book club | PulseonParenting

Twelve (Plus One) in 2014

Jan 09 2015

One year ago my New Year’s resolution was to read more books. I set my sights on enjoying one book a month. While sometimes it was hard to find the time and motivation, in the end I was able to devour thirteen books cover to cover. If I included all books started (and not necessarily finished, see Sorry, Mr. Robbins, My Mind Just Doesn’t Work That Way), I could have read fourteen in ’14, which would have been kinda fun. But that would be cheating. Numbers aside, one thing is certain: my love for cracking a cover has been renewed. The new challenge…

A Fashion Statement Worth Considering

Jan 07 2015

Flying without my family isn’t something I do often and I really don’t like it. So when I flew the friendly skies solo last month I needed some company. Enter the book Orange is the New Black: My Year in a Women’s Prison by Piper Kerman. I was already hooked the television series by the same name and therefore curious about the true story that inspired a show ripe with character and drama. Piper Kerman, in describing her incarceration for a decade-old offense, clearly got an education beyond what she received at Smith College: a first-hand look at the prejudices, substandard…

Please Pass the Funny Stuff

Dec 09 2014

As with turkey and cranberries and Christmas cookies, I wanted seconds after finishing Jim Gaffigan’s hilarious take on parenting in his book Dad is Fat. So for another humor fix I turned to Mindy Kaling’s Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?. In her autobiographical turn, I learned Mindy Kaling and I have several things in common. Both of us were awkward, bookish kids who never got invited to keggers. And we also agree that Will Ferrell is the funniest guy ever. But somehow, despite our similarities, she was the one who became a successful comedy writer. Huh. Probably because back in college…

November 2014’s Book is a Keeper

Nov 14 2014

After dumping October 2014’s book in favor of one that exposed my nonexistent ability to market a blog (doesn’t speak much for my recent book choices, does it?), I wanted to give my choice for November more than a trial run before I posted what it was going to be. Furthermore, feeling untrustworthy in the book-picking department, I even left the final decision to a higher power: the library circulation desk. Or more accurately, the faster reader who brings books back on time. After putting a hold on two books I simply waited for the first of the two to…

To My Supporters

Nov 04 2014

It’s hard to believe pulseonparenting is over a year old! Even more astonishing is the 73 posts that seem to have come out of nowhere (and yes, some actually did). Knowing most blogs peter out for lack of content I feel so lucky and grateful to have more topics in mind and in rough draft as well. My blog is a source of joy to work on. However, I am going to take a partial hiatus. Short ditties will still be published but less often for the next month, or perhaps until the end of this year. The reason is I…

Sorry, Mr. Robbins, My Mind Just Doesn’t Work That Way

Oct 21 2014

Life is short. Too short to drink bad coffee (as is advertised by the coffee shop I’m sitting in right now), eat processed cheese and to not give downhill skiing a second chance (God help me). Well, I tried and tried to get into Nurtured by Love, the account by violinist Shin’ichi Suzuki on his “talent is learned” philosophy, but have struggled through the first third of his 142-page book. As my frustration grew with trying to learn valuable insights on our son’s violin method my husband told me Life is short. Read something you enjoy. His advice got my attention. Because when…

Learning the Language of Music (Yes, There are Strings Attached)

Oct 07 2014

I first heard about the Suzuki method of musical instruction when my sons voiced respective interests in learning violin and classical guitar. After we talked with both instructors, and observed their differing styles in response to our inquiries, I grew curious about the methodology that tied these teachers together. So enter the book for October 2014: Shin’ichi Suzuki’s book Nutured by Love. Suzuki was an accomplished Japanese violinist who astutely observed that children learn their native tongue through simple repetition. He felt that by using the same approach, with an understanding that ability is learned and not innate, children could learn…

The September 2014 Book is Not About a Lot of Things

Sep 09 2014

My husband is a TED talk devotee. I try to remember TED even exists. Don’t get me wrong, I think Technology, Entertainment and Design is an amazing resource. I just rely on my husband to funnel the most intriguing talks my way. One evening, he was insistent we watch one in particular that featured writer Jennifer Senior. She opened her lecture with how the parenting section in a chain bookstore is overwhelmingly stocked with volumes on how to raise the “right” kid and the crisis these overladen shelves symbolize. By the way, Jennifer Senior has published a book. But it…

Summer Reading, An Excuse to Indulge

Jun 17 2014

The weather is warm. The days are longer. And if you are like most parents, you are on the run. You need a book that you can pick up and read anywhere, everywhere, if only for a few minutes at a time. Well, how about three books that fill that bill? One for each of the busiest, balmiest months of the year. This summer I am diving in to The Hunger Games trilogy. My nine-year-old son has been salivating over the yummy boxed set since it entered our household but I have declined him the privilege of being the one to bend the first…

The Book Selection for May 2014

May 01 2014

I am looking forward to reading this next book. Based on reviews I’ve read and the cover flap description, Masterminds and Wingmen by Roselind Wiseman sounds like the male counterpart to her previous book about “Girl World,” Queen Bees and Wannabes. We all hear “boys will be boys!” and “boys are easier (to raise) than girls”. Hmmm. I wonder what Ms. Wiseman thinks about these ubiquitous phrases?

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