Honey for a Child's Heart
by Gladys Hunt
List Price:
Our Price: $7.37
You Save: $5.62 (43%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $4.00 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Gladys HuntBrand: Spring Arbor/Ingram
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Format: Deluxe Edition
Published: 2002-05-01
ISBN: 0310242460
Number of pages: 256
Publisher: Zondervan
Accessories:
Book Reviews of Honey for a Child's Heart
Book Review: An Excellent Resource with Selection Guidelines as Well as Extensive Book List
Summary: 5 Stars
Honey for a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt was the first of the Christian book list books. First published in 1969, it is now in its fourth edition, published in 2002. The author has written other books in the same genre (Honey for a Teen's Heart, Honey for a Woman's Heart, and Read For Your Life), as well as several books on other topics.
This volume opens by laying out a case that children need not only physical nurture but also relational joy and pleasure from their parents. Hunt likens the provision of basic physical needs to giving children milk, and relational nourishment to giving them honey -- hence the title of the book.
She devotes a considerable amount of time to introducing easy-to-read, well-researched guidelines to help adults discern what makes one book superior, helpfully supplying a brief history and description of the field of children's literature. She delves into the realms of fantasy versus realism, and considers questions such as how to include classic books in family reading and whether Christian parents ought to read books about magic to their children. She spends a chapter about the bonding that happens when adults share books with children, and another on how to introduce the Bible and moral literature. This is one of the more comprehensive, knowledgeable and practical guides to building a children's library that has appeared in any book of this type that I have seen.
In terms of how books form children's character, she writes that "[e]xample always speaks louder than precept, and books can do more to inspire honor and tenacity of purpose than all the chiding and exhortations in the world" (53). She suggests that while parental relationships are the primary influences on children's development, we should not discount the effect of television and other social pressures. In response to external influences, she suggests that parents seek to increase their influence through books. In her words:
Parents who read widely together with their children are going to be those who most influence their children, who have the largest worldview, who have an uncommon delight in what is good and true and beautiful -- and an uncommon commitment to it. Sharing and feeling and talking together will come naturally. Books shared with each other provide that kind of climate (99).
She ends this opening section by suggesting some good strategies for locating and selecting books for a home library, giving a few resources, and suggesting how to include children in the exploration and selection process.
The annotated book list is fairly extensive, containing about 1000 titles, one-third of which overlap with my other Christian book lists. It is organized by reading level and further by genre, and most titles are individually annotated. Unlike some other book lists, it focuses almost exclusively on story literature, historical fiction, and poetry as opposed to nonfiction.
While it is more comprehensive, it is less selective than I would prefer in terms of excluding objectionable content -- it includes several titles that I do not recommend (among them Rascal, Sounder, and Jacob Have I Loved). As compared to other lists, it seems to include more titles (at least in my part of the country) that are widely popular and easily available at libraries and used book sales. Because of its excellent introductory chapters and its easy-to-use format, it is the second best book list I have found. (The best is Books Children Love, which overlaps with one-eighth of this list.) This is an excellent resource, especially for pleasure reading as opposed to educational books.
Summary of Honey for a Child's Heart
Family favorite now revised and updated, including an annotated list of books for ages 0-12 Everything parents need to know to find the best books for their children Since its publication in 1969, this has been an essential guide for parents wanting to find the best books for their children. Now in its fourth edition, Honey for a Child's Heart discusses everything from the ways reading affects both children's view of the world and their imagination to how to choose good books. Illustrated with drawings from dozens of favorites, it includes an indexed and updated list of the best new books on the market and the classics that you want your children to enjoy. Author Gladys Hunt's tastes are broad, her advice is rooted in experience, and her suggestions will enrich the cultural and spiritual life of any home.Christian Living Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Christian Living Books
A Survey of the Old Testamentby Andrew E. Hill, John H. Walton
Zondervan; Published: 2009-02-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $22.01
Price in other shops:
Steps to Christby Ellen Gould Harmon White
General Books LLC; Published: 2012-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.14
The 1928 Book of Common PrayerOxford University Press, USA; Published: 1993-11-18; Leather Bound; Book
Price in other shops:
A People's History of Christianity: The Other Side of the Storyby Diana Butler Bass
HarperOne; Published: 2010-03-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.50
Price in other shops:
Works of Loveby Soren Kierkegaard
Harper Perennial; Published: 1964-10-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops:
America by Heart : Reflections on Family, Faith, and Flagby Sarah Palin
Harper Collins Publishers; Harper; Published: 2010-11-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life In Godby Dallas Willard
HarperOne; Published: 1998-03-24; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.00
Price in other shops:
God for Us: The Trinity and Christian Lifeby Catherine Mowry Lacugna
Harpercollins College Div; Published: 1992-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $73.97
Ruthless Trustby Brennan Manning
HarperAudio; Published: 2004-01-06; Audio Cassette; Book
Best price: $3.01
Price in other shops:
The Screwtape Lettersby C. S. Lewis
Macmillan; Published: 1982; Paperback; Book
Similar Books and other products
Books That Build Character: A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Values Through Storiesby William Kilpatrick, Gregory Wolfe, Suzanne M. Wolfe
Simon & Schuster; Touchstone; Published: 1994-11-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.89
Price in other shops:
Drawing with Childrenby Mona Brookes
Tarcher; Published: 1996-06-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.98
Price in other shops:
The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home (Third Edition)by Susan Wise Bauer, Jessie Wise
W. W. Norton; W. W. Norton & Company; Published: 2009-05-04; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $25.48
Price in other shops:
For the Children's Sake: Foundations of Education for Home and Schoolby Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
Crossway Books; Published: 2009-06-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.00
Price in other shops:
Books Children Love (Revised Edition): A Guide to the Best Children's Literatureby Elizabeth Laraway Wilson
Spring Arbor/Ingram; Crossway Books; Published: 2002-10-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.45
Price in other shops:
Honey for a Woman's Heart: Growing Your World through Reading Great Booksby Gladys Hunt
Spring Arbor/Ingram; Zondervan; Published: 2002-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.37
Price in other shops:
Honey for a Teen's Heartby Gladys Hunt, Barbara Hampton
Spring Arbor/Ingram; Zondervan; Published: 2002-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.23
Price in other shops:
Read for the Heart: Whole Books for WholeHearted Familiesby Sarah Clarkson
STL Distributors; Apologia Press; Published: 2009-12-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.49
Price in other shops:
The Read-Aloud Handbook: Sixth Editionby Jim Trelease
Penguin Group USA; Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2006-07-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.00
Price in other shops:
Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenchesby Rachel Jankovic
Canon Press; Published: 2010-11-26; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.97
Price in other shops: