The Book Whisperer: Awakening the Inner Reader in Every Child by Donalyn Miller

Title: The Book Whisper

Author: Donalyn Miller

Published: March 16, 2009

Pages: 240

Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Genre: Elementary Education

Review: ebook 

Buy Link: Amazon 

Donalyn Miller says she has yet to meet a child she couldn't turn into a reader. No matter how far behind Miller's students might be when they reach her 6th grade classroom, they end up reading an average of 40 to 50 books a year. Miller's unconventional approach dispenses with drills and worksheets that make reading a chore. Instead, she helps students navigate the world of literature and gives them time to read books they pick out themselves. Her love of books and teaching is both infectious and inspiring. The book includes a dynamite list of recommended "kid lit" that helps parents and teachers find the books that students really like to read.

One of my bosses at work asked me if I had ever read this book and I had not. It is not part of the normal genre of reading that I do. If you have followed my reviews on my blog, Amazon or Goodreads you know that this would be out of my norm. I was very impressed with what she was doing to get her students to read. Before I continue with this review, can I just ask this author to please turn my son into a reader he is a 7th grader. As a lover of books he rather me sit and read to him at night than pick up a book, even if I make him pick up a book he is very reluctant to read. 

She gives so many good points on what works within her classroom and what she sees when her child moves on. I see that myself. We push reading so much in 1st and 2nd then by 3rd and 4th we teach more to the state test (which I hate, always have and always will), and we don't really push reading as much. Then by the 5th and 6th grade children just don't care to read as much. It is like whatever. I agree with her on letting children pick what they want to read. I have always been a firm believer in that. We can't expect children to be outside of a box when we keep putting them inside a box and won't let them grow.
It was great for her to explain the different kind of readers that we have in our world. I can honestly tell you which ones my children are. So that was a real eye opener for me as a parent.
One thing I did agree but to an extent was the group reading  I know as a child I hated it. I was a fast reader I always read ahead just because some of the children in my class were slow readers, along with the dreaded worksheets. I hate the worksheets, yet here I am writing a book review. I think the book review is better than the sheets of paper as I can truly get my thoughts down. Now, my daughter has a 2nd grade teacher who loves reading and does the group reading on certain books. It works with her classes. I know this because my daughter comes home and tells me about the books she is reading as a class and have I read this book? I of course probably had not and I tell her that, her reply is you should read it. We can read it together! I will say this her teacher does not do a group book every week. It is spaced out so the children do not get overwhelmed.
Though out the book there is plenty of quotes that I loved and bookmarked to put through out my library for all the students to read.

I pretty much agree to everything she wrote in this book! She gives great advice and I really want to try to implement in my library more reading time for the children of all ages. I want them to just come in and read no strings attached.
I sadly have to give this book a four on account of multiple things. We do spend a majority of the book getting the explanation on what she tried and what worked and didn't work. How she redid certain things, yet I feel like I didn't get a deeper understanding of how it truly, truly works.I do feel like it was missing that one powerful thing, I sadly can not put my hands on it.
 I would love to be in her classroom and truly observe her style of getting children to read. Another reason for the 4 stars is the formatting of the book! Being around authors and people who can format books ( I know one person who is amazing) I know that a book can be formatted correctly to be on a reading device. It does take away from what you read. It seems that there were statements and responses as different times, but it didn't show them all. It was broken and choppy. Please get this fixed.

Donalyn Miller has taught upper elementary and middle school students in northeast Texas and received TCTELA's 2018 Edmund J. Farrell Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions to literacy education. She is the author of several books about engaging children with reading, including The Book Whisperer and Reading in the Wild. Donalyn is the co-founder of the popular blog, The Nerdy Book Club, and co-hosts the monthly Twitter chat #titletalk. Her articles about teaching and reading have appeared in publications such as Education Week Teacher, The Reading Teacher, Educational Leadership, Horn Book, and The Washington Post.