Feb 23 // Book Clubs // Picture Books
Reflecting on February's books and looking ahead to March!
Hello! This is the last book club newsletter for February, so we’ll spend some time reflecting and looking ahead. If you didn’t want to get this email, feel free to opt out. (More on that below.)
Grownup Book Club
Did you read Thirst by Scott Harrison? If not, here’s a 19-minute video that tells his story and it could very possibly make you cry.
For me (Hope) I was so touched by this memoir because, instead of just focusing on the bad news and desperate need for all people to have access to clean water, he focused on the good news that is a great opportunity.
Unlike many other problems in society, the clean water crisis is a very solvable problem. It’s sad (and angering) that billionaires who have more money than they could ever spend haven’t prevented this problem. However, normal people are showing up in big ways to help be part of the solution, and it’s exciting!
I also love how, as a charity, 100% of the donations go directly to the water projects, since Scott found a group of rich people who would fund the administrative and marketing expenses and etc. Other charities should take notes!
Next month’s Grownup Book Club is Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport. I’ve read several books about the topic of technology addiction, and this one was my favorite. I hope you’ll join me in reading (or listening to the audiobook.) Your library probably has a copy. Also, make sure you keep an eye out on your inbox because each month, we randomly choose five subscribers to receive the month’s book club pick!
Older Kid Book Club
Did you guys read A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park? That story is unbelievable, isn’t it? I had no idea the ending could be that happy or full of hope. Salva’s perseverance and concern for his people is so inspiring. The audiobook has an interview with him and the author, and you can also find his TedX talk on Youtube or below ⬇️
Hearing Salva’s story fills me with gratitude and helps me see purpose in the hard things that come to my own life.
Next month’s Older Kid Book Club is My Tech-Wise Life by Amy Crouch and Andy Crouch. Amy was 19 when she wrote this book, and she included a lot of research to show how technology affects young people and what they really want in life. Her parents were very intentional with technology use when she was growing up, so it’s interesting to hear her own take on the outcome.
(P.S. As of 2/21/22, My Tech-Wise Life is only $2.89 on BookOutlet.com!)
This Week’s Picture Book Recommendations
Hibernation Station by Michelle Meadows and illustrated by Kurt Cyrus is an imaginative take on how hibernation works. It’s a great book for fall, winter, or spring, but—even better—the gentle, cozy story will make your kid sleepy 😉
The Spiffiest Giant in Town by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler is a sweet, sing-songy book about generosity and sharing what you have.
No Small Potatoes by Tonya Bolden and illustrated by Don Tate tells the inspiring story of an extremely successful entrepreneur named Junius G. Groves who was born into slavery and overcame the odds to create something big.
Story Prompt
Write a story or draw a picture about what you would do if someone gave you $100,000 to start a business about something you cared about. (Depending on your child’s age level, you can adjust this number to whatever big number they can understand.)
As always, please reply to this email and tell us what stories or drawings your family came up with!
Next week we’ll start sharing quotes and takeaways from the book club books. Even if you don’t read the books, you’ll probably get something out of the discussion in these emails.
And if you don’t want these Wednesday emails, you can opt out of them. Go on FamilyScripts.Substack.com, then adjust your settings, and uncheck whichever emails you don’t want. We put out so much content that we don’t expect anyone to read all of it; we won’t be offended if you uncheck a few of the weekly emails 😉
Tomorrow’s newsletter is Meal Inspiration! See you then (if you get those emails.)
Warmly,
Hope from Family Scripts
Really well done sharing how to pick and choose what you want to receive on emails Hope.
Probably unsurprisingly, I love the book-focused edition of this newsletter 😊 Hibernation Station is so dang cute. And I love the message in The Spiffiest Giant in Town. No Small Potatoes is new to me (that's rare, so thank you!)
I've never read Digital Minimalism because I have had pretty good, strong boundaries with my phone for years (I work on a computer all day so that's a bit harder, but I have good boundaries with that, too, as soon as I leave the office) -- still, I've heard such good things I think I need to finally check it out.