Have you ever read a book and felt like you’d actually been to that place?Me too. Once, while standing in line at an amusement park, I met a couple who told me they were visiting from Maine. And I almost said, “Oh, I was just in Maine!” Except I’ve never actually been to Maine. I had just read a book that was set in Maine, and it was so immersive, it felt like I’d been there.That’s the power of books. They take you places.Books help us experience different narratives and cultures from all over the world and throughout history. They give us a taste of places and people we might not otherwise encounter. Reading books can enhance our real travel experiences, too.Today, I’ve invited RAR Premium Coordinator Leilani Curtis to join me to talk about how books take us places. Plus, we’ll share a very fun new booklist we’ve created and plans for a whole new series of lists that will be coming up! In this episode, you’ll hear: How stories help us forge connections to placesOur perspective about the way reading can inspire family adventures, big and smallTips for tailoring travel reading around your child’s interests and your destinationLearn more about Sarah Mackenzie:Read-Aloud RevivalWaxwing BooksSubscribe to the NewsletterFind the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/books-take-you-places
📖 Order your copy of Painting Wonder: How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon.
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35:17
Best of RAR: Reading for Fun is More Important than You Think
Lately here at RAR we’ve been talking about reading for refreshment—reading for the pure joy of it—and how our own reading lives can be a source of energy and joy even in the throes of the busiest seasons of motherhood.This week on the podcast, we're revisiting an episode that dives into why reading isn’t just good for us and our kids, but why reading for fun is also an important part of our jobs.In this episode, we talk about why it’s so important and what it does for our kids and for us. I hope you’ll be inspired to ramp up the reading for fun in your own life, no matter what else you have on your plate.In this episode, you’ll hear: How modeling your own love for reading helps your kids fall in love with reading for lifeWhy even short reading breaks are beneficial Tools and resources to help you step away from the laundry and make time to readLearn more about Sarah Mackenzie:Read-Aloud RevivalWaxwing BooksSubscribe to the NewsletterFind the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/reading-for-fun
📖 Order your copy of Painting Wonder: How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon.
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37:48
RAR #258: How Picture Book Illustrations Tell Half the Story with Charles Santoso
Dear Duck, Please Come! is the most fun I’ve ever had writing a book. But writing the words is only half the story for a picture book. Which is why today, I’m delighted to share my conversation with the illustrator of Dear Duck, Please Come!, Charles Santoso.Charles was born in Indonesia, raised in Australia, and now lives in Singapore. He’s illustrated tons of books we love here at Read-Aloud Revival, and I was over the moon that he agreed to illustrate Dear Duck.In this episode, we’re diving into the collaborative process of creating a picture book, the inspiration behind Dear Duck, Please Come!, and how illustrations tell a story. In this episode, you’ll hear: How Charles decides on the tone and style of his illustrationsThe way the world of Dear Duck developed from first sketches to the final illustrationsCharles’s best advice for aspiring illustrators Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:Read-Aloud RevivalWaxwing BooksSubscribe to the NewsletterFind the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/how-illustrations-tell-half-the-story
📖 Order your copy of Painting Wonder: How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon.
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45:37
RAR #257: You Can Be Refreshed by Your Reading Life
At the start of a new year, we are overwhelmed with the phrase “New Year, new you!” And of course, we want to be better wives, better mothers, and better people. This desire to improve ourselves filters into our reading lives, too. It’s easy to justify a lot of our reading if it helps us be better for our families and communities. But what about reading for fun? What about reading fiction? When you’re a busy mom, is it worth it to carve out time to read just for the fun of it? And how would you even make that time?But reading for delight is like stopping for water on a long, dusty hike. It’s a lifesource for us mamas. Today, RAR Community Manager Kelsey Murphy joins me to talk about how to be refreshed by your reading life.In this episode, you’ll hear: How stories nourish us in essential waysWhy you have to give yourself permission to quit books that aren’t working for youThe way reframing reading for pleasure will help you make time and model a rich reading life for your kidsLearn more about Sarah Mackenzie:Read Aloud RevivalWaxwing BooksSubscribe to the NewsletterFind the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/you-can-be-refreshed
📖 Order your copy of Painting Wonder: How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon.
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41:04
RAR #256: My New Favorite Book for the Whole Family
Gather your aspiring writers and littlest book lovers for this episode. I am so excited to welcome back author Millie Florence to talk about the beautiful book we created together, Beyond Mulberry Glen.Millie and I are chatting about the making of the book from inspiration to final draft with a series of fun questions from what scene was the hardest to write to what character she’d want to hang out with for an afternoon.Beyond Mulberry Glen is a read-aloud novel for the whole family, featuring a gorgeous cover and illustrations by Astrid Sheckels. It’s Waxwing Books’s very first middle grade novel, and we can’t wait to share it with you. In this episode, you’ll hear: Why Millie describes her inspiration for the story as a collage of influencesThe challenges of editing the novel with the perspective of age and development as a writerWhat she loves most about middle-grade fictionLearn more about Sarah Mackenzie:Read-Aloud RevivalWaxwing BooksSubscribe to the NewsletterFind the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/millie-florence-is-back
📖 Order your copy of Painting Wonder: How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C. S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon.
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