Summer is a time when life slows down just enough for me to catch up on some reading that I enjoy. So far this summer, I have completed eight books. Here are four recommendations:
My favorite fiction book of the summer is a young adult book Out of my Mind by Sharon Draper. This book tells the story of a girl born with cerebral palsy. The story helps kids to understand the challenges of having a disability, especially one that affects your body but not necessarily your brain.
Breakthrough by Joyce Smith is an amazing true story about the miraculous healing of a boy who drowned. This one has actually proven to be the most challenging book I have read so far this summer because just two weeks after finishing it, friends of our family unexpectedly lost their six-year old son to complications surrounding a congenital heart defect. While I don’t understand why God chose differently for these two situations, I know that He is in control and that He has a plan.
I have also read two books that will be useful as a parent and an educator. The first was The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog by Bruce D. Perry. This book gives stories of children who have experienced trauma and how Dr. Perry has learned to help these children. While the stories were difficult to read, the strategies he recommends are very useful.
Finally, the most recent book that I have read is A Mother’s Reckoning by Sue Klebold, the mother of one of the Columbine High School killers. This book is an excellent read especially for parents. Sue now works with suicide prevention and gives significant insight into potential signs of depression and suicidality (her son Dylan suffered from both).
I hope that each of you has also had some time to dedicate to reading this summer.