Welcome to Litsy!

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Avid readers probably won‘t be surprised by anything in this book, but it was still interesting to learn about some research and anecdotes behind the transcendental magic of reading aloud and to reinforce its importance for all ages (particularly children). I appreciated the accompanying PDF with book suggestions. I did pick up on some subtle parent shaming, especially towards mothers, that kind of rubbed me the wrong way. 🎧

Here, on Litsy, we all know and appreciate the power of reading. It‘s food for the mind and soul. This book backs all that up with science and studies galore. I highly recommend this to anyone pregnant or with young children. Thank you so much for gifting this to me @squirrelbrain 😘

A lot of this may have been said before (Jim Trelease has said it, among others), but this is a nice balance of research and anecdotes in support of reading aloud - to children (regardless of age), to other adults, just for the pleasure of it. There‘s less of the how-to and much more of the why-to. There are also great book lists at the back (who else is a sucker for a good list?). Recommend, especially for parents of littles.

Today‘s library #bookhaul (at least the ones for me; there are 28 more for the voracious book-devouring kiddo elsewhere) - can you tell I‘m on my annual education kick? Plus the #MGBuddyRead and #YABuddyRead picks, which I may or may not actually get to in time for discussions.

An absolutely recommended book!!!! For everyone who loves books! Reading someone is a wonderful gift. Whether child or adult. #reading #nonfiction

Anecdotal and research-ey.

If I wasn‘t already sold on the idea of reading aloud to children I would be after reading this. It‘s amazing what reading with them does to their brain, vocabulary and social skills. You can tell the author has a genuine love for reading aloud & it‘s benefits. Usually the non-fiction books I read are heavy so this was a lovely change. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Helen for gifting me this ♥️ & for the postcard 🇫🇷 nice of you to think of me 😘

I‘m loving this book! Lots of interesting info and it‘s written in such an accessible/readable way. Reading aloud is powerful stuff!

This book looks so good Helen! Looking forward to reading it (I‘ve already started reading books to Alfie ♥️) thank you so much and the chocolate is lush 😘😘😘

Perfect notebook Caroline. I love the illustrations inside, so pretty 💕 thank you 😘😘😘

And thank you Kay for the card 💛💛💛

I‘ve not been as active on here and with all that‘s going on it‘s much appreciated that you guys thought of me for my birthday ♥️

Pretty good listen. It's certainly convinced me to read aloud to my son for as long as possible. Interesting stuff about reading aloud to other adults as well. Some of the chapters felt like filler but there's also more research than I expected. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but if the topic interests you I would. But if it doesn't, you'll find this book a bore I suspect. The chapter on reading problematic lit doesn't stick the landing.

I‘m glad I borrowed and didn‘t purchase as it isn‘t something I‘ll need to return to repeatedly. Would be good for first time parents or caregivers who haven‘t begun reading to kids - it‘s never too late! The focus is on infants and young children, but serves as a reminder to keep reading as they grow to support emotional bonding.

This book will be preaching to the choir here on Litsy. The power of all reading we understand. 😁

I‘m sure this will confirm what I already intuitively know and will reaffirm my commitment to read to or with my kids as long as possible. 😁

Check out this article on the power and history of oral storytelling by Meghan Cox Gurdon in Lit Hub: https://lithub.com/rediscovering-the-lost-power-of-reading-aloud/

I know what book all of my friends who are expecting will be getting as a shower gift! This is an amazing collection of tips and reasons why parents should read to their children at very early ages. Based on empirical research the author breaks down the information into “chewable chunks “for readers from all backgrounds. I cheered at parts, applauded ideas, and danced when Vygotsky was quoted. A must for anyone who reads to children.

Fascinating, and very well written.

I finished my library‘s Summer Reading Challenge! 🎉 Mostly from my shelves! 🎉 I wasn‘t getting to a science museum, so I read an extra ‘book of my choice.‘ 🤷🏼‍♀️

Top to bottom:
📚Essay
📚Book of choice
📚Sci-fi set in space
📚Book of choice 2
📚Historical fiction
📚National Book Award
📚Children‘s book
📚Book-to-movie
📚Published in 2019
📚Folk tale
📚Astronaut biography
📚Graphic novel
📚Audiobook (not shown): Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

This book was definitely “preaching to the choir,” as I was already a big proponent of reading aloud, but it was interesting to learn the science behind it.

The rewards of early reading are astonishingly meaningful; toddlers who have lots of stories read to them turn into children who are more likely to enjoy strong relationships, sharper focus, and greater emotional resilience and self mastery. #parenting #readaloud

Litten parents: saw this at the library and thought it may be of interest!

A must-read for parents! This book is loaded with research without feeling overly-academic. Full of antecdotes and book recommendations. Chapter 9 is a Q&A of how to implement reading aloud in your home TODAY and details the impact of a 3-month reading experiment on a middle-class family.
I dog-eared so many pages as aha! moments hit me while reading.

I loved this book. It‘s a very readable book, with science backing it up, about the importance and benefits of reading out loud. The focus is largely on children, but service members, prison inmates, hospital patients, and nursing home residents are mentioned.

I figured what better way to read a book about the befits of reading aloud then to have the book read aloud to me! This is an excellent book backed by scientific research, and anecdotal evidence about the benefits of reading aloud. The book focuses on the benefits for children but also delves into the benefits for adults and the benefits for the reader too. I love reading aloud, and the joy it gives , hopefully you will too after reading this.

I went into this expecting a lighter read about the love of books and instead found a deep scholarly work examining several topics connected to reading aloud. It spans brain development, bonding, and even looks at some studies of parents who were incarcerated or serving in the military recording themselves reading to their children and how that lessened anxiety.

From C.S. Lewis: “He does not despise real woods because he has read of enchanted woods: The reading makes all real woods a little enchanted.”

Just picked up my copy today and plan to start reading tonight. I‘ve been touting the benefits of reading aloud to older kiddos (9+) for a long time and look forward to sharing some research 😊

Pg 8

Pg xv
"Reading out loud is probably the least expensive and most effective intervention we can make for the good of our families, and for the wider culture."

Pg xiii

I love it when @WanderingBookaneer reads aloud to me — Meghan Cox Gordon would understand and approve!

On a related note, my sister sent me some Mo Willems bookmarks and they delight me to no end #kidlit🐘🐖

Breakfast and a book here this lazy Sunday morning. I read a lot of these #booksaboutbooks— and lately, ones specifically about reading aloud to children— and so far this doesn‘t have a lot of new information to add. But author Meghan Cox Gurdon does present her facts engagingly and provide recent research to back up her claims, so it‘s a good addition to the field. #librariansoflitsy #raisingreaders

Apparently it is National Read Aloud Day (who knew?), so it seems fitting that I have started this new nonfiction title about the value of reading aloud. So far it has had a few dry spots but they were brief and the message is encouraging.

#LibbyWoes

Just got this little treasure chest and this book in the mail. The chest is actually for my son‘s pirate birthday party on Saturday but I‘ll surely be using it as a prop in the future. 😍 The book is about the effects of reading aloud, especially to children, including neuroscientific evidence. Will surely be an interesting read!! ❤️

Interesting article from The Sunday Times magazine reviewing the tagged book that claims that reading aloud helps stress. Apparently it‘s better for us because it‘s more sedate, it‘s proper ‘reading‘ not ‘scrolling‘ or ‘skittering‘ - the literary version of slow breathing. ‘Milkman‘ is recommended as one to try, as is poetry such as Rossetti‘s Goblin Market.

Can‘t link to the article as it‘s behind a paywall, sorry!

What do you all think? 🤔

A very accessible book that makes the case for reading aloud to children (mostly children, but a few later chapters do talk about reading to adults) as both a way to give children a boost in school and to provide “together” time for a family. It is much less The Sky Is Falling!/hand-wringy than other recent books about the tech vs paper book divide. Gurdon brings together a lot of research and in person interviews (and some cute family anecdotes).

For those who think listening to audio books isn‘t “real” reading...I‘ve got some historical evidence for you. #amreading The Enchanted Hour by Meghan Cox Gurdon, out January 2019