The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lastting Connections with Your Kids

The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids by Sarah Mackenzie

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If we're honest, I have no interest in parenting books. Each kid and each parent are so different that I can't quite wrap my head around blanket statement advice on how to get my future children to sleep on a schedule or to be polite to others. I'm sure there is some naiveté in that view, but for now I am not pouring through parenting books like many other first time mommas. Enter "The Read-Aloud Family" - it is the only parenting style book I have purchased and read because when I heard Sarah Mackenzie interviewed about connecting with your kids and how to make kids life-long readers, I felt like she was speaking my hopes and dreams for my future family.

I loved this book. I loved how simple and straight forward the suggestions are for how and why we should read with children. I love that she has dozens of book recommendations for readers of all ages, including Little Mann who will fall into the 0-3 bracket. The ideas in Mackenzie's book are not revolutionary, but they are rooted in real life and so they can be applied to most individual situations - whether you have toddlers or teenagers and whether you have children who are readers or children who run whenever you say it's time to read for their assigned 20 minutes a day.

I truly cannot wait to use her ideas with my son. It feels a little strange to read to him before he's here (I've tried it a couple times), but I am ready as soon as he arrives.

Happy reading to you and your family--