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Parents Who Love Reading, Kids Who Don't: How It Happens and What You Can Do About It
An inspiring and practical book by a veteran high school teacher that shows how to make your child an avid reader -- even if he or she now dislikes books.
Virtually all teachers The best students are avid readers. They're the kids who don't just do their homework, but pick up books and magazines to read for pleasure. Yet even parents who love to read sometimes find that their kids don't enjoy books. Now, Mary Leonhardt shows how to awaken, or reawaken, a child to the joy of reading. She even identifies the seven stages that children go through as they develop their reading skills and outlines what parents can do to help them along. Her advice is clear, down-to-earth, and proven effective.
Virtually all teachers The best students are avid readers. They're the kids who don't just do their homework, but pick up books and magazines to read for pleasure. Yet even parents who love to read sometimes find that their kids don't enjoy books. Now, Mary Leonhardt shows how to awaken, or reawaken, a child to the joy of reading. She even identifies the seven stages that children go through as they develop their reading skills and outlines what parents can do to help them along. Her advice is clear, down-to-earth, and proven effective.
258 pages, Paperback
First published August 17, 1993
11 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
June 19, 2016
I liked this book. It was easy to read and not preachy. As a grandmother trying her best to instill a love of reading in at least one grandchild, I was desperate for some ideas. This book definitely helped. I just took my youngest granddaughter to the book store and we bought a selection of things she picked out, with a little coaching from me on what she might like. I bought her several things just to try out: a Mad magazine, a How Things Are Made book, because she loves the show, a Reader's Digest (because we always had that magazine around our house, and I could always find something in it that interested me, if nothing but the jokes!) We also bought a few books, that were suggestions from this book, that were suitable for her age range. I told her she didn't have to finish them but if she didn't like them to let me know and we would go shopping again. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I am the only person in my family who is an avid reader. How did that happen?
June 1, 2014
Fantastic resource for a parent of a child who "doesn't like to read."
July 18, 2010
First the author addresses why kids hate to read and without flinching blames the educational system for making reading a distasteful chore! She cites the evils of ability grouping and the long-term effect of always being in the "low ability" group. If you tell kids that they aren't good at something, segregate them, and give them reading materials that do not meet their interests, it should not be surprising that schools often teach strudents to hate reading.. Leonhardt suggests three simple principles for helping your child become a skilled and avid reader: 1) provide easy and fun material, 2) help your child find absorbing books, and 3) respect your child's interests and let him/her select what to read.
Leonarhardt also gives advice on selecting a school and explains how to create a reading friendly home. She explains the stages of a developing reader, addresses the role of television, and also suggests ways to approach various school problems. The book ends with an extensive list of reading suggestions for readers age 8 or 9 through high school. In doing so the author is not reserve in stating her or her students opinions about books and authors.
I think one of the most astute remarks was that when kids say a book is "boring" what they are really saying is that it is "too hard" and "I don't understand or connect with it". She whole-heartedly condemns whole-class novels and thinks isolating skills is ineffective. Rather, time should be spent reading books matched specifically to meet the interests of each individual reader!
Leonarhardt also gives advice on selecting a school and explains how to create a reading friendly home. She explains the stages of a developing reader, addresses the role of television, and also suggests ways to approach various school problems. The book ends with an extensive list of reading suggestions for readers age 8 or 9 through high school. In doing so the author is not reserve in stating her or her students opinions about books and authors.
I think one of the most astute remarks was that when kids say a book is "boring" what they are really saying is that it is "too hard" and "I don't understand or connect with it". She whole-heartedly condemns whole-class novels and thinks isolating skills is ineffective. Rather, time should be spent reading books matched specifically to meet the interests of each individual reader!
February 11, 2009
I wish all parents and teachers knew that if they truly desire for their children to love reading, then they should encourage them to keep reading the "trashy" stuff that they like.
If my parents had kept me from my Baby-sitters Club, Sweet Valley Twins, and Nancy Drew series when I was a child, I would likely not be the devourer of books that I am today. So thank you, Mom and Dad, for letting me read what I wanted to read!
If my parents had kept me from my Baby-sitters Club, Sweet Valley Twins, and Nancy Drew series when I was a child, I would likely not be the devourer of books that I am today. So thank you, Mom and Dad, for letting me read what I wanted to read!
July 3, 2017
I think I agreed with everything she said, and great booklist at the end.
December 7, 2023
I am not sure I agree with the author that allowing children to read anything they want to read is a good way to promote the love of reading, while not encouraging undesirable behavior. I do agree that sometimes too many exercises in reading class will cause students to develop a distaste for reading in general.
