It's a Classical Life

  The last few years I have made a concerted effort to declutter my house. When the kids were younger somehow we managed to fill every nook and cranny with bookshelves, craft cupboards and toy boxes. As they have grown I have encouraged them to downsize what they have to be able to keep it neatly in their room. I've decluttered a lot of my own things too - everything from home wares to clothes, photos, journals and yes, even books. There are a lot  of programs, books and content creators out there that talk about decluttering and how by having less stuff we actually have more room for the things that really matter. For me, the biggest benefit of decluttering and letting things go has definitely been for my mental health. Now, even when we have guests or we just let things go for a week or two, it is very easy to tidy up and get the house back in order. I simply cannot handle the added stress of clutter and stuff everywhere anymore. But I still have a long way to go.  Decl...

Crime fiction, and in particular Detective Fiction, is one of the most popular genres in modern literature. People are drawn to the clues, the methodical, logical steps taken by detectives and enjoy pitting their wits against the protagonist to guess "who dunnit" first. Even if people aren't fans of reading this popular and diverse genre, most will have heard of the most famous detectives: Sherlock Holmes, created by Arthur Conan Doyle, and Hercule Poirot (the little man with the funny moustaches) and Miss Marple, both created by Agatha Christie. These three detectives are amongst the most famous, most adapted and most parodied characters in all literature. Yet how did two English writers create such famous characters, when 'detectives' as a form of police investigator weren't even introduced into the English consciousness until 1842? Read on for a little history lesson on the rise of detective fiction.  In his book,  "Murder in Print: A Guide to Two Cent...

  I had a lot of fun compiling this list, and only used the classic books on our bookshelf that have been loved and read by three children (now all past age 5, but these books still remain!) As my idea to write a list for Classic books for children turned out to be a very long list, I decided to break it down into age groups. Here is the first group, for children aged 0-5. This is not, by any means, an exhaustive list. Please feel free to add your favourite classics in the comments below.  1. Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy, Lynely Dodd Source 2. Goodnight Moon, Margaret Wise Brown. This is such a favourite book of ours that we even have it in Spanish! Our children were raised bilingual and the simple language with the effective pictures was such an engaging read - in both languages. I always wanted 'a great green room'  of my very own. 3. The Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle. Another one that we have in both English and Spanish, as the children learned the days of th...

                                                                        As the weather starts to warm up we are all shaking off the blankets of winter and getting ready to emerge in the sunshine. Perhaps it is a spring picnic or a lie in the hammock that calls for a book. Or, on a drive into the country to see all the trees as they burst forth in happy spring time bloom. Or, as it is here today, cloistering ourselves indoors once more as the spring rains bring nourishment to all the plants and animals blooming. Choosing books to escape into spring with is not a daunting task. There are many classics perfect for this season. This list includes modern and ancient classics, to get you in the mood for spring.  1. Aesop's Fables . Although this book is believed to have been w...