A Children's Book

[ecosophia]

Last weekend I was in rural North Carolina giving a talk to a Masonic group there. As I commented at the time, most of the Southerners I know are very hospitable people, and so are most of the Masons I know; combine the two and hoo boy. It was very pleasant. During one of the intervals when the womenfolk were present, I was introduced to the wife of one of the brothers, who is also a writer. She didn't tell me that, and seemed embarrassed to have it brought up, but I'm glad that came up in the conversation.

Sharon K. Bradshaw (that's her name) is a preschool teacher, and her book, Rainbow Circle's Big Worry!, is for preschoolers.  It's got animals for characters, and it's short and well illustrated, the sort of thing that not-quite-beginning readers can pick their way through without too much difficulty and five- and six-year-olds can take in easily when it's read aloud. The reason I mention it here is that it's about listening. 

Ms. Bradshaw mentions in the foreword that she's asked her students, "What's the hardest thing about being a child?" (Not many adults would have the courage to ask that question, much less take in the answer.) The answer far more often than not was "Nobody listens to me." I'm not sure how many of you can relate, but I certainly can; having to deal with most of the issues I faced alone, without a single sympathetic person I could talk to, was one of the things that made my childhood a very bleak time. I wonder how many people remember Cat Stevens' song "Father and Son," with the son's harrowing lines: 

"How can I try to explain? When I do, he turns away again

It's always been the same, same old story

From the moment I could talk, I was ordered to listen
Now there's a way, and I know that I have to go away."

That's what Rainbow Circle's Big Worry! is meant to address. Its overt purpose is to teach children to think of listening -- and the broader set of skills to which Ms. Bradshaw gives the name "attuning" -- as a valuable talent and a skill worth learning. I suspect that a covert purpose is to slip the same insight through to parents and other adult caregivers. On the off chance that my readers know children (or adults) who could benefit from this, I figured a signal boost was worth doing. 

You can get a copy from Bookshop and from all the other usual suspects. 

Comments

[open_space]

My school opened a preschool and primary ten years ago and 60% of the classes are in English. I have forwarded the title to them in case they might find it useful. One of the useful things about my education is that we read a lot of diverse things, so maybe they also do it in the preschool system.

[(Anonymous)]

I'll see if I can get this for my library.
-Cliff

[(Anonymous)]

Why is it that so many people in our society do not seem to have the skills to listen to other people?

[ecosophia]

I think part of it's because so much of our media lectures us without giving us a chance to talk back.

[avalonautumn]

Great idea for a book!

Upper age limit?

[(Anonymous)]

Just wondering if a seven year old boy would enjoy the book? My grandson is that age. And, yes, I realize that children are all different, but was wondering about a general impression.

Re: Upper age limit?

[ecosophia]

It depends on how well he reads. If he's already reading non-illustrated books, it may be too early-reader for him. If he still likes his books heavily illustrated, he may well like it.

[betwixttheworlds]

JMG, when you are doing masonic ritual in MD, do you find the Southern Jurisdiction that much different than the Northern? I can't imagine having to relearn everything.

[ecosophia]

Hmm. It's much, much worse than that.

Every state grand lodge in the US has its own ritual for the three blue lodge degrees. Sometimes the differences are minor and sometimes they're not. The basics are the same but everything else changes. I've had to relearn the blue lodge rituals every time I've moved to another state.

Then there's the Scottish Rite, which is where the division between Northern and Southern jurisdictions come in. (That doesn't apply to ordinary blue lodges.) The rituals of the two Scottish Rite jurisdictions, for the 4th through 32nd degrees, have almost nothing in common with each other. Both jurisdictions have changed their rituals over the years, but the Northern has done far more sweeping changes than the Southern.

[threerays]

Thanks for the recommendation. I bought a copy for my daughter -but secretly I’m the one that needs to listen more. This book sounds great.

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you for the shout out! It was nice meeting you. Listening connects hearts 🐼🌈

[ecosophia]

You're most welcome and likewise. It struck me as soon as I read the book that this might help at least a few people become better at listening, which is one of the most neglected skills of our time.

[(Anonymous)]

This is very synchronistic to me. "Deep Listening" and "Subtle Listening" are two topics I've touched on in my writing before, and I started on a new essay dedicated to this theme. I will see about the library picking this up, and getting it to read to our granddaughter. Maybe pass one on for my great niece as well.

JPM

[(Anonymous)]

I am heartened to see something for children that features a rainbow is something other than woke drivel. I mean this seriously (typing this as I drink out of my vintage rainbow coffee mug…) I’ve copped a lot of flack from conservative friends and family for retaining my rainbow aesthetic preferences even though I’ve not embraced rainbow insanity. It’s not easy to walk this line. Thanks.

[jenniferkobernik]

Interesting! A copy is on its way to our family. It's hard to find contemporary children's books of any quality, so I appreciate this.