"Read the best books first, or you may not have a chance to read them at all."
~Henry David Thoreau
I continue to be amazed at the power of a list when it comes to being intentional. I'm just now posting Little Big Man's list, and yet he's already finished several of the books. :) Of course, he's chosen these in addition to his readings from Ambleside, and I do envy his progress a bit. The best part is that he's really enjoying the books, and I'm hoping I can squeeze a few reviews out of him. (the titles marked through are the ones that have been read)
Little Big Man's Reading Goals for 2010
History
1776 by David McCullough
Biography
The Journal of a Trapper by Osborne Russell
Jedidiah Smith by Dale L. Morgan
A Heart Promptly Offered~The Revolutionary Leadership of John Calvin
Fiction/Historical Fiction
Mr. Bliss by J.R.R. Tolkien
Iron Scouts of the Confederacy by Lee McGiffin
The Dash for Khartoum by G.A. Henty
The Jacobite Exile by G.A. Henty
The Escape by A. Van der Jagt
Sword Song by Rosemary Sutcliff
Education
Theology/Discipleship
Chosen by God by R.C. Sproul
Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer
Holiness by J.C. Ryle
Adventures of Missionary Heroism by John C. Lambert
How to be a Man~Useful Hints on the Formation of Character by Harvey Newcomb
(psst...don't tell him, but I do think he'll have this list finished way before the end of the year and will be adding titles to the list....just a mother's intuition)
Queen Mom's Did-I-Bite-Off-More-Than-I-Can-Chew-Especially-with-a-New-Baby-On-the-Way-? 2010 Reading Goals
Biography
In Trouble and in Joy (various) by Sharon James
Marriage to a Difficult Man (Life of Jonathan Edwards) by Elisabeth D. Dodds
Beyond Stateliest Marble (Anne Bradstreet) by Douglas Wilson
Jonathan Edwards by Iain Murray
Homemaking/Organization
Getting Things Done by David Allen
Ready for Anything by David Allen
Sink Reflections by Marla Cilley
Fix, Freeze, Feast by Kati Neville
A Life that Says Welcome by Karen Ehman
Keeping House by Margaret K. Peterson
Education
A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver V. DeMille
The Wisdom of Fenelon by Fenelon
When Children Love to Learn ed. Elaine Cooper
From Playpen to Podium by Jeffrey L. Myers
The Harp and Laurel Wreath by Laura M. Berquist
When You Rise Up by R.C. Sproul, Jr.
So Much More by Ann and Elizabeth Botkin
Laying Down the Rails by Sonya Shafer
Life Skills for Kids by Christine Field
Christian Growth/Discipleship
All Things for Good by Thomas Watson
The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul
Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung
Respectable Sins by Jerry Bridges
The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis
Discipline by Elisabeth Elliot
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald
The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
Family Life
Home-Making by J.R. Miller
Your Family God's Way by Wayne A. Mack
Shepherding a Child's Heart by Ted Tripp
The Peacemaker by Ken Sande
The Contemplative Mom by Ann Kroeker
Not So Fast by Ann Kroeker
Shaping of a Christian Family by Elisabeth Elliot
Fiction/Classics
Animal Farm by George Orwell
The Daisy Chain by Mary E. DeMuth
Witch Wood by John Buchan
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy
Financial
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
How to be the Family CFO by Kim Snider
Culture
Ideas Have Consequences by Richard Weaver
All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes by Kenneth Myers
As I was making my own list, I realized that I suffer from a severe case of Attention Deficit Disorder when it comes to reading. I want to read it all, and I get easily distracted by each new book title that I discover. I'm hoping a list will help me stay a bit more focused.
This list is also stretching me a bit because there are some genres that I tend to read very little from.....like fiction and culture. So, I was quite intentional about making myself read from broader categories than I would typically choose from. Writing everything out helped me see my weaknesses.
I'll be happy if I conquer half this list this year, but if there are any books listed that you consider "must reads," please let me know so I can make it one of my priorities! Happy reading!
~Queen Mom
wow, Queen Mom, you all inspire me! This year I again set a goal of reading 30+ books and I know what I want to read, but I think it might help me, like you, to actually write out the books that I want to read. We already have several of the same books on our lists: Mere Christianity, The Imitation of Christ, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and Animal Farm! ...and the quote is great!
ReplyDeleteGo Little Big Man! You have quite the list too. I'm sure you will have many hours of sheer enjoyment as you read these books =)
Thanks for the encouragement, Caity! How wonderful that we'll be reading some of the same books. I look forward to talking about them with you. And, yes, I love that quote, too! Hugs! :)
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