Many school systems nationwide have adopted programs in which parents contract to read aloud with their children for an agreed-upon amount of time per day. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages pediatricians to give children under the age of five a book every time they have a checkup. Building a home library, no matter how modest, is a key element in the process. This is all well-intentioned and inherently good. However, as booksellers and librarians can attest, it can also produce high anxiety and guilt in already-overburdened parents.
Parents are often too tired to read, or too busy, or too stressed out.
Family reading takes time and commitment, and good intentions can easily be derailed by the minutiae of everyday living. Shopping for children's books can add to a parent's angst. Most parents come to us in absolute bewilderment. They know, or have heard from their friends, that reading to their child is important, but they haven't a clue where to start. Their own childhood reading experiences are lost in the dim haze of memory.