We checked out A Chair for My Mother from the library last week (based upon a recommendation from Read for the Heart) and really loved this book.
It’s the simple story of a grandmother, mother, and daughter who lost everything in a house fire. They began rebuilding their lives piece by piece, dreaming of the day when they would be able to afford a nice plush chair to sit in and relax at the end of the day.
They started saving for the chair penny by penny, nickel by nickel, and quarter by quarter. Each day, they would deposit any extra coins they could scrounge up from a long day’s work into a big glass jar. Slowly ever so slowly, all of those coins added up to enough to pay cash for a beautiful new chair.
This book depicts the rewards of hard work, sacrifice, and paying cash — an almost lost art in this day and age. And it would be an excellent springboard for a discussion on many topics related to finances, work ethic, simple living, and contentment.
For more book ideas, check out my series on Books We Love. For more picture book ideas, check out my list of 15 Favorite Children’s Books.
Have you read any great books (children’s books or otherwise) recently?
Here is a list I found on Pinterest of 50 books for your children to read before starting Kindergarten. A Chair for my mother is on the list.
I forgot to add the link http://www.education.com/magazine/article/50-books-child-read-kindergarten/
Here is a list I found on Pinterest of 50 books for your children to read before starting Kindergarten. A Chair for my mother is on the list.
We read this book over and over (from the library) when I was a child and we haven’t been able to remember the name the last few years to read to my daughter. Thank you!
I loved this book as a child!! I saw it on Reading Rainbow and just had to have it! My mom went and got it for me and my daughter now has it! Such a great book!
We read this during our annual “Fire Safety Week” each Fall. We read a bunch of books on the fire prevention, fire safety, life of firemen, etc. and go to our Fire Department’s open house. A Chair For My Mother shows the human loss involved with fires. It answers the “why not play with matches?” question that my pre-schooler had.
This was my 17 yr old daughter’s favorite book when she was young!! I need to get it again for the younger bunch…Thanks for the reminder!!
I’m not sure I’ve ever read the book, book in hand, but I remember it from Reading Rainbow as a child! I loved it. Such a neat story. Now maybe I’ll find it at the library.
Ooh, I remembered reading this one as a child as soon as I saw the cover! Great story and illustrations.
I know you highlighted a children’s book, but I am reading an excellent book right now! “Confronting Jezebel: Discerning and Defeating the Spirit of Control.” Fabulous book!
This really made me smile because this was my all-time #1 favorite book when I was a child. I have 3 copies of it and I read it to my children all the time and they love it too. I’ve never seen it mentioned anywhere before, so this made me really excited that it’s been brought to light. 😛
I’ve never seen it anywhere before either that I can remember and was excited to sort of “stumble” upon it through Read for the Heart.
We own this book and like it a lot, too!
We like this one, too! There is a sequal called A Chair for Always, and it was good, too.
Oh, thanks for letting me know! I just placed a hold on that one at the library!
Love, love, love this book! So glad to see it here!
🙂
Lea
Oh man, you’ve already mentioned two of my favorites as a child – this one and Caps for Sale. Ferdinand was one my mother always loved too.
We love Ferdinand, too! In fact, it’s on our list of 15 Must-Read Children’s Books: https://moneysavingmom.com/2012/03/15-must-read-childrens-books.html
Oops. Wrong book. This is a very good one too.
You should check out Ezra Jack Keats other books. Fabulous author.
What was the book you were thinking of? I’m curious now. 🙂
Peter’s Chair. That’s what I get for looking at the picture/title on my tiny phone screen quickly (and not reading your summary) while trying to get everyone bathed and fed before the sitter came. I surprised my husband with sitter/dinner out for our anniversary. But anyway, Peter’s Chair is about painting Peter’s chair pink to give to the little sister when he outgrows it and he is not too sure he wants to part with it–also has some good lessons in it, although probably not as strong a message as this book. Ezra Jack Keats, who wrote Peter’s Chair, wrote quite a few books and they are very good and have wonderful illustrations.