Product Description

Everything you need from how to choose good books for your children to encouraging them to be avid readers, this fourth edition also includes an indexed and updated list of the best children’s classics ever.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #22796 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780310242468
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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From the Back Cover
Family favorite now revised and updated, including an annotated list of books for ages 0-12

Everything parents need to know to find the best books for their children

Since its publication in 1969, this has been an essential guide for parents wanting to find the best books for their children. Now in its fourth edition, Honey for a Child’s Heart discusses everything from the ways reading affects both children’s view of the world and their imagination to how to choose good books. Illustrated with drawings from dozens of favorites, it includes an indexed and updated list of the best new books on the market and the classics that you want your children to enjoy. Author Gladys Hunt’s tastes are broad, her advice is rooted in experience, and her suggestions will enrich the cultural and spiritual life of any home.

About the Author
Gladys Hunt is a well-known author and speaker. Her recent books include Honey for a Woman’s Heart, Honey for a Teen’s Heart, and Honey for a Child’s Heart (revised edition). She has also written numerous Bible study guides for the Fisherman and Lifeguide series. She lives with her husband, Keith, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Bequest of Wings I’m going to play in the Hundred Acre Wood," said the small boy who lived at our house. I knew what he meant and where he was going, and so I said, "Fine. If you see Owl, be sure to ask him about Eeyore’s tail." We knew about Eeyore, Pooh, Piglet, Owl, and Christopher Robin. Together we had met them in a book written by A. A. Milne, and our life would always be richer because they had become our friends. To this day I feel sorry for anyone who hasn’t made their acquaintance by reading the original book. That is what a book does. It introduces us to people and places we wouldn’t ordinarily know. A good book is a magic gateway into a wider world of wonder, beauty, delight, and adventure. Books are experiences that make us grow, that add something to our inner stature. Children and books go together in a special way. I can’t imagine any pleasure greater than bringing to the uncluttered, supple mind of a child the delight of knowing the many rich things God has given us to enjoy. Parents have this wonderful privilege, and books are their keenest tools. Children don’t stumble onto good books by themselves; they must be introduced to the wonder of words put together in such a way that they spin out pure joy and magic. I had an eloquent older journalism professor at the university who frequently got carried away in trying to convince his students about the marvel of words. He would exclaim rapturously, "Oh, the beauty and mystery of words! What richness can be conveyed by those who master them!" And while we youthfully mocked him as we recounted his dramatic incantations to our friends, we ourselves coveted the mastery of words, the symbols that convey ideas. We knew that what he said was true. Take all the words available in the human vocabulary and read them from the dictionary, and you have only a list of words. But with the creativity and imagination God has given human beings, let these words flow together in the right order and they give wings to the spirit. Every child ought to know the pleasure of words so well chosen that they awaken sensibility, great emotions, and understanding of truth. This is the magic of words—a touch of the supernatural, communication that ministers to the spirit, a true gift. We cannot underestimate the use of words in creative thought! Proverbs says, "A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver." The right word in the right place is a magnificent gift. Some-how a limited, poverty-stricken vocabulary works toward equally limited use of ideas and imagination. On the other hand, the provocative use of the right words, of a growing vocabulary, gives us adequate material with which to clothe our thoughts and leads to a richer world of expression. What fun it is to encourage a personal awareness of words in a child—the delight of sound, the color and variety of words available to our use. What a difference there is between a vocabulary drill and feeling the beauty of words. Books, the right kind of books, can give us the experience of words. They have power to evoke emotion, a sense of spiritual conviction, an inner expansion that fills a child to the brim so that "the years ahead will never run dry." Listen to Barbara Cooney’s description of winter in Island Boy, "When the house had been banked with spruce boughs and the firewood cut for winter, the bitter cold came. Matthais would wake with the tip of his nose like ice. The windowpanes frosted over, and the wind whistled in the chimney. Sea smoke hung over the open water. Then the children would crowd into the steamy kitchen, learning to read and write under Ma’s fierce eye."

