It’s generally accepted that children need good stories. It’s not generally accepted that good stories are the most important thing read to children. We moderns think of fiction as a treat, a bonus, or an escape; it’s nice but certainly not something we have to require for school. This is why many new classical moms find themselves confused while looking over a book list of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, and The Secret Garden for next term. If education is about the future, then we have a question: Shouldn’t I give my children real stories to prepare them for the real world?

I’m joined by Rachel Woodham to discuss how stories are a better preparation for Reality and why every mother-teacher should create her list of Reads of Requirement for her home.

Footnotes for this episode

Mudd and Sapphires | Substack

The Still Point | CiRCE Institute column

“Harry Potter, Read of Requirement”

“No Bottom: Delighting in Shakespeare with the Young”

Chance or the Dance?: A Critique of Modern Secularism, Thomas Howard

Til We Have Faces, C.S. Lewis

Brideshead Revisted, Evelyn Waugh

Everything Sad is Untrue, Daniel Nayeri

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You can find the full episode notes here (including my footnotes for this episode). You can leave the podcast a rating and review here. (I thank you!)

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