The joy of reading a book together

Books ar meant to be shared. Books are written by a solitary author, in a solitary place, to be released into a world of avid readers who then will read that story, absorb it, process it then expose their understanding to others. Edmund Wilson states: "No two persons ever read the same book." We all come a story with different backgrounds, insights, and experiences. It is through these that we understand and interpret the story that is before us. It is important therefore that we talk about the story from our perspective to others, we read reviews about how the story made others feel and how it affected them, we listen to others opinions to compare and contrast that story within ourselves. Stories enrich our living experiences and are very, very social entities. Talk about the stories you read together with your kids. What did you think about that? Did she make the right choice doing what she chose to do? What would you have done if you had to make that choice? Would you have done something else? What part of the story intrigued you the most? What part did you hate? How did the story make your feel? Should your baby brother/sister read this story or is it for bigger kids like you? If you read this story out loud to grandma the next time she came to visit would she like it? Did they have a computer in the story when grandma was a little girl? Maybe you could ask her what books she read when she was growing up. Etc., etc., etc. Keep the conversation going and the ideas flowing. Internalize and own the stories you read. Be open-minded to other's interpretations and be confident to share how you understood the book. Have fun. Read with a friend, family member but most of all....share the word. Read on.