Given it was our first Kids Book Club meeting for 2020, we kicked it off with a wonderful read about a library and a lion! We don’t have all those rules in our Book Club library, but we certainly have a few “library lions” prowling around!
Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen (ISBN: 9781406305678) is a beautifully touching story, brilliantly illustrated, leaving the reader with a sense of nostalgia.
One day, a lion came to the library. He sniffed the card index, rubbed his head against the new book collection, and curled up waiting for story time. But there were rules in the library! No running; and absolutely no noise – the librarian, Miss Merriweather, was very particular about rule-breaking. And if the lion couldn’t be quiet, he wouldn’t be allowed back into the library, even though he proved to be of great help dusting the encyclopedias and licking envelopes for the overdue notes.
When Miss Merriweather has an unfortunate accident, the lion breaks the rules to try and help her. But he knows what it means – he wouldn’t be allowed back into the library. So he hung his head and walked out the door…
But things are just not the same without him, and the lion, Miss Merriweather, Mr McBee as well as the reader learn that sometimes there is a good reason, and it is okay, to break the rules!
We had a wonderful gathering, and it is always exciting, inspiring and heartwarming all at the same time to watch our little members select books and compete who’s going to read which book first!
What was even more satisfying, was the dad that also attended! Parents don’t always realize that kids take a cue from us! If we are involved (dads too…), they feel it is important to attend, because it is important enough for mom/dad (or grandma/granddad) to take time out of their busy schedule to be there too. If they see us reading, loving books, they will likely also develop a love for reading and enrich their own lives a hundred-fold!
PS. It is okay for parents to read picture books! Picture books are not necessarily only for preschoolers – a well-written picture book speaks to people of all ages – and that’s why we add those types of picture books to our library. Picture books are a quick read, leaving you with no excuse for your children NOT to catch you reading (setting the example)!
Hoping to see you all at our next meeting on 29 February 2020! Calling all dads (and those moms who don’t stay for the story) to please join us! At the end of our story reading, we usually have a review of some of our exceptional children’s reads to guide you in selecting a book for your child. This month, Leigh did a review on Tales of Hans Christian Andersen (retold by Naomi Lewis – ISBN: 9780394950105), and spoke a bit about the importance of reading classic stories (like those by Hans Christian Anderson) and why they are so powerful.
Until next time,
Happy Reading!
