Do you cry whilst reading to the children?

[MrsNormanMaine]

I just read The Story of Holly and Ivy (Rummer Godden) to my children (5 and 3) and burst into tears. I do get very into the reading and I loved it when I was a child. Maybe due to recent bereavements (parents) or just being older and a parent myself - or being a sentimental nutter - but have you sobbed openly due to being moved by a story you are reading to your children? How did they react? What did you say?

My daughter was concerned and sweet, my son thought it was hilarious but was also very sweet and tried to get me to read the same bit over and over to see if it kept happening. All in all I think it added something!

I did the same thing reading The Diddakoi (when the Does were going to send Joe to the knackers). Must stop with Rummer Godden!

Mind you, might remove my daughter's copy from toybox if it is going to be worth money.

I'd not heard of the Big Big Sea before - but need to read it now. It sounds beautiful. I'll join the campaign!

I surprise myself by finding that I wouldn't be willing to sell it for £35. I would snap up one of the £8.63 copies if I were you.

I'm shocked that The big big Sea is out of print... it's such a beautiful book, gorgeous illustrations. I'm going upstairs now to put it on a higher shelf out of DS's (AKA 'The little shredder') way.

Yes Harpomanx yes!!!!!! That's the book I meant - not 'Seven for Silver', 'Seven for a Secret'!

It is so so sad.

My MIL bought No Matter What for my DD1.

While I was in hospital having DD2.

I had to stay in hospital for around 5 days because of complications and DD1 wouldn't come and see me as she didn't like the hospital.

When I got home, 5 days postnatal, bent double by the CS scar, smack in baby blues territory, half mad with missing DD1, she thrust No Matter What into my hand and asked me to read it. In front of the assembled family masses.

Bt the time I reached the bit about the stars I was snorting big snotty sobs and clutching my scar. My in-laws didn't quite know what to do.

I blubbed when Charlotte died in Charlottes Web. It was the bit about her only being able to weakly raise one leg to wave at Wilbur. 'And no one was with her when she died'. FFS I am welling up writing that, get a grip woman!

'Nothing' gets me.
Its worse if you haven't read ahead IMO. My mum bought ds 'Dr White' (about a dog in a hospital - based on a true story) I blithly start reading to ds and end up snivelling (trying not to), and snot filled. I try to avoid it now...
'Beegu' can also do it to me depending on how the hormones are behaving

Love you for always by Robert Munsch makes me want to sob...

heres an explanation from his website

Love You Forever started as a song.

"I'll love you forever,
I'll like you for always,
as long as I'm living
my baby you'll be."

I made that up after my wife and I had two babies born dead. The song was my song to my dead babies. For a long time I had it in my head and I couldn't even sing it because every time I tried to sing it I cried. It was very strange having a song in my head that I couldn't sing.

heres a www.robertmunsch.com/books.cfm?bookid=40link to his page you can download him reading it

Oh no RumMum, now you've set me off.

Let's Get A Pup

Blub-a-rama

this one - just like you by jan fearnley - gets me every time

www.amazon.co.uk/Just-Like-You-Jan-Fearnley/dp/1405218878/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books& qid=1227438151&sr=8-2

"Nothing" was my main one too.

This was while I was nannying. Now I am pregnant and it's worse. I bought "Sharing a Shell" by Julia Donaldson as a goodbye present for my little charge on my last day before starting maternity leave and I was in PIECES.

My ds was so deeply shocked and devastated at the end of Charlotte's Web that he a/cried his eyes out b/insisted I write a new happy ending, type it out and sellotape it into the book and c/put the book on a very high shelf so he could never accidentally read it again. He was six at the time.

The Selfish Giant every time. I have just read it to DD (6) for the 1st time in many years and although I knew it would get me, I was really surprised at just how beautiful it is.

Forgotten 'Let's Get a Pup' does me too.....
But ending!

same as dizzymac

(Are you related to KatyMac?)

The Selfish Giant gets me every time. Even dh experienced a bit of 'moistening' around the eyes when he read it to dd.

Can't BELIEVE the Big Big Sea is out of print!

Oh my goodness - The Selfish Giant!! I practically had to be ventilated the first time I read it to my dcs.

this reduces my dh to tears and this just breaks my heart.

i LOVE the illustrations in Let's Get A Pup, too

Nobody's Fool... I love this song, but can only sing the first verse...after that I am a mess, which is a shame because I can play the guitar quite well. I learnt this tune ten years ago, to teach some children, and have never been able to hold myself together to teach it.

The Velveteen Rabbit - a Christmas story gets to me too.

Anything involving bereavement (Badger's parting gifts), or loss of ability. I know it's because it opens the cracks in my emotions!

Whenever I read the bit about Impunity Jane cracking with a broken heart I am in a mess... starting to blub just thinking about it! Bloody Rumer Godden!

Reading any book to my dds which used to be a favourite from my childhood makes me cry - as with hearing songs and doing things with my dds that I used to love when I was little... there's something about seeing them experience things that used to mean a lot to me.

Think I'm going to get dds to read A Little Princess on their own when they're older...

I have to hand The Selfish Giant over to my dh to read the last paragraph and quickly walk out of the room. Another one I is Baboushka about an old Russian lady who is invited by the 3 wise men to go and see Jesus, but follows on too late. The "further on Baboushka" at the end does it for me every time. I must have a thing about religious stories. Oscar Wilde has written some other real tear jerkers too. Luckily ds isn't quite old enough for them yet.

I'm so glad I'm not the only nutter who gets choked up over a child's book. My list is

Papa Panov's Special Day
Angel Mae by Shirley Hughes
Guess how much I love you
The legend of the Christmas stocking

Love Peepo but it makes me smile a lot, which is better than sobbing! I'm looking forward to reading the classics to my DDs like the Railway Children and a Little princess. But know I will be a gibbering wreck.