Chosen Daughters

I think historical fiction is a great way for children (and adults) to learn about life in certain cultures and time periods and am really pleased to have found another series that I can recommend.  The Chosen Daughters series is written by various authors and is intended to focus in on 'ordinary' women who through God's grace were able to stand firm in difficult times. Each woman shines as an example to us of real living faith. I recently read 'Weight of a Flame: The Passion of Olympia Morata' which is about a lesser known character in Italy who lived during the time of the Reformation. I really enjoyed it. The historical detail was there but not overpowering, the fictional content was gripping but not too fanciful and the spiritual application was sound. Particularly helpful was the list of characters & details about them, plus a map & also an author's note about roughly which parts were true & which were fictional.

For anyone looking for reading material for children, I would place this between Beth Coombe Harris (easier storylines) and Deborah Alcock (more complex historically).

It was fascinating to find out a bit more about the author Simonetta Carr in this interview on the 'RedeemedReader' blog.

Lorna

'Weight of a Flame' by S Carr, published by P & R, £8.99

Education of Children

There seems to be a lot of heat generated by debates on methods of education. State school or private school?  Homeschool, faith school or unschool? Having young children naturally presents these issues to any family and there is plenty of reading material around to help us in our choices. Sadly often proponents of each camp can be rather militant about their particular view which tends to put off rather than convince the genuine enquirer. Home education is an increasingly popular choice amongst both Christians and non-Christians and there are plenty of books advocating this and the variety of methods for undertaking it.
Recently though I came across a book that bucked the trend. 'Going Public' was written to encourage Christian parents who make the choice to send their children to state schools. It is not militant in its approach, but helpful in the principles it lays out. The book gives a refreshingly different perspective and it is a welcome addition to my bookcase. It is the only one I know of written from this viewpoint, and although it needs some sifting for a British reader (it is very much based on the American public education system) I really feel that it fills a gap. Starting from birth, and the essential principles of discipline & education in the home, it emphasizes the importance of continuing this input throughout school life. Written by a couple who have had 8 children through state schools it is chock-full of practical advice & constructive strategies for engaging with schools rather than 'handing over' to schools. I cannot agree with all the theology in the book, but I can recommend it as a challenging, informative & inspiring read.
Lorna
Going Public, by David & Kelli Pritchard, published by Regal, £7.99

Making the Right Impression

21 fascinating accounts of British home educating families. Particularly interesting because most books of this type are written by American home educators with the inevitable cultural differences being quite apparent. The stories in this book cover a wide range of families -large & small, single parents, part schooling/part home ed, structured, flexible etc. For anyone interested in the subject of Home Education - whichever side of the fence they feel to be on - I would recommend this as a good starting point.
Lorna