William's Stack
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
by J.K. Rowling
It was pure torture for William to hear me and Ben talk on endlessly about what was happening in the Harry Potter stories as we read through the entire series together. We laughed, we grimaced, some of us lost faith in Professor Snape (ahem, it was not me by the way. I trusted him to the end!), and we were continually glossy-eyed for weeks carrying around those tomes. But William is extremely sensitive. I'm not sure he can leave things like Dementors, Bogarts, and ghosts inside the books when the covers are closed. Therefore, books 3 through 7 will have to wait for awhile, but while Harry is still relatively innocent and humorous in books 1 and 2, it should be enjoyable reading for him. He has already started digging in, and feels pretty cool to now be in the club. Ben and I are excited for him to get through the books so we can start on watching the movies!
Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry
I don't know what to do about this book! I bought it for Will to read himself, but it looks so good that I selfishly want to do it as a family read-aloud so we can all share in it! I probably just need to let Will read it, right? Help!
From the Amazon review:
Humorist Dave Barry and suspense writer Ridley Pearson have clearly taken great delight in writing a 400-plus page prequel of sorts to Scottish dramatist J.M. Barrie's beloved Peter Pan stories. The result is a fast-paced and fluffy pirate adventure, complete with talking porpoises, stinky rogues, possible cannibals, a flying crocodile, biting mermaids, and a much-sought-after trunk full of magical glowing green "starstuff." Ever hear of Zeus? Michelangelo? Attila the Hun? According to 14-year-old Molly Aster they all derived their powers from starstuff that occasionally falls to Earth from the heavens. On Earth, it is the Starcatchers' job to rush to the scene and collect the starstuff before it falls into the hands of the Others who use its myriad powers for evil.
Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback
This was headed towards Charlie's stack originally, but then I considered how much Will still enjoys looking at picture books. I dread the day that beautifully illustrated children's books are no longer the rage at my house, so I thought I should keep the joy alive with this fabulous offering from Simms Taback. I was right on the mark as William exclaimed excitedly on Christmas morning "I remember this book! This is really good!" Sweet.
Peter Duck by Arthur Ransome
This one will be a read-aloud for sure. We have read the first two books in this series with great enjoyment and although we are all on the edge of our seats throughout these stories, William is always the first one to beg for "just one more chapter, please!". Thus, I felt this family favorite belonged in his stack. Everyone is looking forward to the continued adventures of the Swallows and Amazons.
2 comments:
Another lovely stack! Beautiful. Can't wait to see Charlie's. And I like that they all got at least one picture book -- that Macaulay one counts, right? (At least I'm guessing you gave Charlie at least one picture book in his stack. Ha.)
Charon got Peter and the Starcatchers in our mother-daughter book club exchange this year, and I know what you mean about being tempted to dub it a read-aloud. I say let Will lead the way. If he wants to go for it, then read it on your own so that you can discuss it with him. Maybe Ben will pick it up when he's done, and then you can all have a swashbucklingly fun time acting out the stories with Charlie when you're through.
C is sensitive, too, and we'll be trying book three this summer. She's so excited to enter Harry's world again! Books one and two went really well for her this past year, so I expect Will is going to love them, too.
Maybe I'll just have to read Peter and the Starcatchers first, seeing as Will is completely wrapped up in Harry Potter right now!! He is enjoying the first book just as much as Ben and I did.
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