narrate the audiobook. 

To Crown with Liberty by Karen Ullo
I was on the launch team for this amazing Catholic historical fiction novel, and I am still thinking about it. What a wonderfully well-researched, beautifully-written novel. Highly recommended.

Because of You by Hannah Currie
I was also on the launch team for this YA novel about missionary work, and I loved this one too! All the details of travel to Thailand and interacting with orphaned children were so interesting, and I loved the main character. 

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez
Abby Jimenez continues to amaze me with her excellent romance writing. I think this might be her best book yet. 

Hallelujah Anyway: Rediscovering Mercy by Anne Lamott
I had some theological issues with this book, but the writing is beautiful, and I think the overall message about showing mercy to others is important. 

Read-Aloud and Homeschool Books

• Swallowdale (Swallows and Amazons book 2) by Arthur Ransome (5 stars) 
• Magic or Not? (Tales of Magic book 5) by Edward Eager (5 stars)

Sequels and Series Books

• Leave It To Beany (Beany Malone book 3) by Lenora Mattingly Weber (4 stars)
• Juniper Bean Resorts to Murder (Happily Ever Homicide book 1) by Gracie Ruth Mitchell (4 stars)
• The Kiss Thief (Echo Ridge Romance Book 2) by Rachelle J. Christensen (3 stars)
• Fatal First Edition (Library Lover's Mystery book 14) by Jenn McKinlay (4 stars)

Stand-Alone Books

• Tartuffe by Moliere (4 stars)
• Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman (4 stars)
• The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure by Jonathan Haidt (4 stars)
• The Monarchs of Winghaven by Naila Moreira (4 stars)
• Better Left Unsent by Lia Louis (4 stars)
• How to Plot a Payback by Melissa Ferguson (3 stars)

Family Reading Lists

Audiobook in the Car

• The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare 

M. (girl, 10 years, 6 months)

• Roman People by Olivia Coolidge 

C. (girl, 8 years, 8 months)

• A Violet for Bonaparte by Geoffrey Trease
• Andrew Jackson by Clara Ingram Judson
• The California Gold Rush by May Mcneer 

E. (girl, 6 years, 7 months) 

• Rip-Roaring Russell by Johanna Hurwitz 

R. (boy, 4 years, 2 months)

Independent reading: 

• Where is Zot? by Sandra Carlton 
• Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman 
• Flap Your Wings by P.D. Eastman 
• Bears on Wheels by Stan Berenstain 
• Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik and Maurice Sendak 
• from Tales of Oliver Pig by Jean van Leeuwen and Arnold Lobel: "Baking Day" and "A Bad Day"
• Ten Apples Up on Top by Dr. Seuss 
• Go Dog Go by P.D. Eastman 
• One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss 

Read-alouds: 

• Construction Site: Taking Flight! by Sherri Duskey Rinker and A.G. Ford
• Construction Site: Road Crew, Coming Through! by Sherri Duskey Rinker and A.G. Ford
• excerpt from Where Are You Going, Baby Lincoln? by Kate DiCamillo 

A. (girl, 4 years, 4 months)

Read-alouds: 

• Truckery Rhymes by Jon Scieszka
• Richard Scarry's Best Story Book Ever 
• excerpt from Where Are You Going, Baby Lincoln? by Kate DiCamillo  

My husband 

• The Giant Rat of Sumatra: or Pirates Galore by Sid Fleischman

Book Review: Because of You by Hannah Currie (2024)

It's been a long time since I read a YA novel that wasn't a omance, but Because of You is like a breath of fresh air.

From the publisher: Sixteen-year-old Chloe Gabriels has dreamed of going on an overseas mission trip for as long as she can remember, so when the opportunity arises for her to go to Thailand with Teen Missions International she jumps at the chance. Working at an orphanage, learning new skills, experiencing a different culture, making lifelong friends—what better way could there be to spend her summer vacation?

Of course, the trip will have its challenges—living in close quarters with seventeen other teens out of their comfort zones has a way of doing that—but it will be worth it. She’ll finally be serving God in a practical way.

But while the orphans and their stories break her heart, it’s someone unexpected who has the biggest impact on Chloe’s summer and leaves her wondering if maybe there are just as many people who need her love back home as there are overseas.