The author wrote using her personal experience of many years as a teacher so she is certainly qualified to decide what worked for her students. However, the author also promoted buying lots of comic books and books for children. Apparently, she did not have the financial worries of a single mother with several children. Taking one's children to the library is a good substitute for spending over the family's budget.
A frequent error in my Kindle version of this book was the number 1 substituted for the upper case letter i. This happened many times throughout the book, and I found more editing errors as the book progressed, especially in the section added to the more recent edition.
The author wrote using her personal experience of many years as a teacher so she is certainly qualified to decide what worked for her students. However, the author also promoted buying lots of comic books and books for children. Apparently, she did not have the financial worries of a single mother with several children. Taking one's children to the library is a good substitute for spending over the family's budget.
A frequent error in my Kindle version of this book was the number 1 substituted for the upper case letter i. This happened many times throughout the book, and I found more editing errors as the book progressed, especially in the section added to the more recent edition.
May 22, 2019
Amazing book. It was recommended by Salman Asif Siddiqui and I really enjoyed it. Mary is a teacher of a reading class and she has dealt with all kinds of readers and those who have failed at it. The success stories she shares are really inspiring. It seems that the summary of teaching the children anything is that you don't force anything on to them and it comes naturally. All you can do is provide them with an environment conducive to learning. While the book also has many book recommendations for different levels and age of readers it explains the concepts and strategies so well. My children 2 and 4 already love books. I hope the love of books stays with them all their life. The book is a complete package for parents or teachers who are a little bit lost on how to improve the reading skill of their child.
December 14, 2023
Reading just comes naturally to me (as I'm sure it does to most of us on here). I love it and always have. However, much to my dismay and confusion, my kids have never enjoyed reading independently for pleasure. This book was both validating and encouraging to me in my pursuit to help them learn to love reading. Though it was written 30 years ago and was a concerning problem then, the issue of kids and adults who do not read at all in our country has likely gotten even worse since then given how prolific screens are today. The author is humorous, authentic, passionate, and very down to earth and brings a lot of experience through her career as a teacher. Though I don't necessarily agree with absolutely everything she advises (letting them read essentially anything even if it has overtly inappropriate content) I did find some very helpful advice throughout that I am trying to implement.
August 12, 2020
I started reading this book YEARS ago. It made it seem so easy! Just have lots of books lying around, and your child will be an avid reader. But no.
I blame myself. If I had kept up the bedtime reading - religiously and even through the boarding school years, we might have different outcomes now. Well, it’s probably not too late.
He still hates The Ghost of Thomas Kempe’ quite passionately though
I blame myself. If I had kept up the bedtime reading - religiously and even through the boarding school years, we might have different outcomes now. Well, it’s probably not too late.
He still hates The Ghost of Thomas Kempe’ quite passionately though
March 16, 2019
Wish someone would update this to include how to get kids away from video games and into reading. A bit harder than just getting them away from TV, I think.
October 3, 2014
This was probably the right time in my life for me to read this and hear the message -- that our educational system turns kids off to reading (I'm a little cynical these days), but I wish for my reluctant reader that I had read it 3 or 4 years ago. I have known that I need to get her reading for a long time, but the teachers dismissed my concerns always indicating that her test scores were high. When I finally managed to push for some assessment last year, her test scores were no longer high.....they were on the lower side of average.
As I suspected, her 35 years of experience have shown that with a skill-based basal curriculum, students that are doing very well, but not reading much in 3rd & 4th lose their edge until they eventually fall below grade level and lack the vocabulary and language richness to navigate more complex and sophisticated texts. They also tend to have low writing skills. The other comment she made that really stuck with me was that if you didn't get your kid reading something with some avidness by 12 or 13, you better hustle or they stand a good chance of being semi-literate.
At one point, she and a colleague interviewed the highest achieving readers in a high school honors class. These avid readers all cut their milk teeth on Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Sweet Valley High, Goosebumps, Captain Underpants, comic books, Dr. Who novels. Without exception, they all did abundant reading of things that are not "good literature".
The book is dated, although it was updated a bit for the Kindle edition, so the book lists, while a starting place are missing some real gems that have been published more recently and teachers are even less likely to have the luxury to teach through abundant self-selected reading and instead move through drills, assessments and worksheets. Thanks NCLB.
As I suspected, her 35 years of experience have shown that with a skill-based basal curriculum, students that are doing very well, but not reading much in 3rd & 4th lose their edge until they eventually fall below grade level and lack the vocabulary and language richness to navigate more complex and sophisticated texts. They also tend to have low writing skills. The other comment she made that really stuck with me was that if you didn't get your kid reading something with some avidness by 12 or 13, you better hustle or they stand a good chance of being semi-literate.
