It was with great delight that Sarah spent her Saturday watching her siblings’ high-school production of Macbeth. Spring is the season of theatricals, and a well-done Shakespeare play never goes amiss. Is the thespian glint in your neighbor’s son’s eye stirring some unrealized dream in your own child? Even if not, read on to find a stunningly illustrated adaptation of The Tempest and two different sources for excellent drama scripts.
A play! A play!
Marianna Mayer’s illustrations are quite rich and engaging, and this picture-book version of The Tempest (2005) is no exception.
If you’d like to put on your own play, but aren’t quite ready to tackle Shakespeare, Praise Him with Your Very Life is a collection of plays written by Mother Mary Francis P.C.C. Sarah has been longing to done one or more of these shows for years, and she is sure that one day, the right time and right cast will come along. Also, check out Kittywham Productions for a solid collection of skits and plays written by Sarah’s fellow Hillsdale College alum Rachelle Ferguson.
Children’s devotionals
Looking for an age-appropriate, worthwhile devotional for children? The old and beautiful tradition of meditating on the Scriptures (lectio divina) is explained and laid out well in this journal.
For younger children, My Path to Heaven, by Fr. Geoffrey Bliss and illustrated by Caryll Houselander, is charming.
March Madness
For many Americans, March is basketball month. Sarah is dreadfully ignorant about this sport, but she certainly appreciates its history—which you can learn more about in John Coy’s book Hoop Genius (2012).
Love for Betsy-Tacy
Anna K. Reynolds, over at Inspire Virtue, reviews Maud Hart Lovelace’s classic Betsy-Tacy series (1940-1955) and shows why it has endured.
Reading this review, Sarah was surprised to learn that Lois Lenski was the original illustrator for the first four Betsy-Tacy books. (She’d read the Lenski-illustrated version, but not heeded the illustrator’s name.) Reynolds also has a worthwhile read on Lenski’s life and work, particularly her “Regionals.” Sarah loves Strawberry Girl (1945), which is in this series, and was pleased to discover more titles from this source.
Chicken tales
Something, possibly the onset of spring, has Sarah thinking about chickens. Here are three books with a chicken as the heroine.
Louise: the Adventures of a Chicken by Kate DiCamillo (2008)
Henny Penny by Paul Galdone (1915)
The Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone (1918)
Easter eggs & hats
Patricia Polacco writes heartwarming stories, and here, for your Easter reading pleasure, are two of them:
Rechenka’s Eggs (1996)
Chicken Sunday (1998)
What the Kids are Reading
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