What wonderful feelings, smells, and scenery these words give to the reader, quite apart from Cooney’s sensitive pictures. The words are ordinary, but well-chosen. From stories like these children learn how to use language. Capturing Experiences with Words Words and experience go together. One enriches the other. I like to remember the night we stayed late after a family picnic along an isolated lake in the north woods—far past normal bedtime for children. We watched the rosy glow of the sunset color the sky on the far side of the lake and darken the silhouettes of the trees. We felt the sand shed its warmth and take on a damp coolness. And then darkness fell over our world. We sat around the campfire and listened to the night sounds. Young ears picked up things older ears hadn’t heard. What we heard we tried to express in words. Deep-voiced bullfrogs far away, anxious peepers closer by, the gentle lap of the water on the shore, the loon crying in the distance, the crackle of the wood in the fire, the sparks going upward like brief fireflies. And then, as a special gift, a whippoorwill, a shy bird usually heard only from a distance, lit in the bush just behind us and startled us with his clarity of song. Later we watched the moon rise over the trees. We felt beauty; we heard and saw it. We tried to clothe the experience with the right words, so we could remember. Well-chosen words need only be few in number, but they help store away the pleasure of the adventure. We have awakened a small boy at midnight to marvel at the colors in the northern lights. We have stood on hillsides and described the numerous shades of springtime greens across the landscape. It’s a marvelous game of awareness and words.

Customer Reviews

Family focused book about the value of reading
In this book, the author writes about what makes a book a good book and why reading to oneself and why reading aloud is important and then provides a long bibliography of recommended books. What makes this book special and different from other books (i.e. "Read Aloud Handbook") is that this book is completely family focused. It is written for an intended audience of parents and stresses using reading as an important activity that bonds families together.

Hunt feels that good books feed the soul, teach values, and build character. When one connects with a character emotionally, lessons will naturally be learned from reading the story and getting to know and love the characters. Only good books fit the bill for nourishing the soul, only good books provide "honey". Hunt quotes Eric Fromm, who wrote that he feels that children need "milk" and "honey" to thrive: the milk is the parent providing for the child's physical needs, and the "honey" is the "sweetness of life, that special quality that gives the sparkle within a person". Hunt and Fromm agree that only a minority of children are receiving "honey" from their parents, a parent must first love honey and have it to give, and that not every parent has it to give. Hunt feels that "good books are rich in honey".

There are 124 pages of discussion about good books and the value of selecting good books. Good books make children wonder, laugh, and that contains spiritual, emotional, and intellectual dimensions. There is not much dedicated to selecting books for toddlers and preschoolers although there are plenty of books for that age range in the book list. Unlike other books, this is purely opinion and the author does not spend time discussing results from studies about reading aloud. This book does not discuss issues such as problems that schools have with teaching reading or dealing with children who are not read to, or discussing problems with illiterate children and adults, or other societal educational matters-this book is focused on the family unit and speaks to parents about using reading and books to enrich the lives of their children.

Not a lot of time is spent talking about what makes a bad book, and specific examples are not given of bad books. I was a bit disappointed that the issue of guns and violence in books for preschoolers was not mentioned. Hunt does discuss negative content in books for upper elementary grades and teens. Hunt states it is a bad idea to fashion stories around common life problems for the sake of dosing up the books with realism: no matter how sad or pointless it is. To inject these negative issues in a manner that leaves the reader feeling sad and hopeless accomplishes nothing positive, and only serves to squash the child's spirit. Hunt states that it is now common for books to feature rape, sexual problems, and illicit drug and alcohol use.

Hunt is Christian and evidence of this is speckled here and there but I don't think it will be offensive to non-Christians. There are 12 pages dedicated to a chapter about reading aloud from the Bible as a daily family experience.

This edition contains 85 pages of book lists. The books are first divided into three age ranges, then by type such as picture book or series. From there the books are arranged by complexity of content, and then alpha by author. There is an index by author name only. Trying to look up a single book title to see if Hunt recommends it is not possible. Some of the entries contain no description, most contain one sentence description, and some contain 2 or 3 sentences for a description. This book lists contain works of fiction, not non-fiction such as books about trains or other "real" things that young children do love to read about-there are plenty of other ways to find those books, though.

