Gandalf fell in the Mines of Moria as my children’s faces glowed from the light of a Coleman lantern in our tent at Cade’s Cove Campground. Peter, Susan, and Lucy learned to trust Aslan while Stephanie, Amy, and Josh lay on the floor wrapped in blankets, heads on pillows.
Reading aloud was a big part of our family life. Josh and I took turns reading chapters of “The Scarlet Letter,” and I sobbed through one of my chapters because the redemptive love of Christ was presented so powerfully. While visiting the home of my dear friends the Alsops, I was so eager to learn the fate of the little toy rabbit (their current evening read-aloud) at the bottom of the ocean that I sneaked the book from its place, took it to the guest room, and spent a few hours reading it cover to cover. I was leaving for home the next morning, and I didn’t want to miss the rest of the story.
Some books are just better when read out loud. “The Two Doors” is such a book. I’d like for you to meet Gracie and her friends for the first time while you read aloud to someone (even if it’s just yourself). When I shared this book with others for the first time, I read it to our good friends Don and Edwina McCaslin while holding them captive in our living room. They indulged me and apparently got over it.
“The Two Doors” has a meditative, almost magical quality. It quietly unlocks doors to walled-up places in the heart and transforms our feelings about who we are and what our life can be. I can’t wait for you to experience it!
Reading Aloud was a Big Part of Our Family Life