How many books does your elementary child own? How many do you and spouse have?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hate hoarders

I don’t like hoarding either but sounds like some PPs have what used to be called home libraries. Sad that books are considered clutter.

NP and it just seems unnecessary to own that many books when libraries around here are so accessible and allow you to check out so many books. Why deal with the hassle of owning (space, expense) when you can easily borrow?

Because some of us just love books and like to surround ourselves with them. I don't see owning all my books as a hassle. If anything, it's a luxury and I consider myself incredibly fortunate to be able to afford books and bookshelves.

I want the accessibility of being able to grab something off my shelf when I want to look something up and revisit a topic. A fair number of the books I own aren't readily available at the library and I just like not having to wait. Jimmy Carter died yesterday so of course I'm grabbing one of my books that discusses SALT II, because seems like the perfect time to revisit that bit of history. I get it, I'm weird. But I'll never see my books as a hassle.

And for what it's worth, not all of us on DCUM live in the DC area. We don't all have access to the wealth of titles you do. My booming southern city's library system leaves much to be desired. It might be a bit niche, but in a system with 23 branches, not one of them has what is one of the most important first-hand accounts of the Rwandan genocide, Romeo Dallaire's Shake Hands With The Devil. The branch nearest to my house in particular leaves a lot to be desired.

You seem like a history buff! For someone who is a woefully undereducated adult in terms of history, what are your top recommended books? Anything history related - books that give a general overview of US or world history, books that do a deep dive into a particular topic, etc?

My particular interest is 20th century history/post-communist transition/NATO and EU expansion/rise of hybrid regimes, although I will happily read darn near anything history related. Two recent-ish books I enjoyed and are very timely about how we're got to the mess we're in today are M.E. Sarotte's Not One Inch: America, Russia, and the Making of the Post-Cold War Stalemate and There is Nothing for You Here by Fiona Hill. Sarotte has published a number of books on the the end of the Cold War and the post Cold War world that I think are excellent and generally accessible for the wider public.

For a nice DC-specific book, Grand Avenues is a lovely biography of Pierre L'Enfant and the making of DC.

Thank you! Have never heard of these, so I am glad I asked you! I’ll start with Grand Avenues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is number of books you own so important? We go to the library every week. My child has likely read more books than yours.

Well, studies show that number of books in a kid’s home tracks with better educational outcomes. Reading tons of books from the library doesn’t have the same effect. Look at the Freakonomics stuff on this.

Let me guess, you're also a big Emily Oster fan?

I don't need an economist to tell me my child's outcome based on the number of X in my home. There are always several books lying around the house and my children are both always reading something. They're excelling in school and in their extracurriculars. They're doing just fine. I don't need to count the number of books on our bookshelves to tell me that. I'm sorry you're so insecure in your parenting abilities. Work on that.

The number of books I own has nothing to do with freakonomics or any studies— I was just responding to why it might matter if one owns vs borrows books (according to some people). Not insecure… we just love books. I’m sure your kids are doing great, too.

[Anonymous]

My kids have hundreds and they are constantly reading them. I, as the parent, have switched to Kindle to save space in our apartment. I borrow mine from the library.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have hundreds and they are constantly reading them. I, as the parent, have switched to Kindle to save space in our apartment. I borrow mine from the library.

I tried borrowing adult nonfiction from the library, but it often takes me longer to read than 3 weeks (or 2 weeks for special books). So I tend to buy. Maybe I am a slow reader.

I do check out fiction and YA books.

[Anonymous]

Well over a thousand children’s books, plus two full bookshelves worth of adult books. I’m a former elementary teacher who taught multiple grades, so my kids get the benefit of my classroom library.

[Anonymous]

My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids have hundreds and they are constantly reading them. I, as the parent, have switched to Kindle to save space in our apartment. I borrow mine from the library.

Same. Although my oldest now gets ebooks from the library and kindle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

Please find her better quality books to read.

[Anonymous]

Thousands of kids books. And yes they read them. We homeschool so we basically have a school library at home - both fiction and nonfiction.

Plus several hundred books for us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thousands of kids books. And yes they read them. We homeschool so we basically have a school library at home - both fiction and nonfiction.

Plus several hundred books for us.

Would love to know your top titles for
-kids fiction
-kids nonfiction
-education/parenting
-classics/math/other

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

Please find her better quality books to read.

I was surprised by the choice too, and the way the post was supposed to be a brag. Kids that age should be far beyond that type of book. We don’t even keep books like that in the house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

that’s great! We should celebrate every child who is reading books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

Please find her better quality books to read.

I was surprised by the choice too, and the way the post was supposed to be a brag. Kids that age should be far beyond that type of book. We don’t even keep books like that in the house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thousands of kids books. And yes they read them. We homeschool so we basically have a school library at home - both fiction and nonfiction.

Plus several hundred books for us.

Would love to know your top titles for
-kids fiction
-kids nonfiction
-education/parenting
-classics/math/other

It’s all religion based were Mormon

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My nine year old daughter is a voracious reader and she keeps a record of the books she’s read. Since June she’s read over 80 books, devouring the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. With four children 11 and under I have very little time for reading which is pretty sad.

Please find her better quality books to read.

I was surprised by the choice too, and the way the post was supposed to be a brag. Kids that age should be far beyond that type of book. We don’t even keep books like that in the house.

Do you want a cookie ?