At one point, she and a colleague interviewed the highest achieving readers in a high school honors class. These avid readers all cut their milk teeth on Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Sweet Valley High, Goosebumps, Captain Underpants, comic books, Dr. Who novels. Without exception, they all did abundant reading of things that are not "good literature".
The book is dated, although it was updated a bit for the Kindle edition, so the book lists, while a starting place are missing some real gems that have been published more recently and teachers are even less likely to have the luxury to teach through abundant self-selected reading and instead move through drills, assessments and worksheets. Thanks NCLB.
June 30, 2014
It might be unfair to judge this book in 2014, as it was written in 1993, before J.K. Rowling, Rick Riordan, John Green, and everyone else completely changed the culture of Y/A reading. Then there's our internet and hand held electronic age, which complicates things even further. But even twenty years ago, Leonhardt's advice could be seen as simplistic and very narrow in experience-based knowledge. And it also seems (and I guess logically so) targeted towards poor readers; what if your child is a great reader, but just doesn't want to?
The best advice she has is to not discriminate when "allowing" your child to make reading choices--so what if they're reading Stephen King or car magazines? Reading is reading, and pleasure reading builds a bridge to greater ability. She also suggests filling your house with magazines and other materials that appeal to your child, creating a reading culture at home.
Her other, less astute suggestions include just switching schools if the reading program at your current school doesn't please you, or my favorite, libraries carry every number of the popular series books (like all 131 Babysitter's Club books, to use an example from the time period) and charge $1 a book to check them out, since they're so popular. I don't even...I can't.
My favorite part of reading this book came when I was in the chapter about curbing TV viewing, and found a note left by a previous reader: "Hell I say!"
The best advice she has is to not discriminate when "allowing" your child to make reading choices--so what if they're reading Stephen King or car magazines? Reading is reading, and pleasure reading builds a bridge to greater ability. She also suggests filling your house with magazines and other materials that appeal to your child, creating a reading culture at home.
Her other, less astute suggestions include just switching schools if the reading program at your current school doesn't please you, or my favorite, libraries carry every number of the popular series books (like all 131 Babysitter's Club books, to use an example from the time period) and charge $1 a book to check them out, since they're so popular. I don't even...I can't.
My favorite part of reading this book came when I was in the chapter about curbing TV viewing, and found a note left by a previous reader: "Hell I say!"
May 23, 2011
I picked this up primarily to see if it had any new suggestions for boosting my child's relatively weak reading skills. I liked it, although it became a bit repetitive. Basically the author makes the point that the best way to get good at reading is to read, a lot, even comics. She has lots of suggestions for reluctant readers of all ages including Richie Rich and Archie comics, Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys, Tintin, Calvin and Hobbes, Babysitters Club and much more. Her main point is that you need to get your kids reading first, anything, and eventually they will be able to tackle Shakespeare and history texts. The book is anecdotal, based on the author's extensive teaching experience, and if you reject the whole language approach, you won't like this. She makes sense, however, and has plenty of success stories to back up her opinions. I gave one of her suggestions for teenage girls to my child and she barreled right through it, eager for more in the series. That's all I want for at home reading. Granted the book is a bit dated, clearly written before everyone had a computer and no mention of e books, and I don't know about her recommendations regarding choosing a school, because how much choice do you realistically have. Overall, a practical quick read with some good tips and suggestions.
October 1, 2011
Any book written before Harry Potter about getting kids to read is defunct because Harry Potter changed the world of children's literature. This book was published pre-Harry Potter, so it is no longer relevant. Leonhardt's MO is all about filling classrooms with magazines, comics, slashers, and bodice rippers to get her students excited about reading. Now that we have Harry Potter and all the books that it inspired, there are great choices of literature for reluctant readers.
The only helpful advice is her stages of reading. Having a reluctant reader, I can identify these stages and can be better at getting her to the next level.
Stage One: Leafing through Books and Magazines
Stage Two: Reading Comics, magazines, and newspapers
Stage Three: That first book
Stage Four: Narrow reading (reading series and the same authors)
Stage Five: Branching Out - to other series and authors
Stage Six: Wider reading - reading a variety of authors and genres
The only helpful advice is her stages of reading. Having a reluctant reader, I can identify these stages and can be better at getting her to the next level.
Stage One: Leafing through Books and Magazines
Stage Two: Reading Comics, magazines, and newspapers
Stage Three: That first book
Stage Four: Narrow reading (reading series and the same authors)
Stage Five: Branching Out - to other series and authors
Stage Six: Wider reading - reading a variety of authors and genres
April 16, 2014
I love books and I've always tried hard to encourage my two sons to read. I was fairly successful when they were young, but now they are 14 & 17 they see books as 'uncool' and prefer computer games, social media and TV. So I guess I am the target audience for this book.
