The Magic of Books

The magic of books lured me away to other places and times, when I was a child and it continues to do so today. I can get so wrapped up in a good story that I lose all track of present time. And when I was a kid, a book and I could spend hours up in the nook created by the large branches of my favourite climbing tree.

Today, as the mother of five children (one of whom is still at home, being 13) and Nan to five grandchildren, I find that, despite the allure of television, computers and video games, kids still love books. Indeed, there is something magical about words and pictures on a page and the way they can penetrate into our brains and whisk us away to kingdoms, pirate ships, castles, peasants' huts, jungles, outer space, the ocean floor, mountain tops, and anywhere else you can think of.

BUT, if you don't introduce your child to books, if you don't read stories to your young non-readers, they may not discover the magic. They may not learn how to use their imagination to place themselves into the story as the courageous hero or heroine. Their imaginations won't be exercised so they can feel themselves exhausted as they struggle up the mountain step by step with the character in the story and they won't feel the joy and exhilaration of reaching the top either.

Those are valuable feelings to have. Maybe, just maybe, it is the magic of books that plays a large part in teaching empathy to children.

I have to thank Ami McKay for reminding me about the magic, both for children and adults. She shared the most wonderful story of a young girl and her mother at a bookstore in a blog post about her book tour.

"There is no frigate like a book."

The books featured in our books reviews might be a good place to start sharing the magic of books with the children in your life.