A Womans Blog

Ok - I LOVE LOVE books. I love to read. I consider myself a writer, albeit not prolific. But for me, a writer is not what you do, it’s what you are.

So, naturally, I want my kids to love reading like I do. Thankfully, they do. But I have one tip for really making reading special. Tell your kids they can’t do it. Sounds backwards, but last year my then 6 year old bugged me to read Harry Potter to him all year long.

My response? ‘Honey, that is a special book and one that you cannot read until you are at least in the 2nd grade.’ Man, that made him eager. And it drove him nuts. And much like a boycott of The Last Temptation he couldn’t stand not knowing what the fuss was about and why why why he had to wait.

So, now that school is just weeks away, I ‘broke down’ (wink, wink) and have started reading him the first of the Harry Potter books. You would have thought I was giving him the absolutely best gift in the world (I am) or that I had just told his 16 year old self that the shiny red corvette in the drive was his for the taking (I won’t). It’s great. I’m having fun; he’s having fun.

Once, I overheard a mom tell her kids that when they get home they would have to sit on the couch and read instead of watching TV since they did xyz when she told them not to do it. Wow - if she just realized that by making books the punishment she could be ending a potentially life long love of reading. 

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