BJU Press Blog

youth novel

How to Develop Your Child’s “Thirst” for Reading

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Do any of the readers at your house fit one of these categories?

  • They can read, but they don’t like to.
  • They have difficulty selecting books they think they will like.
  • They can’t navigate the reading level of books on topics they’re interested in.

Reading skills may be one part of the issue at hand, but another part has to do with the need to develop a love for the written word—information that serves a need, humor that tickles a funny bone, or simply a story that can be enjoyed or appreciated. If reading is hard and seems to have little benefit to a developing reader, reluctance is a reasonable response, even if not the response you want to see.

Love for the written word is a love you cannot force on someone else. We all know the saying “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink,” and that may be where you are in attempting to turn your child into a satisfied reader. So let’s add a corollary: “You can put salt in his oats.”

Reluctant Readers & Salty Oats

Book Selection

Here are some proven ideas about how you can develop a thirst for reading by how you choose books.

  • Visit the library regularly so that your reader is comfortable there. Allow your child to select his or her books for leisure reading. The reader gets to choose; the parent gets to approve (or redirect, if necessary). Pay attention to what is being selected to understand where interests lie.
  • Look for books that are:

True stories—adventures, events, biographies

Factual—science- or history-related books in the nonfiction section of the library

Hands-on guides—project or craft instructions

Adventure novels with fast-paced, action-driven plots

Topics your reader is passionate about

  • Look for books with:

Short chapters

Accessible sentence structure (not overly long or complex)

Plenty of white space between lines and in the margins

Comfortable font size

Illustrations that are appropriate to the age of your reader (not off-putting to your reader because they seem juvenile)

  • Ask for title recommendations—Learn what has engaged other readers who have similar interests as your own readers. Consider, for example, a new title from JourneyForth that your reluctant reader might enjoy: Nick Newton Is Not a Genius features a merely average boy from the imaginary country of Thauma. Nick’s not brilliant like his mom and dad or a child prodigy like his sister, but he doesn’t let that stop him from uncovering the mysteries of a clockwork factory or revealing a war hero’s greatest secret.

Book Engagement

And you may be able to create a thirst for good books by trying out these ideas for getting your reader involved in reading.

  • Read aloud—Among the many benefits of reading aloud is the ease of being captivated by the words and the story, which becomes its own reason to learn to read independently. (Note: The age range for listening to books is from birth to age 102, and that end age is flexible.)
  • Listen to audio books—This is another way to “read aloud” with the added benefit of hearing some well-produced dramatic presentations. Many audio books can be checked out as digital downloads through your local library system with apps from OverDrive® or hoopla.
  • Read cooperatively—You and your child share the reading, alternating paragraphs or letting one read the narrative and the other the dialogue (what the characters say). Break the text into manageable bits. You lift part of the reading load while your partner views the words you’re vocalizing.
  • Read for fun—Pack up a blanket and some books (food optional), and go on a book-nic. Sit, lie, or sprawl at a local park or in your backyard and just read.
  • Read shorter works like magazine articles, short stories, or poetry—Sometimes the sheer volume of a book can be daunting, so remove that concern.

Do you have salty oats ideas that have helped your reluctant readers? We’d love to hear from you.

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Nancy Lohr is acquisitions editor at JourneyForth, a division of BJU Press. She has edited dozens of books over the last twenty years and is a writer as well, having authored two historical novels for children, curriculum stories and articles, and numerous book reviews and articles for parents and educators. Nancy was an educator and children’s librarian before moving into publishing, and she loves to see young readers develop into capable and satisfied readers.

Mice of the Herring Bone: The Triumph of Civility

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TWP-Mice-Herring-Bone-12-2015he mouse-duo of Charles and Oliver scamper across the pages of Tim Davis’s adventure tale being clever, brave, and comical. Their first perilous encounter is with some rough-hewn pirate canines, who convincingly flaunt their lack of class. At first unaware of the presence of mouse spies, the undignified and impetuous sea-dogs spill their plot to steal a sunken treasure after her majesty’s ship—the Nine Lives—has done all the work of bringing it up. Excitement follows when Charles and Oliver are discovered and captured by the motley crew. But through a series of unfortunate and fortunate events, the mice escape from the Herring Bone and resolve to take their chances aboard the Nine Lives, which—as its name indicates—is “manned” by a mouse’s worst real-world enemies.

Spoiler Alert!

Where “rough and rude” was the order of the day on the Herring Bone, by contrast, the Nine Lives proves to be a place of polite decorum. And Charles and Oliver’s brave risk and cleverness save the day for the patient felines. The Nine Lives crew gets to hang on to the treasure, the crusty canines get marooned on an island, and the mice sail off into the sunset with the prospect of reward from the queen herself. As civility triumphs, Charles and Oliver are likely to become your child’s new heroes.

