Vacation highlights, coming home, and more audio book listening

We are finally home from our month-long vacation out west. We had fun visiting family, catching up on all the happenings in their lives. My girls thought they died and went to Heaven when we stayed with my sister and they got to play with their girl cousins all day long. I loved the time I got to spend with my best friend (my sister) despite the many interruptions from various quarters of life. And I'm grateful to my bro-in-law for putting up with the added estrogen factor. We stayed at my sister's house for the first half of our visit, and then went to my parent's house for the last half.
I took my computer along with every intention of blogging during that time, but it was never really convenient.
My parents recently emptied their storage unit that they had had during their decades in Africa, moving the contents to their new-ish home. It was fun unearthing some of the treasures that haven't seen the light of day in 30 plus years, and hearing the stories behind some of the items I didn't recognize. And the books! So many old friends that I wanted to browse through, but couldn't due to a too-full house. (Next time I'm staying in the guestroom with the bookshelves, Mom!) I spent hours going through old school papers they'd kept for me, tossing out most of them. It was a fun walk down memory lane.
My older brother and his family came from Louisiana for the reunion, and we got to spend quality time with them as well.
And I got to meet my new little nephew, and nominally help my younger brother and his family move to their new house.
So, all in all, fun times were had, but in the end I was very ready to come home. It's hard to be away from home and Todd for so long (his work load wouldn't permit a vacation at this time), and my girls, despite all the bontemps, were chomping at the bit to come home to Daddy.
The drive back was sooo not fun; my girls were fractious and antsy and not behaving well, despite the following audio books:

1. What Katy Did At School, written by Susan Coolidge, read by Laurel Lefkow, produced by Naxos AudioBooks. My girls were anxious to hear the next installment of the Katy series. This story follows the adventures of Katy and her next sister Clover as they navigate the world of boarding school.

2. Best Loved Stories in Song and Dance, told by Jim Weiss, produced by Greathall Productions. The stories on this disc are The Twelve Dancing Princesses, The Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White and Rose Red.

3. The Mysterious Benedict Society, written by Trenton Lee Stewart, read by Del Roy, produced by Listening Library. I haven't read these books or heard much about them, other than one friend's recent recommendation, and so didn't know what to expect. I was hooked from the start. I loved this clever story and listened avidly. My girls, not so much. I'm not sure why, but they didn't follow the story very well, or listen very well. I think it was the anticipation of going home rather than the story itself. Now I'm dying to read the rest of the books, and see what other adventures the Mysterious Benedict Society has. Poor Grandma (my mom) was left hanging near the end, since we hadn't finished by the time we dropped her off in Nashville, and still had two hours left of the story. But we promised to buy her the books so she can find out what happens.
(I forgot to mention that the highlight of our drive, going and coming, was that my mom came with us. She flew to Nashville, where we picked her up, and she drove west with us. Then we did the same thing in reverse on the return trip. It was so wonderful having that time with her, since she had to work for most of our visit and wasn't able to spend a lot of time with us. It was fun listening to books with her.)

Jim Weiss, Storyteller and Recording Artist Extraordinaire - An Introduction

  If you've never heard of Jim Weiss, you're missing out on a marvelous experience. He is a storyteller - a master, award-winning storyteller, captivating audiences of all ages. If you think you're too old to listen to stories, hearing Jim Weiss tell a story will change your mind.

  This weekend, I had the privilege of sitting in four of the five presentations he gave at the 2011 MidSouth Homeschool Convention in Memphis. What a treat! I loved every minute of it. I learned tricks and tips about storytelling and reading aloud, like "Tell the stories you love. And don't think you have to be perfect at it. Through the telling of a story, your children will feel the love you have." I learned about the life and writings of G.K. Chesterton. I sat enthralled with my girls and husband, listening to stories about King Arthur; and we attended a storytelling workshop where the highlight was hearing Jim tell Aesop's fable, The Tortoise and the Hare. In every session he talked about the story behind the story, giving incredibly detailed highlights in such an interesting way. My older daughters talked of nothing but the experience the whole hour-long drive home.
 
