Friday, January 9, 2009

Ages 12-16: Zarah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu


Zarah the Windseeker is by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu. Zarah, a dada girl or girl with special powers, goes on a dangerous journey through the forbidden jungle to save her friend Dari.
On the way to get the elegort egg (the elegort is like an elephant but much fiercer) she is faced with many challenges and learns how to better control her powers.

If you like fantasy books you'll love this book.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Books We Have Read as a Family

Since we've begun homeschooling we've started the practice of listening to books in the car. Last year when we were in traditional school we read The Tale of Desperaux aloud. It was a great book, and we went to see the movie last month. Reading aloud is great, but I am really loving listening in the car. These are the books we've listened to so far.

The Dark Flight Down, by Marcus Sedgwick. It was an interesting read from start to finish. The book took many turns and had lots of twists, and it was good for every member of our family. Including our littlest daughter, who is 7 years old. Daddy loved this one too, and his interest in this book encouraged us girls to get books that are a little less girly for the enjoyment of us all.



We also read The first book in the Main Street Series, Welcome to Camden Falls by Ann M Martin. It is one of those girly-girl books. My girls and I loved it, but hubby made fun of it because he said it seemed to be about nothing. The girls in this book have lost their parents, and begin a new life in a new city. It's great for girls 7 - 13 years I think.




These books we've borrowed right from our local library in CD format. They allowed us a full three weeks to keep them, plus renewal if needed. It is a great activity we've added to our family time, and if you are looking for some real connection in the car, try reading a book on tape. It was really great for our 7-hour long Thanksgivings journey this year. It gave us a chance to break away from ipods, video games, and long mommy/ daddy chats.

I'll post about some of the others later.