The Enchanted Hour

October 1, 2018
How reading aloud confers cognitive, emotional, and social benefits.In her heartfelt first book, Gurdon, children's book reviewer for the Wall Street Journal, makes an earnest, but unfortunately repetitive, case for reading aloud. Drawing on her experiences of nightly reading to her five children, scientific studies, interviews, and anecdotes, the author argues that when one person reads to another, "a miraculous alchemy takes place" in which "the ordinary stuff of life--a book, a voice, a place to sit and a bit of time" transforms "into astonishing fuel for the heart, the mind, and the imagination." Children who are read to show "a quantifiable difference in brain function" compared with children deprived of this activity, according to many pediatricians. Based on such studies, the American Academy of Pediatrics concludes that reading daily to young children "stimulates optimal patterns of brain development and strengthens parent-child relationships" and, furthermore, "builds language, literacy, and social-emotional skills that last a lifetime." Gurdon urges parents to put down phones and iPads in favor of books, underscoring the difference between listening to a story and watching it on a screen. When children follow a story on video, researchers have found "the decoupling of vision, imagery, and language." Well-versed in children's literature, Gurdon cites more than 100 books that have the potential to build vocabulary and impart "vicarious emotional experiences." In The Story of Babar, for example--which takes under seven minutes to read--the child "will see tenderness and catastrophe, fear and comfort, pride and anger, death, marriage, sorrow, and joy." Besides developing language facility, empathy, and cultural literacy, reading aloud creates a deep bond between reader and listener, sweeping them together "in a lovely neurochemical tsunami." "When we read to other people," she writes, "we show them that they matter to us; that we want to give our time and attention and energy in order to bring them something good." An appendix lists six pages of suggested stories for reading aloud.An inspiring argument for sharing the joys of reading.

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October 15, 2018
Gurdon, children’s book reviewer for the Wall Street Journal, combines a consciously old-fashioned, anti-technology perspective with modern, data-driven cognitive arguments to advocate for face-to-face reading with children early and often. Gurdon focuses especially on the value of the picture book to build connection, regulate attention and emotional awareness, transmit cultural values, and give children feelings of mastery through repetition. In trying to cover her subject thoroughly—she also discusses the value of reading aloud to
vulnerable adults, such as hospitalized seniors—Gurdon sometimes contradicts her own points. For instance, she posits recordings as being of lesser value for not being interactive, but also that parents recording books for their children shows the value of reading aloud; similarly, that classics should not be retired for their prejudices and outdated messages, but also that home readers should modify what they read at will for their audience. This completism, combined with Gurdon’s choice not to explain, until the end of her book, how to create an “enchanted hour” of reading aloud, may lead to readers losing interest partway, leaving them with the feeling she is still trying to convince long after they are ready to take action. Agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management.

November 1, 2018

The magic of reading aloud benefits everybody, young and old, according to Wall Street Journal book critic and mother of five Gurdon, who advocates for this simple activity using research results, interviews with readers, quotes from literature, and her own family's experiences. Gurdon convincingly describes the importance and delight of sharing books with loved ones. Reading aloud teaches language, cultural touchstones, and even aesthetics through illustrations. Books transport us to other times or places. Studies show that reading to children increases their vocabulary, both in quantity and quality, and that reading to the elderly or infirm strengthens social connections. In conclusion, Gurdon advises families how to read aloud every day, providing an alphabetical list of more than 100 titles and additional suggestions divided by topics such as bedtime, kindness, fairy tales, and classics for older listeners. VERDICT Similar to Jim Trelease's classic The Read-Aloud Handbook, this volume promotes an age-old tradition that originated with oral storytelling. For anybody interested in reading, especially parents, teachers, caregivers, and librarians, this inspirational work proclaims its joys and rewards.--Janet Clapp, N. Clarendon, VT

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