Name: Thrive! NCHE Homeschool Conference
Start: 2025-05-22T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-05-24T23:59:59-05:00
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

This topic has 4 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 3 months ago by Hope.

Viewing 5 posts - 1 through 5 (of 5 total)

Author
Posts
January 12, 2011 at 9:50 pm
Linabean
Participant
Hello, there seem to be many people who like this book. I just downloaded a free e-book copy of it and was kind of excited to have found it, actually. when I started to read it, however, I was concerned right of the bat with the mother/son relationship portrayed at the beginning. The mother seemed mean and the boy was downright disobedient! From those of you who have read this book with your kids, do these aspects get redeemed somehow through the book? Is there a lesson learned? I guess what I’m asking is, in your opinion, is there a good reason for us to read this book? Thanks for your time, ladies!
Blessings, Miranda
January 12, 2011 at 11:59 pm
art
Participant
We love this book. I think in part because it got my son excited to read a book on his own. We really forgot about the mother almost as soon as the story started, because the rest of it has nothing to do with that. It is total nonsense–I mean none of it could ever happen. A talking cat to start with and every everything the boy does is not even possible in reality. The boy doesn’t get all the way home at the end so the issue is never mentioned again. I guess we just didn’t pay attention to it since the rest of the book is totally unreal anyway. We are a very strict book family. I usually read everything with a black crayon nearby to mark out offensive things–black crayon works best. You could probably just mention to your kids that this isn’t the way we would actually want it and we feel sorry for this mom and son.
I definitely wouldn’t want to miss the fun of this book.
January 13, 2011 at 1:03 am
Esby
Member
I didn’t like that part either, and briefly commented my displeasure when reading it aloud, but the story quickly moves on and the mother is not part of the rest of the story. That book was a favorite first-chapter book for my kids and I wouldn’t toss it out just for that section.
January 13, 2011 at 2:04 am
RobinP
Participant
I agree. We loved the book. I remember saying something like, “Excuse me?? Is this the way we would talk to each other?” just to point out that I had noticed and wasn’t going to gloss over it. I was prepared to deal with it further but then it’s never mentioned again. I had actually forgotten it was part of the story until now.
January 13, 2011 at 2:38 am
Hope
Member
I completely forgot about that part. I do think I addressed it when we read it. We are now reading the 2nd one, Elmer and the Dragon. Our family absolutely love these books so far. I understand your concern, but it hasn’t been mentioned again in what we’ve read.