GrannyXpress

and for the little ones:

* Spots, Feathers, and Curly Tails by Nancy Tafuri

*The above list for toddlers was recommended by the Richland Librarians, Richland, SC

Book Review: THE MATURE MIND: The Positive Power of the Aging Brain

I am a Boomer so, naturally I am drawn to what look like positive models for my own old age. I look for people in their 70s, 80s and older in my family and community who seem to be faring well in their maturity, whose minds are keen, and who have activities that they love and work that they enjoy. I don’t generally look to the news or so-call “health/medical literature” since what I find there is generally gloomy accounts that make it sound like everyone is bound to get Alzheimer’s if they live “long enough” or at least some form of clinical depression that results in significant cognitive and emotional decline.

What a joy to pick up Gene D. Cohen’s book, The Mature Mind:The Positive Power of the Mature Brain and read that, as the ancient philosopher would have it, it ain’t necessarily so that we all lose our marbles. In fact, as the book’s subtitle emphasizes, there are several positive aspects to having a mature brain in your skull.

Cohen worked for 35 years as a gerontology psychiatrist and went through a misdiagnosed illness (’they’ diagnosed Lou Gehrig’s Disease) in his own mid-life that appears to have crystallized his already compassionate and keen observations of the aging population he worked with. When he ’stepped out of the box’ and began to design games for older adults, many of his colleagues made the sort of patronizing comments that we are familiar with, implying that he was bucking the status quo and was therefore quite likely heading into senility.

Although this volume appears relatively slim (just over 200 pages), it is packed with the kind of meaty ideas, proofs, and testimonials of the rich possibilities of intellectual, emotional, and creative learning and growth that I have longed to read about. In some ways, the experience of reading reminds me of having read the late Betty Friedan’s book, “The Fountain of Age“. I recall going to my mother, who was quite ill with an undiagnosed brain disorder (it was, in fact, never diagnosed), and regaling her with all the hope and black humor with which Friedan peppered her volume, a work that took on what she saw as the ‘establishment’ that was passing and supporting laws that oppressed the aged (such as mandatory retirement, etc.). Interestingly, Friedan was scathingly critical of gerontology and gerontologists, seeing them as little more than henchmen of a youth-promoting government elite. I was delightfully surprised at Cohen’s respectful and admiring voice throughout this book, and have to admit that this has probably restored a little balance to my recent rant against the medical establishment (and Good Grief! Some of my best friends are doctors…lol).

Catching the ferry to see the little Fairies…

I just spent time on the Lower Mainland visiting with my little granddaughters. A-1 (age 2) cried “No bye-bye” when it was time to leave (breaking my heart). A-2 (7 weeks) is at that animated, adorable smiles and cooing stage… she has been smiling since she was 3 weeks old and we’ve missed it all until this weekend!

Another vote for Munsch

Today’s entry in the Classic Reading contest is from June K., a granny of two boys (and mother of three girls) in Richmond, B.C.

Books to read aloud: Anything by Robert Munsch - and if you have not read Love You Forever, go out right now and buy it. I first got a copy when Jess was born and I gave copies to both Nicole and Kirsten when their kids came along. I still get teary when I read it to Jordan, Dev is a little too big to read it to– he will be nine soon and is into Harry Potter and Captain Underpants.

Jess loved a book called The Teeny Tiny Woman, and it fact it is the first book she learned to read by herself- it is still in her room somewhere, buried under glamour magazines and biographies of politicians,and Kurt Cobain’s diary.

All the Madeline books.

Summer Reading Classics for Grannies

Yikes… somehow the original post got deleted! I’m hoping that this will include the same link information that I had in the first post… no wonder the landslide of entries seems to have dried up!!! Sorry everyone!

I have a delightful nine-month old granddaughter in the Philippines where our son Phil and his wife, Marylen, live with Alyza. At some near time (please God and Immigration!!) they will be coming to Canada to live with us. I want to be a granny who reads books. But I need your help!! I’ve been out of the loop for so long I don’t know what the popular read-aloud books are anymore!

So, I’ve decided to run a contest on this site. All you need to do is to write a few lines about what book(s) you loved hearing read aloud when you were a child, and what book(s) your grandchild asks you to read when you visit (or he/she visits you). You can dress it up with details, if you like, but that is basically all that is required for the contest. I will publish your entry on this blog. At the end of the summer (probably September) I will award the winners (pulled from a hat) with useful, sweet-smelling prizes.

Please help!! Read over the current entries to get an idea of how other people have replied, and then either post to this site ~just click where it says Comments and follow the instructions… or send me an email at grannyxpress @ yahoo.ca (I put the spaces in so that the spammers don’t pick up the address and spam me, so please remember that there are no spaces before and after the @ symbol).

If you need any other instructions, please just email me!

Just a Curious Little Monkey…

Vera W. from Saskatchewan contributes the following:
The Adventures of Curious George
Reading to my grandchildren? I can’t say I have had that much opportunity to do so but I used to read at length to my boys. One of their favorites was Curious George. Which reminds me, I see a compilation of his stories in the shelf and I think I will take it along to AB with me (when I go to see the grandkids tomorrow). I must get it now.

