I actually feel similar about these books. I always schedule them anyway, though. I have found, recently, that they NEED to look at the pictures while it is being read (not afterwards) and only read small portions at a time. Then we often discuss what we have just read instead of narrating it because I would get NOTHING in a narration! So, yeah, the retention thing can be difficult with these books in my experience. my seven yr. old especially, doesn’t really understand a lot of it.
One thing I am trying this year, for both retention and understanding purposes, is to watch the film version of the book that was read right after we finish reading the book. We watched it in two sittings and it seemed as though they were able to start making more connections during the viewing. Remembering parts of the book in connection to the movie, being able to understand what was going on and there were a few “OOOH’s” when it seemed like it was a bit of a lightbulb moment.
But, yeah, I’m with you on your take on these books. Great illustrations, text is a bit bland for kids and can be difficult to retain. : 0
-Miranda