Some friends asked me to put together a list of interesting books we've found this year. I added in a few movies, games, and old favorites as well. Here's what we've been enjoying through the summer, fall, and winter.
The books that transcend all categories below are the YWAM Missionary Biographies. I highly recommend purchasing the entire series for your family or Church – despite the cost. It is the best investment we ever made – no exaggeration. They put all of today’s troubles and challenges into perspective – great reading for moms as well. You can find the set here.
The books that transcend all categories below are the YWAM Missionary Biographies. I highly recommend purchasing the entire series for your family or Church – despite the cost. It is the best investment we ever made – no exaggeration. They put all of today’s troubles and challenges into perspective – great reading for moms as well. You can find the set here.
ALL the Journeyforth (JF) books, available through BJU
Press, are excellent and my girls have loved them. The Arby Jenkins series is particularly appealing to boys,
as well as many other titles. These
are a wonderful investment for families, Churches, and homeschooling
groups. Start here for great
Christian themed fiction. Most have happy endings – all have Christian
worldview. You can order a catalog
here:
Some stories below have different religious sensibilities,
superstitions, and political ideas due to their cultural context. The mature themes symbol (**) is due to
violence such as the mass graves in A Million Shades of Gray. (Vietnam)
I am not listing the obvious favorites such as The Bronze
Bow, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,
Oliver Twist, Redwall, Chronicles of Narnia, etc. I’m assuming most parents are familiar
with these. I also have not listed
all the JF books below, but heartily
recommend ALL of them. The Middle
School and 9-12’s can be exchanged depending on the maturity/reading level of
the child.
*high boy interest
**mature themes
Read Alouds
The Year of Miss Agnes
Caddie Woodlawn
Breaking Stalin’s Nose*
Anne of Green Gables (girls)
The Little Princess (girls)
Heidi
Tchaikovsky Discovers America
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons
Young Readers
A Question of Yams (JF)*
Escape (JF)*
Pelts and Promises (JF)*
Little Pilgrims Progress
Prairie Anna
Carolina’s Courage
The Courage of Sarah Noble
Cora Frear
Squanto, Friend of Pilgrims*
Amy Carmichael (JF)
The Culdesac Kids
The Year of the Panda*
Betsy and Tacey
Nix
Perch, Mrs. Sackets, and Crow’s Nest
A Cricket in Times Square
The Family Under the Bridge
9-12 (many are
worthwhile for middle school level as well)
Yang the Youngest * (Chinese immigrants – boys and dads –
hilarious!)
Yang the Third Youngest (girl version of above)
Chu Ju’s House (China one child policy)
The Breadwinner* (Afghanistan)
Esperanza Rising (we listened to the audio book together
–Mexican immigrants)
Goodbye, Vietnam (South Vietnamese immigrants)
Arby Jenkins series (JF)* (humorous stories with Christian theme)
Sherlock Jones series (JF)* (kid who solves mysteries)
Peabody series (JF)
Trailblazer series (mostly ebooks now – coincide with lives
of missionaries)
Homeless Bird (Indian widow abandoned at 12 years old)
George Mueller (JF)
Red Thread Sisters (Chinese Adoption)
Silent Rescue (JF) (Eric Liddell on a China rescue, WWII)
The Sign of the Beaver
My Sister is a Pop Star (light reading trilogy for girls –
but clean)
Ben Carson (Today’s Heroes)
A Father’s Promise (JF) (WWII)
Best of Friends (JF)(learning about Down’s Syndrome)
Middle School
An Angel on the Square (Russian Revolution)
The Impossible Journey (sequel to above)
The Impossible Journey (sequel to above)
Mary, Bloody Mary
Beware, Princess Elizabeth
Listening for Lions (British African orphan)
Wings of Gold (JF) (Naval Aviator struggles with living out faith)
Daughter of a Thousand Pieces of Gold (China orphan)
A Million
Shades of Gray**(Vietnam minorities)
Red Scarf Girl (Cultural Revolution)
The House of Sixty Fathers* (WWII Japanese Invasion of
China)
Mara, Daughter of the Nile** (Egypt)
A Single Shard* (Korean orphan learns honor)
Diamonds in the Shadow* (African immigrants, thriller)
A Coming Evil (WWII, French Revolution, Ghosts)
Careful Enough (JF) (Chinese missionaries)
The Silent (JF) (school shooting with Christian perspective)
High School
Bruchko (19 year old missionary to South American Indians)
Safely Home (moving story of Christian persecution, Asia)
Peace Child (very violent – missionaries to cannibals)
Tortured for Christ (the Cold War - FREE from VOM)
God’s Smuggler (Behind the Iron Curtain)
Mutiny on the Bounty trilogy**
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Fahrenheit 454
Tale of Two Cities
In the Land of the Blue Burqa (Afghanistan – great mom’s
read, too!)
The Unlikely
Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University (a liberal Brown student goes undercover
to Liberty University – worthwhile read and he has the last interview with
Falwell before his death)
Movies
Nestfamily videos – Bible and Historical
Voice of the Martyrs videos – Eric Liddell is our favorite
Anne of Green Gables
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (Gladys Aylward)
Ben Hur
Mao’s Last Dancer** couple obviously lives together/breaks
up, but still good for younger if skipped.
Gifted Hands
The Little Princess (BBC)
The Captain of Castille
Zorro
Pirate movies with Tyrone Powers: Black Swan, Captain Blood
Drums Along the Mowhawk
Gone With the Wind
Robin Hood
A Candle in the Dark (William Carey)
Pearl Harbor Commentary (youtube)
The Secrets of Jonathon Sperry (Christian evangelism)
The Tale of Two Cities **(high school)
Favorite Educational Game
Bananagrams – LOVE this!!! Big families (more than 6 players) need the double set.