When I got burned and ended up in the …. Hospital in the burn unit for 21 days, I had a private room for about the first 10 days. In the morning I would close the door and watch Curious George ’cause I knew this mischievous little monkey. My boys each had a Curious George stuffed animal when they were young.

(Vera came back from visiting her grandkids and sent me an email to include this additional information:)
Time was running out and it looked like I wasn’t going to get a chance to read Curious George to the children. Brandon, 3, was so active. Getting him to sit long enough seemed like trying to nail jello to the wall. But on Monday of this week my sister invited them all over for supper and before we ate, I hauled out the huge book, sat in the recliner with one child perched
on each arm of the chair. I think I even have a picture to prove it. (This is definitely for publication but not long into the reading session, little Brandon discovered the “pillows” on my chest and gently began to knead the right one. And then Meagan discovered there was one on her side as well and
she did the same. I hope I didn’t give the impression that it was something very vigorous–it wasn’t. All very gentle. I got Brandon to turn the pages so that got him distracted.)

The Old Books are the Fun Books

The following post is by Eleanor K. who lives in Saskatchewan.

I had a Granny who read to me, but not in English. Somebody in “the Old Country” had sent us a couple of hand-illustrated books and my Granny, who smelt quite a bit like garlic and sauerkraut in the summer, but I didn’t care, would read them to me and my brother. We had no idea what she was reading. But we liked to sit with her and after she finished we would get a donut or some other goodie. She probably only read us these books twice. I have no idea what became of them. All I can remember is that there was a little boy in the book who wore a suit. Nobody that age that I knew about wore a suit.

I know that reading to your kids is a good thing, so I read to my children (3) when they were little and I sometimes read to my granddaughters when they visit here. They are seven and three years old. The seven-year old likes the fairy-tale books that her mom liked (Cinderella and stuff like that) and the three-year old likes me to read her the Dr. Seuss book called “Green Eggs and Ham“. These are the books I have at my house so maybe they like to have other books read to them in their own home. Sometimes these old books are still fun for kids to read.

(If you’re a granny and would like to contribute to the wisdom –”reading aloud to one’s grandchild”– click on the granny reading picture above and read the contest guidelines).

Before there were videos…

Today’s blog is from Louise J. who lives in Ontario, Canada

I didn’t grow up in Canada, and I sure didn’t have a parent who read me stories. Life was just too grim. But I did listen to the wireless (radio) and I loved the spoken word and a good story. When I became a grandmother– which was early on, since I had a baby at 18 and my daughter had her first child when she was 21– I found myself cuddled up with this wee chubby page-turner and we “read” lots of books together over the years. He’s 17 now, and he tells me about what books he is reading– or writing (he’s a budding writer is my grandson)– and I sometimes read out loud to my cat, because I like that experience.

What were the books that he liked most when we were reading together? When he was little he liked the books about trains like “The Little Engine that Could” and the Thomas the Tank books. We read the whole C.S. Lewis Narnia series one summer a few years ago, and he likes fantasy books in general. Before there were videos, this is what kids did. My Grandson watches very little TV. He plays on the computer a fair amount, but he also goes off somewhere with a good book… and I know that I had an influence on him because I read to him when he was growing up.

(If you’re a granny and would like to contribute to the wisdom –”reading aloud to one’s grandchild”– click on the granny reading picture above and read the contest guidelines).

A Vote for Munsch

The following post is from Anna K, Granny in Alberta, Canada.

 When I was a kid my mom and dad were so busy with the farm that I don't recall being read to.  Too, my Dad enlisted in the War and that meant he wasn't around for much of when I was little.  But I had a teacher who read to us every day, right after lunch.  I really really enjoyed that.  She would read books like the Laura Ingalls Wilder "Little House on the Prairie" and "The House at Plum Creek" and I think she read us "Anne of Green Gables " because shortly after that I got hooked on all of those L. M. Montgomery books.  I love reading today.  I think it is partly because of the reading aloud that that teacher did when I was in Grade three.

I have seven grandkids.  I haven't had the chance to read to all of them because my son (who has three little ones) lives across the country in New Brunswick.  But I have sent them tapes of me reading (I read about doing that) and they apparently really enjoy hearing Grandma read the stories when they go to bed at night.

With my two older grandkids, now 17 and 14, I read lots of books.  The one book that sticks out is Robert Munsch's "Love You Forever ".  When they were little and I would 'sit for them, they would ask me to read that one over and over.  I liked it too! 

10 Reasons to Read to Your Grandchild

10 Reasons to Read to your Grandchild: 

These are just the reasons I thought of… do you have some others to include?

1. You get to cuddle up together with a book
2. You get to teach as you go… and learn what your grandchild knows, and can teach you
3. You get to talk about what it was like for you to have been a little girl
4. You get to pass along your own passion for words and life-long learning
5. You get to see things through the eyes of your grandchild
6. You get to read a good story, or to re-read one you haven't read for a while
7. You get to be on that magic carpet with your grandchild as you are transported to that far-away, magical place that reading takes you to
8. You get to talk about your family and personal values– good stories will always bring such 'lessons' up for discussion
9. You get to do something meaningful in a world where there is so much chaos and dis-connect
10. You get the opportunity to make positive memories for one of the most important people in your life.

©Cynthia Zirkwitz