Jay Mathews quotes a 20-year study in his Washington Post blog that suggests that “children who have 500 or more books in the home get, on average, 3.2 years more schooling than children in bookless homes. Even just 20 books makes a difference. The availability of reading material has a strong impact on a child’s […]
Remedies
Kate Ledger’s Remedies will shake you up a bit. [The paperback is coming out August 3rd; hence the renewed recommendation by the St. Paul Pioneer Press yesterday.] [Update 1.11.11: This article is now gone. Go get the book and see for yourself!] Heartbreaking and painful at times, joyous and freeing at times, it whisks you […]
What I’ve Learned
Sadness. The day has arrived. Grandma is leaving. I’m anticipating that Liliana will fill the car with her tears when we drop Grandma off at the airport. Another chapter of life will begin. Isn’t that the way it always works? We explored, cooked, ate, talked, read, and talked some more. I’m sure Liliana thought we […]
Turning Four
Just a personal video to share today. You might think we’ve gone all gaga here, and we have…[Have we now entered the zone of mile-high, accordion-style photos cascading from a wallet when someone asks us, “Do you have pictures of your little girl?”] See Monday’s post if you’re confused…