Most people give me a slightly puzzled look when they hear my children are reading The Lord of the Rings. They're not entirely wrong. Tolkien isn’t exactly light reading for adults, let alone children. The books are long, the language is rich, and there are entire chapters where the plot pauses to wander through songs, histories and landscapes. “Isn't that a bit… heavy for them?” And yet over the past 13 months my children (now 10 and 8) and I have travelled all the way from the Shire to Mount Doom together. It turned out to be one of the most rewarding reading experiences we’ve ever shared as a family. What started as an experiment became something much bigger: a year-long shared adventure that strengthened their attention spans, sparked their imagination, and gave us a story world we can return to again and again. If you're wondering whether The Lord of the Rings is possible with younger readers, the short answer is: yes. But one small trick made all the difference. How ...
Hello again, February brought my first week of Unpaid Leave as well as a turn in the weather! Half Term First week of Unpaid Parental Leave came in February and after rain every day in January and the first couple of weeks in February, it was really nice for the weather to finally break and to get a few sunny days. I managed to get a night away at a Castle-fronted hotel in Bollington, just north of Macclesfield. The kids loved the hotel (Hollin House Hotel), it was very reasonable - especially given it was half term! - and very handy for walks in the area as well. We went on a 5k walk up a hill to see 'White Nancy', originally built as a summerhouse 200 years ago, and thought to have commemorated the Battle of Waterloo. We then walked down to a small hamlet with a waterfall, which the kids thought was absolutely fantastic. Lord of the Rings After starting the first Lord of the Rings book just over a year ago, me and the kids have finally finished the last one! We finished ...