The Riders of the Pony Express

This is a nonfiction book by Ralph Moody (Little Britches fame) and I LOVE it.  I've read it aloud to my kids twice, which is a rarity for me.  I usually only like to read a book aloud once to share the experience with the kids.  It makes me cry every time at the sheer guts, determination and heroism exhibited by the early riders of the Pony Express.  ***** stars all the way.  Perfect for 5th grade and up, though there is nothing inappropriate for younger ages - I just don't think they'd be as interested.

Donbas: A True Story of an Escape Across Russia

This book was recommended to me by a friend.  I knocked it out in about 5 hours of reading.  I couldn't put it down.  It is an autobiographical story of a young man who was forced into a Russian slave labor shortly after the end of WWII.  He was 17 when he was picked up off the street on his way to school.  In an odd twist of fate, his father saw him locked in his train car.  Their eyes met for just a moment before the train pulled away.  Although he later was able to communicate with his parents after his escape, he never saw his father again.  After 2 1/2 years in a mining slave labor camp he makes a miraculous escape to freedom.  It is an incredible story and would be worthwhile for teenagers to read just to come to understand the great blessings of freedom that we enjoy and that those things are worth fighting for to maintain.

My Grandfather's Son

I read My Grandfather's Son, a memoir written by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and was so impressed by his life and the lessons that he pulled from his experiences that I ended up buying a copy. His grandfather had a powerful influence on Justice Thomas since he never knew his father. Justice Thomas' account is not a gauzy, trifle of a memoir. It is a clear-eyed account of his world growing up and I was really touched by his respect for a grandfather with whom he didn't always see eye-to-eye.

He does something that I greatly admire in biographies by discussing some of the unwise decisions he made in life. I love reading good biographies that I feel comfortable being able to share with my kids. I want to be able to pull stories from a biography that can provide my family with examples of good decisions that were difficult or showed wisdom, or bad decisions that were recognized and either corrected or repented of. This book provided both.

Because it deals with the Anita Hill incident there are historical accounts of some of the accusations that were leveled at Justice Thomas that would probably be inappropriate for younger kids. (Regarding that incident, it may go down as one of the most poisonous slanderings of an individual by cynical politicians in US history. It is shameful how it played out.)

The Myth of the Robber Barons

This is another example of me finding one of Josh's book laying around and absconding with it.
It's a short book. I liked it. Some people might find it a bit dry. If you are at all interested in capitalism, American success stories, government intervention, or accurate history (as opposed to glossed-over history from school), you might want to give this book a try. You can probably read it in one sitting, although I spread it's few chapters out over the course of a week.

The Myth of the Robber Barons describes the role of key entrepreneurs in the economic growth of the United States from 1850 to 1910. The author, Burton Folsom, divides the entrepreneurs into two groups market entrepreneurs and political entrepreneurs. The market entrepreneurs, such as Hill, Vanderbilt, and Rockefeller, succeeded by producing a quality product at a competitive price. The political entrepreneurs such as Edward Collins in steamships and in railroads the leaders of the Union Pacific Railroad were men who used the power of government to succeed. They tried to gain subsidies, or in some way use government to stop competitors. The author also has a conclusion, in which he looks at the textbook bias on the subject of Robber Barons and the rise of the U. S. in the late 1800s. This chapter explores three leading college texts in U. S. history and shows how they misread American history and disparage market entrepreneurs instead of the political entrepreneurs.

Interesting stuff!

How Capitalism Saved America

I found this book sitting on our bookshelves and picked it up just to see what it was.

I was pleasantly surprised! The author writes in a nice, flowing style. The information is not too intellectual to make reading difficult to understand. What interested me was the clarifying of all sorts of historical "myths" I had learned in school about the economic history of our country.

I've always loved history. This book gave me a better understanding of our country's economic past. I will probably re-read this book again in the future sometime to help me develop the vocabulary and understanding to be able to converse knowledgeably about economic policy in the modern political world.
I read it not too long after reading "The Myth of the Robber Barons" and while there was some overlap, the "Myth of the Robber Barons" really is a good book to read around the same time as it deals with a similar subject matter.

Against Leviathan

Against Leviathan is a collection of essays written by Robert Higgs, an economist and lecturer. Mr. Higgs is one of my favorite writers. He is an advocate for individual liberty and constitutional government. Because this is a collection of essays it is the kind of book where you can read a chapter rather quickly and then go back to what you were doing. Some of my favorite essays include: 19 Neglected Consequences of Income Distribution, The Mythology of Roosevelt and the New Deal, Great Presidents?, and Beware the Pork Hawk.

Many of the essays would require some background in political philosophy and economics so it's probably best for high school kids or older.

Carry On, Mr Bowditch

Carry On, Mr Bowditch is another great read-aloud book for the family. Nathaniel Bowditch was a navigational whiz in the 18th century. His story is one of determined self-study and a desire to live a life of excellence. His nautical writings became a sailor's bible as he went through the existing nautical information and corrected long-existing errors. There are many great lessons to be pulled from this story and it could lead to some great discussions as a family.

I read this because Kelly and the kids had read it and they told me how much they liked it. It took me a year or so before I finally got around to it and I wish I had tackled it sooner. It is another family classic for us.

Little Britches:Father and I Were Ranchers

Little Britches is one of our family classics. We absolutely love and adore this book. Ralph Moody has taken his childhood and, in the tradition of the Laura Ingalls Wilder, given us a fantastic glimpse of life in the pioneer west. The lessons that he learns from his mom and dad are timeless and wholesome. The life lessons that the book teaches are the kind you can come back to repeatedly. It is at times laugh out loud funny and other times heart-wrenchingly sad, but never boring.

This is a great read-aloud book for the whole family. There are several more books in the set but we haven't read them all as a family so I can't tell you if they are the same quality as Little Britches.