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Listen Whilst You Craft

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Thanks to Random House We have these amazing Audio listening books to review, but rather  than waste too much time actually reviewing each novel I am going to review Audio Books in General.

I am sure your wondering what Audio books such as Twilight and Harry Potter have to do with Craft?  I have only 3 words.  “HANDS FREE READING” Now you can craft, knit, sew, crochet, paint whilst listening to best sellers.

Imagine being at your next knitting group meet up and being able to throw in a little book club discussion. In today’s busy busy world finding time to craft is nearly impossible and finding time to read is left to commuting trips, car rides (if your not driving) and those sick winter days cause your stuck in bed under a pile of snotty tissues.

Make sure you add Audio books to your Christmas wish list so that the next time your looking for an excuse to knit, or an excuse to listen to a great novel you have something great to listen to.

Audio books are perfect Christmas presents for crafting loved ones too so check out some of the books below.

THE LOST SYMBOL

By Dan Brown

Read by Paul Michael

A fantastic new thriller from the author of The Da Vinci Code, this time set in Washington, D.C.

THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE

By Stieg Larsson

Read by Simon Vance

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was one of my favorite books of last year—this is the second book in the trilogy.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA

By Stephenie Meyer

Read by Ilyana Kadushin

Vampire-werewolf rivalry, a love triangle and teen angst—try giving the audiobook a listen to get you in the mood for the New Moon movie release in November!

HARRY POTTER

By J.K. Rowling

Read by Jim Dale

This series not only gives you a lot of material (the entire series runs more than 117 hours!), but is one of the best audiobook productions of all time—Grammy winner Jim Dale narrates the series with over 134 voices (and holds a Guinness World Record for that feat).

THE GUERNSEY LITERARY AND POTATO PEEL PIE SOCIETY

By Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Read by a full cast

This charming audiobook won an Audie Award last year for Best Fiction, and is written as a series of letters read by a full cast of colorful characters.

LAST NIGHT IN TWISTED RIVER

By John Irving

Read by Arthur Morey

John Irving returns with an audio that is epic in scope (over 24 hours long!)—it spans the past fifty years in America, and has at its center a complex father and son relationship written with great suspense and wry humor.

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Comments

  1. Children’s audio books mean eye-free reading with small children – when my eyes are too tired to read, or when I’m trying to finish sewing something, or when dinner has to be cooked and TV is not allowed!! My favourites come from Barefoot Books.

  3. I can’t knit without a book now! I love Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell by Susanna Clark and the Temeraire books by Naomi Novik. Cannot recommend them highly enough.

  4. I currently subscribe to several audiobook clubs. I can not sew without listening to books. I go through 3-4 a week. I will definitely check out audiobooks. Ps. Some really great listens are: Suzanne Collins “Hunger Games” so, so good, you’ll love it. The sequel is “Girl on Fire”. Also, Stephen King’s new one “under The Dome” It is a good book and is long which helps with my audiobook spending.

  5. Podcasts are amazing to sew to (if you don’t have patience to go through an entire book). My personal favorites are “This American Life” and “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me” from NPR. Many of them are also free, conveniently enough.

Have you read?

Hanukkah Unit Studies for Kids

Learning about Hanukkah is important for people of all faiths as a reminder that December isn’t just about Christmas and that their are many other important holidays that happen during this time. Hanukkah unit studies can give you ideas for incorporating the holiday into your holiday studies that happen in December, or to use at home for learning about people of different faiths.

Homeschool Superfreak has a lot of basic ideas for how to build a Hanukkah unit study, as well as FAQs about what Hanukkah is and why it is celebrated. This list is a good stargint point but doesn’t include all the details you’ll need. For example it says you can play the dreidel game but doesn’t explain how to do that or why it’s important. (If you need that information, this post from Mama Smiles is a good source.)

Teachers Pay Teachers has lots of great lesson plans and activities if you’re willing to pay a little bit to get some good content. Two I really like are this Hanukkah PowerPoint presentation from Shelia Melton, which provides a good overview of traditions, food and the history of Hanukkah; and a virtual field trip to Jerusalem from MagiCore, which includes lots of videos showing the city and activities like playing dreidel, drawing a menorah and making latkes. It’s a Google Drive folder and also includes writing activities and more for kids in second to fifth grade.

Kids Activities Blog has some simple printables with facts about Hanukkah and things kids can color in like a Star of David, sufganiyots (jelly doughnuts) and a menorah. These are great for learning the basics.

Homeschool Giveaways has a printable ebook about Hanukkah complete with questions kids can answer after they read. This would be a good one for older kids with good reading comprehension.

NurtureStore’s Hanukkah unit study includes a printable mini book, tons of crafts, as well as math and writing activities. I love the dominoes game that’s part of the unit.

And check out our previous posts for more Hanukkah crafts and learning activities!