Reflection on The Chosen (1981) Movie Night

Two books held outdoors against a wooden fence background.

Reflection on The Chosen (1981) Movie Night Written by Kathryn Skillett We gathered in the family room, with a huge bowl of popcorn on the table between us, my friends and I. What elements, we asked together before the movie began, were absolutely essential for the movie if we were to call it a successful…

Read More

When We Discuss We Discover

A small nativity scene, a book, and a decorative green vase on a shelf.

When We Discuss We Discover Written by Sophie Kolars In college while I was taking my required classes for my English minor, I vividly remember feeling so out of place among the other students. The professor would begin the class by pointing out important aspects of the book that we should know, but the rest…

Read More

Why I Need Well-Read Mom

Hand holding "The Well-Read Mom" book.

Why I Need Well-Read Mom Written By Marcie Stokman, Well-Read Mom Founder and President *Reprinted from Well-Read Mom’s Year of the Contemplative Reading Companion. (copyright 2018) Although it has been seven years since Year of the Contemplative and nine since our first Victor Hugo selection, it is wonderful to pause and reflect on the beauty…

Read More

The Great Sower, Notre Dame

A row of books neatly lined up on a shelf with a clock behind.

When I learned that Victor Hugo originally intended his seminal novel to be titled “Notre Dame,” and that the “Hunchback of” was actually an unwanted addition, I felt forced to reconsider the whole novel as a study on Notre Dame as a teacher.

Read More

Virgil and the Work of Letting Go

Two paperback books, "The Chosen" and "The Divine Comedy Purgatorio," lying on grass.

As I read Purgatorio during this season of Lent, I felt myself invited to consider my own attachments and ask myself what I am being invited to let go of. Through much prayer and reflection—and with the help of Dante and Virgil—I came to realize my own attachment to homeschooling.

Read More