Although the book is really aimed at parents in the US, I was won over by the author's obvious passion for her subject and her common sense advice. Her suggestions and detailed list of reading suggestions are based on conversations with students and her long experience of teaching.
The book was easy to read and I will be acting on some of her suggestions, to help my boys rediscover the joy of books. If the suggestions work, I will be back to review the sequel: 'Keeping kids reading'!
Although the book is really aimed at parents in the US, I was won over by the author's obvious passion for her subject and her common sense advice. Her suggestions and detailed list of reading suggestions are based on conversations with students and her long experience of teaching.
The book was easy to read and I will be acting on some of her suggestions, to help my boys rediscover the joy of books. If the suggestions work, I will be back to review the sequel: 'Keeping kids reading'!
January 5, 2014
This was not what I expected! The author gives lots of practical advice, and lays foundation to help it all make sense. I admit, I skipped some foundation, but the practical tips are already starting to pay off. My son is looking at the magazines I got. I would have never considered that as a win, or true reading for a 12 year old. But, its the start she says can lead to avid reading. I am ready for a long haul. She includes lists of books that she has had experience with reluctant readers enjoying. The fact that she saw success with high schoolers gave me hope. I thought it was too late. Such a reassuring and inspiring read!
November 11, 2014
Although she was a teacher for over 30 years, there is nothing else that qualifies the author to write this book. There was no study or research other than reflection on her own experience. The ideas are good, but you have probably already come up with them yourself. She also makes some correlations that are probably over- generalized if not downright false, such as parents who don't allow clutter have children who don't enjoy reading. I don't necessarily disagree with many of her ideas (even the clutter idea her point was to let kids get engrossed in reading even if it means they leave their favorite magazines all over the house) but it wasn't new helpful information.
May 15, 2016
Gives tips and guidelines on how to encourage your child to become an avid reader.
- encourage all types of literature, geared especially to their taste, including comics, horror novels and sci-fi.
- don't worry if they read at a lower level, if they are reading they will progress at their own pace.
Good reference.
- encourage all types of literature, geared especially to their taste, including comics, horror novels and sci-fi.
- don't worry if they read at a lower level, if they are reading they will progress at their own pace.
Good reference.
May 16, 2014
Helpful in the sense that I want to continue to encourage our children to read and also gave a nice list of books. I didn't totally agree with her in that children should read anything. I am not a fan of thrillers.
July 16, 2014
What a great, hopeful book! It's scary to think how seriously our "educational" system has perverted the joyful process of learning and loving to read, but Mary Leonhardt provides excellent strategies for sparking kids' interest. I am already seeing success in my own family.
Read
September 26, 2014My children love reading, but I was interested in the ideas behind this book regardless. Can't hurt! I haven't gotten far enough in to rate it at this stage, but do agree with the early discussion of reading material offerings.
September 9, 2007
Read this!
August 22, 2011
Very practical, easily applicable advice for frustrated parents. More aimed at muddle school readers than beginners, but principles apply to everyone.
January 1, 2015
This is probably one of the most influential books if my life. It is guiding me in raising my son. Not to be missed.
September 26, 2014
First part of the book had some useful ideas and the back of the book had some good, though outdated book lists. The middle was just...eh.
March 17, 2016
Unsightful book, and full of more wisdom about kids, not only about reading...
January 23, 2018
I really enjoyed this book, in part probably because it affirmed so much of what I've been thinking in terms of two kids I've been tutoring. They are performing perfectly well in school but their parents want them to improve their verbal scores in the SAT-type tests. The problem is that I don't think either one of them reads for fun. And that, to me, is the only way to improve one's verbal abilities. It's not about drilling or exercises, it's about reading. Voraciously.
Leonhardt also champions what she herself calls "trashy" books, which I also applaud. This is one of those rare cases in life where I think quantity trumps quality. Also "trashy" books will lead in time to "better" books, once the child realizes they like to read!
Both of my tutees are boys and I've been looking to find some books they might love. Happily Leonhardt has an annotated list in the back of her book. My plan is to have them read and then write a reaction paper about what they've read. I hope it works!!
Leonhardt also champions what she herself calls "trashy" books, which I also applaud. This is one of those rare cases in life where I think quantity trumps quality. Also "trashy" books will lead in time to "better" books, once the child realizes they like to read!
Both of my tutees are boys and I've been looking to find some books they might love. Happily Leonhardt has an annotated list in the back of her book. My plan is to have them read and then write a reaction paper about what they've read. I hope it works!!
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews