“Hey Mom, smell this” is not a trap I generally fall into, but when Newt came to me yesterday afternoon with an old book in her hands, I acquiesced. There is just something about the smell of a book, you know?
New books smell very different from old. Library books smell different from those borrowed from a friend. They are all unique, but for the most part* they all smell wonderful.
I finally caved. I have put a Kindle on my Christmas wish list. I’d be willing to pay double if Amazon could make it smell like a real book…

What I’ve Been Reading
It’s just over two weeks until Christmas.
The house is still in need of much work.
I am leading Newt’s History Club meeting at our house this afternoon.
Reading for myself? I’ve got nothing.

What I’ve Been Reading to Newt
Plenty.
Carry on Mr. Bowditch
I can see why this book is a Newberry Award winner; it is fabulous. This is the true story of “Nat” Bowditch, a brilliant young boy growing up at the close of the Revolutionary War. His dreams of a Harvard education are cut short when he is indentured by his father to serve as a bookkeeper at a ship’s chandlery. Instead of allowing these circumstances ruin him, he chooses to educate himself. While I know that Bowditch eventually revolutionizes maritime navigation, I’m interested to see how he gets there. Newt and I are both enjoying this book.

Jesus the Christ
This is a wonderful book attesting to the divinity of Jesus Christ. However, it can also be fairly heavy and academic. I am slowly reading aloud the chapter about the birth of Jesus and taking time to discuss it with Newt. I don’t think we will go beyond that at this point, but it is a nice introduction for future study.

The Story of the Other Wise Man
I first read this story a couple of years ago and was very moved by it.
It is the story of another Magi, who had intended to accompany the well-known trio to greet the Christ child. Unfortunately for him, he is delayed by someone in need. When he finally arrives in Bethlehem, his companions are gone and the Holy family has fled into Egypt. The story chronicles his 33 year long search for the Messiah.
By the time I finished reading, Newt and I were both in tears. If you haven’t read this Christmas classic, I’d highly recommend it. (It is fairly short; we finished it in just a couple of hours.)

A Christmas Carol
One of our favorite Christmas classics.
On a side note, I have a little book crush on Dickens. He is an amazing writer, one of my absolute favorites.

What We’ve Been Listening To
The Fields of Home
This is the fifth book in the Little Britches Series and I just can’t say enough about how good they all are.
This one recounts what must have been a very frustrating period in Ralph’s life. He is sent to live with his grandfather, who quite frankly seems to have some serious mental problems. Grandpa alternates between berating Ralph for his supposed ignorance and babying him so that Ralph is unable to prove his worth.
We are hoping for some long drives in the days to come so we can see how it all turns out.

What Newt Has Been Reading
The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Newt is starting to develop a personal policy of Read the Book First. With the new movie coming out soon, she decided to get the book from the library. She loved it, both for the story and the fantastic illustrations. She has pored over this book.
I can tell you right now, no matter how good the movie may turn out to be, she’s going to find a lot of things wrong with it. The better the book, the greater chance the movie will mess it up.
(And the movie won’t smell as good as the book either…)

Disclaimer: I am using Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase anything from my links, I get a small commission (which is good because Newt now wants a Kindle too).

*Exceptions: Musty, water damaged books and books handled by heavy smokers. Kindle should probably leave those smells off when they develop scented versions.

Confidential aside to Walt: Even after 16 years, I’d still say yes. Happy anniversary.