@Melissa, I’ve been having similar “light bulb” moments the entire time I’ve been reading The Living Page. I LOVE the simplicity I’m finding for our children and myself. It’s carrying over into other areas of life.
I am realizing that quite a bit of what I’ve tried to consider/implement as CM in nature, I just couldn’t pull off….mainly because it’s been dramatically more complicated than necessary, or too expensive and necessary to ditch.
Okay, please don’t throw stones at me ladies, but I’ve read The Living Page and didn’t like it. I wrote a review like I promised, you can read my reasons there. It was quite the eye-opener to read The Living Page while I am watching Simply Charlotte Mason’s new dvd seminar Living and Learning. One is clear like a friend coming alongside me sharing about Charlotte’s methods. The other is not.
Tristan, I just read your review WHILE making dinner, and I just want to say “thank you!” for posting a dissenting voice from all the praise. I neither agree nor disagree since I haven’t read it, but I do feel that on forums and even IRL groups it can be hard to go against the flow. So…thank you.
And I am still really looking forward to reading the book and drawing my own conclusions too. 🙂
I have to agree with you, Tristan. I did not feel like it was worth the money I spent. I will say that the history chart explanation was helpful for me, but the rest of the information was not practical FOR ME and I did not feel like I learned anything new. That said, I do think it would be good inspiration for someone who is not already inspired. (I hope that makes sense.) I was personally looking for less inspiration and more practicality. And, FWIW, the Book of Centuries explanation was great for anyone who doesn’t quite get the concept. It did inspire me to get my moleskine out and turn it a real CM Book of Centuries, which I had resisted doing for the last couple of years. So maybe it was worth the money I spent.
For those that are considering purchasing this book, I’d like to encourage you to read Tristan’s review first. Those of us who’ve given it rave reviews may be misleading some of you into ordering a book that won’t fit your needs right now. It’s a book I will keep because it’s written in a style I enjoy reading and I appreciate what I’ve learned and will likely be digging through it more than this second time. However, Tristan’s review would be a blessing to those who are looking for something quite different.