Story Warren Weekend, Vol. 13, Issue 39

Welcome to the weekend!

Last week I visited Boston in the Fall (thank you, VeggieTales, for that particular turn of phrase), and I remain convinced that New England in October is a foretaste of the Kingdom. If you ever have a chance to visit, take it at once! And those of you who live there—well, don’t forget how blessed you are.

(It will help to remember this when it’s snowing in April.)

Around the Web

Redeemed Reader brings us a new review of The Winter of the Dollhouse, a redemptive tale meant for middle-grade readers. “The setting is small and domestic but the characters (human, doll, and animal) comprise a little universe of loss, longing, and resolution.”

10 Ways to Keep Your Reading Fresh. Tim Challies has some ideas to mix up your reading routine and benefit more fully. “No matter what you do, try to find ways to replace stale habits with fresh ones. Often, all that’s needed to spark up a new love for reading is to think in some new ways and get hold of some new books. “

Around the Warren

This week at the Warren, we unveiled our new website! Come check it out if you haven’t yet.

To celebrate the new place, one of our founders, S. D. Smith, reminded us of our mission: Allies in Imagination. “Why Imagination Matters—and You Need Allies.” “Stories, like most art, are meaning-making machines. They help us make sense of life, truth, and purpose, and love and shape us in ways mere information—even truthful information—never can alone. This is part of the reason, I believe, that we have received more than factual data about Christ’s purpose, power, and mission. We also received a story.”

Kelly Keller passed on a tip on one of her favorite storytelling prompts for middle-grade kids: The Mysteries of Harris Burdick.“I’ve used these pictures many times for creative writing prompts for students. Kids love them.  Those of you with young ones, beware — there are some scarier images. You may want to wait on this book for those of a tender age. But with magical pictures like this, not every story needs to be scary…”

Something to do with your kids

If you have a trip to the pumpkin patch planned over the next few weeks, here’s a printable for you! Make a booklet to capture the memory.

Something to watch

A stop-motion retelling of the book of Ruth:

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Kelly Keller

Kelly Keller is the managing editor of Story Warren. She has her BS in Elementary Education from Messiah University and has taught various ages, but her favorite was worldview and literature with high school students. The “gap” in her resume is actually a window of eighteen years of homeschooling, which she recommends as an effective, though demanding, way of expanding one’s home library.

When she’s not behind her laptop, Kelly enjoys live music, baseball, reading great books, and traveling with her husband, David. Kelly hails from beautiful snowy New England, but after nearly two decades in North Carolina, she feels right at home.

She invites you to subscribe to her newsletter, On the Common, or to follow her on Twitter or Instagram.

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