The Reading Mother

One of the books I purchased and mentioned here before Christmas was Geronimo Stilton Special Edition: Christmas Catastrophe. I read out loud one chapter every night and my youngest kid just loved it - so much that two more titles are on their way!
I have always read my two boys bedtime stories but not many in English and now I ask myself why. The feedback and my kid's improvement in reading, vocabulary, pronunciation...have been so remarkable that I will certainly go on.

S. Gillilan (1869-1954)

As a reading mother, let me share a lovely poem with you:

I had a mother who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea.
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth;
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath.
I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.
I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Gelert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness lent with his final breath.
I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch.
Oh, that each mother of boys were such!
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be --
I had a Mother who read to me.

Strickland Gillilan