What We Are Reading in July

Ever since I posted what we were reading back in April (*gasp*), I had all sorts of good intentions to continue to post a monthly list as requested.  Well, life got a little busy around here and I wasn’t able to put together a list, but this weekend I managed to jot down some of the titles members of our family have read or are currently reading since I last posted.  I hope you find some good ones!  {this post contains affiliate links}

Read Aloud
This is where you fall over in shock that we are STILL reading On the Banks of Plum Creek and The Screwtape Letters.  But remember, life got busy and read alouds just don’t seem to happen for us during busy seasons.

{Quick Disclaimer on The Screwtape Letters – I have skipped a couple of chapters due to the topic discussed.  If my children were older, I would go ahead and address these topics, but they just aren’t old enough for the material.}

The books of Romans, Hebrews, James, Philemon, and Jonah are where we’ve been in our Bible study.  Hebrews was absolutely fascinating to us as we pondered the fact that it was written to the Hebrews in order to convince them of Christ.  It is so rich with Old Testament Scripture and contains such a good message!

We just finished Unveiled at Last by Bob Sjogren.  While there are several things we did not agree with (mainly in the area of his reading into Scripture), we were challenged by it to do more for missions and think less about ourselves.  My daughter is currently researching ways for our family to give more to missions, as that is something dear to her heart.

At night, Ty is reading Life & Anecdotes of George Washington by M.L. Williamson.

Ty picked this book up at Mount Vernon this spring. He reads a bit of a chapter to us every night before Bible and prayers.

I am currently reading Full-Time Parenting.  I value Israel Wayne’s insight, so while I am thoroughly enjoying this book, I find I have to read it very slowly because I don’t want to miss anything.  Other than that one book, I’m only reading school materials these days.

Ty is reading Frying Pans West by Sam Arnold.  This particular version (shown above) includes a bonus DVD of the actual show that used to air on PBS.  We are really enjoying it and plan to go to Sam’s restaurant in Denver someday.

Ty is also re-reading Eating Up the Santa Fe Trail also by Sam Arnold.

I can tell Ty is starting to get a little antsy for hunting season.  He keeps coming home from the library with bird hunting books.  His last trip netted these two:

Bird Hunting Tactics by David Duffey
and

Modern Pheasant Hunting by Steve Grooms
Our library had an old copy of this book which Ty said was about as modern as the modern motel we stayed in on vacation last year.  The one shown above is a 2005 edition. I need to be sure to tell Ty about that!

15 year old son
Blake really likes World War II history, but he was finding that many of the biographies contain language.  While we believe he is getting old enough to filter much of that, we were happy to find this treasure at Grace & Truth Books:

You can buy War and Grace on Amazon for $12.70 or from Grace & Truth Books for $14.75

Blake recently traded a knife for a book (The Luftwaffe) his buddy owned.

He’d love to get his hands on the rest of this set from Time-Life.
Blake also just started reading The War Between the States.  We purchased this from Vision Forum when the set was on sale.  He says it’s a really good read.

Blake has also been reading our ancient copy of Back to Basics.  He dug a firepit in the back yard the other day and cooked us an entire meal in that campfire!  We had porkchops, corn in the husk, and a phenomenal dutch oven cake from this book:

Blake is also reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

He said it took a bit for him to get into it, but now he can hardly put it down.  I created a C.S. Lewis notebooking template for him to record his insights and opinions.  {I created the page using my brand new membership to NotebookingPages.com!  I am soooo excited about this!  I’m working on a post to tell you more about how we are incorporating notebooking into our school year, but suffice it to say, it has been a lot of fun!}.

12 year old daughter
We have been studying the Reformation and the reign of Elizabeth I, so Megan recently finished two books pertaining to our history lessons.

The River of Grace is about John Calvin. Whether you agree with Calvin’s teachings or not, it is important to be familiar with these early reformers and how they shaped the events of their day and ours.

The Royal Diaries:  Elizabeth I is written from young Elizabeth’s point of view.  Really engaging style!

Megan is also reading A Cup of Cold Water by Christine Farenhorst. She has really been enjoying this book, so I’m hoping to purchase more from the series.

8 year old daughter
Lia has been working her way through the Little House on the Prairie books because she got tired of waiting for me to to read them aloud!

Lia is really to that point in her reading skills where she is devouring books.  I love this!  She reads anything that will sit still long enough for her to read it!

7 year old son
While Keian is still lacking in fluency, I’m seeing amazing strides in his reading these past couple of months!  He recently finished a pretty hefty book from Phonics Museum entitled The Rig Ran On.

I am so proud of him!

He is also really getting in to the old west.  He thumbs through the Mountain Man Sketchbooks we own every chance he gets!

The Littles
We started Five in a Row this year, so my littles and middles are getting a hefty dose of some great books.  Right now, we are reading Madeline and talking about France.

We’ve already read The Story About Ping and had a dinner of egg rolls and rice, and sucked on lemons as we read through Lentil.  It’s been tons of fun!

So, there you have it!  Our reading list this month…wow!  See any you like?  Want to share your own favorites?  Leave a comment!