RAR #85: Reading “Messy” Books About Hard Topics with Kids
I think this is one of the best conversations we’ve had so far at The Read-Aloud Revival.
Today we’re talking “messy” books. Parents – you probably know just what I mean.
Messy books are those books that tackle hard topics. Or maybe they just have stuff in the background that makes us a little nervous about our kids reading them.
Today I’m talking with Betsy Farquhar of Redeemed Reader about how best to handle these kinds of books, and why we shouldn’t just ignore them – even if they make us a little uncomfortable.
I enjoyed this conversation so very much, and came away with a ton of confidence and a lot of great books to read with my kids!
In this episode, you’ll hear:
- why as parents, WE need to be the ones to have big conversations with our kids, and how books can provide hooks to start those conversations
- why controversial books are so popular
- ‘read-alones’ vs ‘read-alouds’
- various ways we can navigate the tough stuff with our kids
Click the play button below:
Listener Guide
Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast:
- 3:38 Meet Betsy
- 6:25 How Redeemed Reader chooses books
- 7:17 What makes a book ‘messy?’
- 10:14 Are older books ever messy?
- 11:38 Why do messy books freak us out?
- 17:15 What to do when our kids hear/read something messy
- 19:31 Why are controversial books often so popular
- 24:06 Ongoing conversations
- 27:55 Best books for handling messy topics
- 31:05 Read-alones versus read-alouds
- 32:14 YA recommendations
- 37:18 Let the kids speak
A couple takeaways from this episode …
- “I think that in so many ways, the books we read with our kids– messy or otherwise– are the best gateways into some of those conversations that are uncomfortable that we don’t really want to have with our kids but we know we need to have with our kids.”
- “There has to be some kind of redemption. It doesn’t mean there’s always the happy ending, but it does mean there has to be an overall sense of hope and ability to help the reader see the world with fresh eyes, to see things new.”
Books from this episode:
(All links are affiliate links.)
Links from this episode:
- Redeemed Reader
- Great Homeschool Conventions
- Read-Aloud Revival on Instagram
- RAR #67: Reading for the Bigger Story, Jonathan Rogers
- Order The Read-Aloud Family
- Worthy YA: The Best Teen Reads of 2017
- Premium Membership
Great Podcast! We are reading a Children’s version of the Iliad and Odyssey, which my kids are loving, but it is “messier” than I thought it would be as a children’s version. This has been so helpful for guiding conversation! I think our all time favorite messy book has to be “The Chestry Oak.” It leaves you in such a hopeful place. This podcast helped me pin point that hope as the reason we all loved it while crying over it.
I have one title for you has a homeschool mom who is now 60 and homeschool five kids. The best “messy“ why a book we ever read was The Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Riley GIff. Even better is the CD because the narrator is absolutely awesome!
Thanks so much for this recommendation!
This podcast was amazing! Love the perspective of not shying away from tough issues and different perspectives but always offering hope. Will definitely be checking out her website and recommendations. Using her YA recs as ideas for MY reading list. Thank you.
That’s a great idea!!
I loved this podcast! It was helpful to hear how to handle some of these issues and to learn about the Redeemed Reader website.
Something I realized as I was looking at the list of books mentioned in this episode is that we shouldn’t necessarily just come and look at the list and take those as recommendations. :) We really need to hear what is said about each book–there are cautions and ideas for how and when to read them. I’m guilty of going to some old podcasts and just checking the list for what has been recommended without hearing what was said about them!
I’m so grateful for the RAR.
Yes. Share these books with your kids. This past summer, on road trip, we did an audio book with my boys (age 12, 10, and 8). It is Beneath the Scarlet Sky, about an Italian teenager in WW2. Very much adult book, so I am not recommending it for very young kids, and you need to know what content your kids can handle. But I had no issues about letting them hear a book about the real-life atrocities of WW2. Its important to remember the past and learn from it. Now, I had already read the book and knew there was no bad language and only a couple paragraphs in entire book with a PG-13 type scene between man and woman (which I skipped when we got there). Long story short, the boys loved hearing this book, and continue to mention the character, Pino. And we got to discuss important topics like the Holocaust. Oh! And because of our audio book enjoyment, it led me to find your site! 😀. So big take-away for me is don’t hesitate to share books that may have challenging content….just pick something you know your kid can handle and enjoy the family time!
Haven’t listened yet, but all I can say as a former teacher, parent, and author is THANK YOU. This is a hugely important conversation. Books are a safe place to explore the world. Reading them together means important, meaningful discussions happen. BRAVA to you both.