Few fictional characters delight young readers more than well-personified animals. Believable personalities combined with a stellar plot easily draw listeners/readers into a satisfying fantasy experience. Charming ink illustrations pepper the pages. Kick off this JourneyForth series with Mice of the Herring Bone and then continue your delightful midwinter romp with Mice of the Nine Lives, Mice of the Seven Seas, and Mice of the Westing Winds Books 1 & 2.

An Encounter in the Woods

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BJU Press book cover for Suzannah and the Secret Coins by Elaine SchulteDuring the Colton family’s journey along the Great National Road, their driver stops to assist an overturned stagecoach. As the men work, Suzannah, her cousin Daniel, and their friend Timmy walk along the Road to stretch their legs.

“Let’s have a snowball fight!” cried Timmy.

They ventured into the woods only a few steps to get the soft snow which was just right for packing. Soon snowballs were flying.

“Got you, Daniel!” Suzannah shouted as one plastered his face, freezing his grin.

“And here’s one for you!” He snapped a quick return and sent the snowball sailing through the air. She ducked, and it splatted harmlessly on the shoulder of her cloak.

They were having a fine time, wandering deeper and deeper into the forest, when Timmy said, “Look!”

Suzannah turned. Just behind her stood two bear cubs. Plump and round, they had bright button eyes and soft-as-down fur. She put out her hand and took a step toward them.

Curious, one of the cubs shuffled over to nose her traveling bag.

As if from nowhere, a huge black bear appeared out of the dark recesses of the forest. Rising up on its hind feet, the bear growled. Even in the shadows, Suzannah could see a row of sharp teeth and the long toenails extending from the front feet.

Daniel, who’d been gathering snow further away, caught
sight of them. “The mother bear! Run!” he shouted.

But Suzannah stood rooted to the spot, her legs weak and heavy. Beside her, Timmy seemed just as stunned.

“Run!” Daniel urged again. “They smell the strawberry jam sandwiches! Leave your bag and run!”

The thought of parting with the gold coins jolted Suzannah into action. “Run, Timmy, run!” Traveling bag in hand, she ran with him for the Road.

Once she turned, almost tripping over a tree root, and saw the cubs still behind them and the huge mother bear in pursuit. Suddenly Suzannah knew just what to do. Still running wildly, she grabbed in her bag for the strawberry jam sandwiches, then pulled one out and hurled it at a cub.

[Excerpt adapted from Suzannah and the Secret Coins by Elaine Schulte (Chapter 6, pp. 64–65). This title is the first in the Colton Cousins Adventure series.]

Facing the Wolves

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BJU Press book cover for Mountain Born by Elizabeth YatesAs Benj and Peter prepare to return to the valley for the winter, they find that Biddy, the lead sheep, refuses to go down the road. Benj, a wise old shepherd, decides young Peter must fool Biddy so that she’ll lead the flock home.

Peter knew that sheep disliked going over a hilltop, fearing the unknown other side, but the plan to fool Biddy would come to nothing if they didn’t go over the hilltop and swing down from it to the gate.

“Come along,” Peter said, stamping his foot impatiently, a thing Benj had told him he must never do. The sheep stepped backward toward the fence, their hooves slipping on the sharp rocks. A ram lamb baaed arrogantly.

“You’re just silly sheep,” Peter retorted and, acting as if he didn’t care what they did, started up the hillside.

There were boulders at the top and he picked his way carefully among them. Suddenly he stopped still, gripping a rock and flattening himself against it. Not ten paces from him was a gray wolf and around her four well-grown cubs were playing—prettily, if anything that spelt such horror could be pretty. His hands felt like ice on the rock. Water coming from a spout would have had more strength to it than his legs had then.

A tuft of flowers, growing in a cleft in the rock beside him, was bending in the wind—bending away from the wolf family so heedless of their visitor. Peter was glad the wind was blowing against him. He inched himself back along the rock, through the tangled boulders, then turned and raced down the rough slope. There was no need now to call the sheep to follow him, for they had already taken themselves down to the fence and were standing there waiting. One lamb had even squeezed himself through and the ewe was standing with the wire between them, baaing plaintively.

“Silly sheep, indeed,” Peter said to them, “you’ve got more sense than a boy who goes to school.”

His fingers were trembling, but he undid the wire quickly and made an opening. The sheep crawled through first, following the one who was impatient to reach her lamb. Peter wriggled himself through. There was a rending sound, but he was in too much of a hurry to reach the other side to notice it. He raced across the grass, onto the road. Benj saw him and the six sheep coming from the opposite direction than he expected them.

[Excerpt adapted from Mountain Born by Elizabeth Yates (Chapter 6, pp. 63–65).]