WTBA is a collection of and conversation about powerful books that strengthen, elevate, inspire and help to grow powerful, resilient kids. We're a book oriented guide for parents, grandparents, educators, aunts, uncles and anyone involved in nurturing children and caring for friends.
Excerpted from Dreaming Too Loud, the story of the head teacher who would send new teachers this letter: "Dear Teacher, I’m a survivor of a concentration camp. My eyes saw what no man should witness..... So I’m suspicious of education..."
Read MoreBlossum Possum is the first alarmist to believe the sky is falling and she decides to tell the Prime Minister. There's danger and suspense along the way but each character oozes personality and attitude.
ages baby to 8 years
Colum McCann has written a whole slew of novels, including Let The Great World Spin. Here, we feature his very personal thoughts in an article via The New York Times - one to make you smile and nod and think.
Read MoreAge guide: 4 to 8
I bought a copy of this for my family and one for my nephew David – who was not at all dreadful, making it an especially funny book for our family.
Dreadful David is one busy little kid – he wreaks havoc at Granny’s house. She is stalwart in the face of all the trouble but slowly her smile begins to fade. The last straw comes when David hoses Granny – he’s already hosed the letter box, the kitten and more.
Granny, being of the old school variety, changes David, smacks his bottom and puts him to bed. David yells for a while but finally goes to sleep and Granny comes in and kissed him on the cheek.
Read MoreAge guide: 4 to 12
Our oldest boy, who is now an English teacher, had a thing for idioms. He was 15 by the time this book was published but still got a laugh out of it.
The bee in Ben’s bonnet is that he wants his large family to celebrate his birthday but they are all too involved with life to talk to him.
Each family member has something going on that is described in a well known idiom, for example, ‘Godfather Maurice was burying the hatchet’. The very funny illustrations flesh out the story
Read MoreMrs Noah watches Noah building an ark in the middle of a drought and does what many a wife has done – smiled indulgently, sniggered a bit about her husband’s eccentricities and continued on her merry way.
But when Noah starts collecting giraffes, Mrs Noah starts thinking and decides that just in case Noah is right she might as well start collecting fruit and vegetable seed and cuttings.
And then she really gets on board!
Read MoreAge guide: 2 to 8 years & grown-up
With the friendliest looking boa constrictor ever greedily gobbling children on a nature walk with their teacher (it’s pink and green instead of the usual yellow and green or brown) – this is a joyful and funny book. It’s especially funny if you could possibly be one of the people the book is inscribed to: ‘all absent-minded parents and enthusiastic teachers’.
Which I imagine covers most adults at one time or another.
This is the story of a school nature walk gone horribly wrong, then most satisfyingly redeemed.
Read MoreA conversation about books + kids. A website resource and book reviews for educators, parents, grandparents. The main focus is emotional resilience.