I loved that Hunt brings into the discussion, the role of family and creating a safe and comfortable home for the child. There is a chapter about influences in the child's life: good and bad. Television is discussed, very lightly, for its problems such as helping contribute to short attention spans in preschool aged children, squelching creativity, and that the violent content of many shows and evening news programs does nothing but corrupt the soul. Good books are often translated into movies (Disney and such) but rarely compare to the quality and depth as the story as told in the book version. Hunt basically cautions to selectively watch TV but to make sure children get a daily dose of reading good books rather than spending valuable time sitting in front of poor content television shows and commercials. There are other books on the market that cite the studies and discuss the problems with television such as "Endangered Minds", if that is something you are interested in learning more about.

I love that Hunt is writing about the importance of family life and the value of reading as a family bonding experience, rather than the more common urging of parents to read anything at all to their children just so they would be interested in reading when the time comes to teach them to read. I am sick of hearing that parents should read anything, anything at all, to their children as a way to interest them in reading-I believe that content does matter!

Hunt's analysis of what constitutes a good book and her urging to use books to elevate the child's spirit is refreshing to read about. Hunt writes with clarity and this book is quick read but the important message will stay with you and inspire you. This book would make a great gift for new parents or grandparents; it makes an easy "wish list" to use as a buying guide. The price of this book is inexpensive and will save you time searching for good books in the library or bookstores, and it will save you money when you are buying books so I recommend it for every parent and grandparent.

Love good books? You need this one to help you find them!
The subtitle of this book says it all: "The Imaginative Use of Books in Family Life". Gladys Hunt will promote the imaginative use of books in your family in two ways, corresponding to the two halves of this book. In the first half of this book, Hunt shares her insights and ideas about the value of reading, the usefulness of different genres, her notions about what makes a good book, and useful guidelines on how to select good books. Unfortunately, Hunt does not always express her thoughts and ideas in a completely coherent manner, but it would be a serious mistake to avoid this book for that reason. What she does have to say is earnest, sincere, passionate, and incredibly valuable. In the course of her sometimes unstructured ramblings, Hunt passes on many valuable insights about reading, such as the value of fantasy and poetry, and the positive contribution books can make in a child's life in contrast to the negative influence of the media. What I really treasured, however, were the multitude of practical hints about making books come alive in the home. Hunt offers terrific suggestions about reading stories out loud together as a family, and even shares worthwhile ideas to make family Bible reading more profitable. The first half of this book alone makes this book worth purchasing, because if you apply some of these ideas they are sure to make books come alive in your home.

But what really makes this book a treasure is the second half, which is an extensive annotated bibliography of books worth reading, arranged by their suitability for various ages. One might be tempted to quibble about a few favorite titles which have not been included, but you can't overlook the fact that this is a very comprehensive list that includes most children's classics and many more. Parents who truly enjoy literature often are faced with the challenge of finding good literature. Hunt makes this challenge a piece of cake, because here is a ready-to-use list of titles worth reading, an almost never-ending supply of books to keep your family busy nearly life-long. She has done the hard work for us - mined through the endless number of books on library shelves, and passed on to us what is truly the honey that is worth reading. As a Christian, Hunt is also very discerning and has a taste for what is truly good. Yet her Christian filtering is not so narrow minded that it excludes all secular classics or great works of literature. She has an appreciation for all literature that is quality literature, and so anyone who enjoys good literature will find her annotated bibliography most valuable.

In short, if you enjoy reading good books and want your children to do the same, then you cannot do without this book! The fact that this book is now in its third edition proves that many before me have found this book most useful. If you do not yet have a passion for good children's books, reading this book is sure to change that. And if you already have such a fiery passion, this book will only fuel that passion all the more. Come to think of it, I have to run: "Come on kids, we're going the library!"

Get it!
I love books and could just kick myself for not having gotten this sooner. I found her chapters on the philosophy of reading, types of literature, etc. VERY thought-provoking and inspiring (as well as confirming of some things I already thought!). She brought some balance to issues many parents face, especially if you are homeschooling or have bright/advanced children. For instance, I tend to read my girl things I like, but that meant I was not bringing her home books on her emotional level to broader her experience in those things. Hunt tells a story of a girl she knew whose parents did this and the result was the girl was disconnected from kids her own age; she needed to learn the simple lessons and values in those kids books even if she could sit still and listen to longer books or read harder books beyond her years. So my daughter and I have been having fun going back through the library and finding the books listed... We've found some new favorites too! You definitely don't want to miss this book!