  Jim Weiss grew up listening to his father and grandfather tell stories. His grandfather was the keeper of the family stories, and his father, a history and classical literature enthusiast, told Jim and his brother the stories from the books he'd read. And then he would point to the book, and say, "If you liked that story, you'll love the book."
  "It gave me the incentive to read books," Jim told me.
  As the years went by, Jim started telling his own stories, first to his young cousins, and then to his own daughter.
  In 1989, after years of telling stories for the fun of it, Jim and his wife Randy realized that all the classic stories were being hijacked by Hollywood, and a whole generation of children were growing up without truly knowing these great stories or their important messages to humanity.
  Because of their passion, they decided -in a bold, breathless move- to invest all their savings into starting Greathall Productions, to record the great stories of history, legend, and literature. They call it "Intelligent entertainment for the thinking family."TM

We had never heard of "a professional storyteller," did not know if there was an audience for what we were doing. We know only that the classics, from Aesop to Shakespeare, from Greek mythology to King Arthur through Dickens and Dumas, were often ignored or presented in a way that radically changed the original stories. We knew from experience, however, that a story well told would ignite a love of learning in a listener. Our goal then, as now, was to instill in children the lifelong love of great literature by telling the stories on a child's level without altering the authors' intent.

  And it paid off in a big way. Today, 23 years later, Jim Weiss' recordings have won more than 85 national awards, and gained a fan base from all around the world.
  They have MANY titles to choose from, ranging from folk tales (American Tall Tales, Animal Tales, Tell Me A Story!, Tales of Cultures Near And Far, etc.) to fairy tales (Fairy Tale Favorites In Story & Song, Giants! A Colossal Collection of Tales & Tunes, etc.) to Mythology (King Arthur And His Knights, Arabian Nights, Greek Myths, She and He: Adventures in Mythology, etc.) to adventure stories (The Three Musketeers/Robin Hood, etc.) to true stories of the great masters of art and science (Galileo and the Stargazers, Masters of the Renaissance: Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and More, etc.) to historical figures (Thomas Jefferson's America, Abraham Lincoln & the Heart of America, The Queen's Pirate: Elizabeth I and Sir Francis Drake, Julius Caesar and the Story of Rome, Gone West: Bold Adventures of American Explorers and Pioneers, etc.) to the works of famous authors and playwrights (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare for Children, Sherlock Holmes for Children, etc.)

 And, at the end of most of his recordings -in an echo of his father before him- he encourages his listeners to get the book and read the stories for themselves. 

Those of you who read this blog know by now how passionate I am about reading aloud, and how important I think it is for language development and for modeling the use of oral language, as well as creating motivation for children to read the stories for themselves. Storytelling, obviously, does that too. Plus, Jim Weiss explains, there is something magical that happens when a story is told - an energy, a bond is created between storyteller and listener. A storyteller gives the gift of him/herself in the telling.

I had so much fun meeting Jim and Randy Weiss this weekend. They are warm, gracious, personable, and funny. They gave everyone who stopped by their Greathall booth their personal attention. I watched them help people pick out the perfect CD for their family or special someone. In fact, they personally picked out and so generously donated 2 CDs for this special give-away.

For more information about them, and to see all their available stories and services, please visit the Greathall Productions website, and ask for a brochure. Jim and Randy also write a free monthly newsletter that you can sign up for that includes monthly sale specials, articles/stories by both Randy and Jim, and much more.

And now The GIVE-AWAY!

* This Give-Away is now CLOSED!

In the spirit of fostering that love of reading and learning, Jim and Randy Weiss have very generously provided me with 2 CDs to give to you, my readers, that they hand picked themselves, and that Jim autographed. Thank you so much, Jim and Randy, for being so generous to a humble beginning blogger.

The titles are:

• Tell Me A Story! A Treasury of Classics. Includes: Goldilocks and the Three Bears, The Bremen Town Musicians, Things Could Always Be Worse, The Hare and the Hedgehog, The Little Red Hen, Rumpelstiltskin, and Tell Me a Story. For ages 3 and up.

AND 

• Sherlock Holmes for Children. Includes: The Mazarin Stone, The adventure of the Speckled Band, The Musgrave Ritual, and The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle. For ages 7 and up.

Here's how it will work:

1. You MUST leave a comment telling me of your favorite storytelling or reading aloud memory/experience. PLEASE comment, even if you do not normally do so, because I want you to have a chance to hear Jim Weiss' marvelous stories. (But please note that comments without a favorite memory will not be entered in the drawing.)
2. There will be two drawings - one for each CD. Tell me in the comment which CD you prefer. If you don't have a preference, your name will be entered in both drawings for a chance to win either one. They are both wonderful!
3. You can only win one CD.
4. The comments for this giveaway will be open for one week. Comments will close at midnight (Central Standard Time) on March 13th, 2011. The winning comment will be announced on Monday morning. 
5. I'm sorry to have to restrict this, but the drawing is open to U.S. addresses only.
6. The winner must then contact me via e-mail, so I can get your name and address to send the CD on its way. You have up to three days to contact me after I announce the winners. If I don't hear from you, we will re-draw names.
7. Bonne chance!