Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

You recall that I drove my kiddos (plus one nephew!) to Idaho for fall break, to visit family?  Well, a few nights before we left I ran to the library to grab a book for my oldest (she’d checked it out of the school library, was almost finished with it, and had accidentally left it at school the day before it was due; when I realized that our nearest library had a copy available, I left her and her sisters and took my son with me to pick it up).  While there it occurred to me that since I’d been considering trying a book on CD for the drive, why not take advantage of my unexpected jaunt and do some browsing?  I came up with two options (I was limited, of course, to what was actually on the shelf); one was a book that I had checked out on my card and I thought might be nice to listen to, and the other was by Andrew Clements.  I’d never read anything by him, but I knew who he was; everything I knew suggested that he’d be well suited to the ages and genders I was going to have in the car with me.  I therefore checked out The Last Holiday Concert on 3 CDs, retrieved my 6-year-old from the Lego table, and headed home.  We left for our trip a few days later, and the rest, my friends, is history.

First of all, I’m a sucker for teacher/student success stories–and for the arts.  (AND for Christmas music.)  Throw in a good bit of humor, the poignancy of job loss, and some life lessons learned by all, and what’s not to love?  My 6-year-old fell asleep after lunch and his attention drifted when he woke up, but my older girls and my nephew listened and enjoyed–as did I.  I’ve never had a drive feel so short!  It was seriously a thing of beauty, and Clements was a delightful mix of humor and the feels, and guess who’s going to be looking for another few books by him the next time we’ve got a road trip planned?  In the meantime, this is the perfect book for you and your elementary schooler(s) to read between now and Christmas.  And Hanukkah.  And–you get the idea.  Grab it and read it now!