Chloe is such a believable protagonist, with flaws that many teen girls have and can relate to. It was really rewarding to be inside her head as she took in aspects of a new culture and also came to new understandings of the other teens on the trip alongside her. I loved learning all the missionary lingo, including the many acronyms, and it was so interesting to take an armchair trip to Thailand. I also really loved getting to know all the supporting characters through Chloe's eyes, especially the young orphans.

A summer read with substance, this is the perfect book to give to teens going on mission trips, or to those who one day plan to go. It's also a great opportunity for any Christian teen to understand missionary work and to think about how he or she might better serve others.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

About the Author, Hannah Currie

Hannah Currie has loved royals—both real and fictional—for as long as she can remember and has always been fascinated by their lives. They started making their way into her writing somewhere around first grade and never stopped.

Hannah Currie has loved royals—both real and fictional—for as long as she can remember and has always been fascinated by their lives. They started making their way into her writing somewhere around first grade and never stopped.

While she never dreamed of being a princess for real (way too many expectations and people watching), she certainly wouldn’t say no to the gorgeous gowns, endless wardrobes, chefs, and cleaners that come with the job. A crown or two wouldn’t go astray either. Or Belle’s library. Where she’d just sit and stare at the books with a giddy smile on her face for hours.

Hannah lives with her husband and three kids in Australia, where they proudly claim Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family as their own. She is very honored to be one of the launching authors for the new WhiteCrown Publishing line with her Crown of Promise series full of faith, romance, and—of course—royals.

Follow Hannah online

• Instagram
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• Website

Order Because of You

• Whitefire Publishing 
• Amazon
• Barnes & Noble

Book Review: To Crown with Liberty by Karen Ullo (2024)

If you're looking for authentically Catholic historical fiction, To Crown with Liberty is the book you need to have on your bookshelf. This well-researched, beautifully written tale by Karen Ullo follows Alix de Morainville Carpentier, a former lady-in-waiting to Marie Antoinette, across two timelines. 

From the publisher: New Orleans, 1795. In the wake of the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror, Alix de Morainville Carpentier—a former lady-in-waiting to Marie Antoinette, now married to her gardener—seeks peace and security in the Spanish colony of Louisiana. But her journey into the man-eating swamp called Attakapas reopens the wounds of her old life in France. Alix is forced to reckon with the choices that saved her life at the cost of her honor—and perhaps her soul.

In revolutionary France, the Old World is dying; the quest for liberty, fraternity, and equality has become a nightmare where the price of dissent is blood. In the wilderness of Spanish Louisiana, a new civilization is beginning to emerge—but in this budding New World, the slave trade perpetuates the systems of oppression that sparked the revolution. Caught between old and new, scarred by trauma and grief, will Alix ever find a home where she can truly be free?

To Crown with Liberty is a historical novel based on riveting legends from George Washington Cable’s Strange True Stories of Louisiana (1888).

Not only does this book deal with historical realities, it confronts spiritual ones as well, raising questions of the impact of violence and darkness on the soul as well as the body. There are also lots of wonderful period details, and beautiful descriptions of Alix's emotions and innermost thoughts. I loved getting to know her and unraveling the details of her painful and mysterious past. 

Another wonderful thing about this book is the substantial back matter that helps separate fact from legend in the source material that inspired the book and identifies all the historical figures that appear in the book for easy reference. 

I truly can't recommend this novel highly enough. I'm very picky about historical fiction, but could not put this one down. Alix is a character who will stick with me for a long time. 

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine alone.

About the Author, Karen Ullo 

I’m a classically trained soprano, I have a MFA in Screenwriting, and I’m a suburban housewife mother of two. I’m a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where I still swelter and sit in carpool lines. I write novels and screenplays, and I’m the editorial director of Chrism Press. Before that, I was the managing editor of Dappled Things Magazine. I’m an LSU Tiger and a USC Trojan. I’m a Cajun who married a Sicilian, so I cook pretty well, and write recipes for Catholicmom.com. I love college baseball. I went to boarding school. I can wiggle my nose like a rabbit. And if I ever tried to stop writing, the voices in my head would keep me awake at night. I’m also very glad you’re here.

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