Reading to my Grandson

One of my very favorite memories of my daughter’s childhood is of reading to her. I loved to buy her books (in independent bookstores, of course!) and take books from the library for her. We would go to library storytimes, or simply to browse in bookstores. But best of all were the cozy times of reading to her. And now my daughter has a son who is almost a year old, and I have started reading to him occasionally. He doesn’t quite “get” the idea of reading yet, of course, and his immediate interest is to put the book in his mouth and chew on the corners (thank goodness for board books!). I have a couple of techniques for the situation: one is to read to him while he is in his crib, so he can’t grab the book, and another is to give him one book to chew while I read from another. I show him the pictures, and read exaggeratedly, almost singing sometimes, and he seems to like that. I can’t wait for him to understand more language and to understand the idea of books and reading, but in the meantime I am having fun helping with the process of acquainting him with books and reading. My daughter and her husband of course read to him, but my daughter encourages my reading to him as well. (She knows how much I love it.) I have saved a few of her childhood books (I long ago gave most of them away to family, friends, and her former preschool, but kept a few favorites) and it is fun, and nostalgic, to bring those out to read to her little boy now. And, as you can imagine, I am now browsing and buying in the children’s sections of my favorite bookstores again, after all these years. What a joy it is to read to this new adored child in my life, and to contemplate more reading to and with him in the next few years!