Parables From Nature (Classic Living Book)

I am using this book as part of a homeschool curriculum. My oldest (age 10) just finished it; my middle child is about 1/3 of the way through through; and my youngest will begin next year (around age 7) . These stories seem simple enough—maybe even a little quaint. The language is challenging, no doubt about that. The first year with my oldest, I wondered how she could possibly get anything out of these stories. I could barely understand. It turns out, she understood them better than I did. Over time, we both got used to the language (which, incidentally, has made reading other challenging texts much easier), and it flowed more and more easily. As I have read them to my oldest over the last three years, I am surprised by how deeply they have affected me and my kids. They bring the stories up in conversation. They relate them to things that are going on in their own lives. I find myself thinking through them at odd moments. In fact, the resolution of the robin has become my own declaration in the last two years. If you are willing to do the work, if you can trust your kids and train them how to work through the text, if you can be patient with what you don't know, you will be well-rewarded. If you are looking for a quick skim, an easy little moral tale, or if you think that kids need simplified language to hold their interest, this probably isn't the book for you. It makes you work for your rewards. They are, however, well-worth the effort they require.

Buy this book. We use it in our homeschooling curriculum and I am obsessed with it. I regularly weep as I read these beautiful truths taken from scripture and nature. Every story leaves me in awe of our perfect Creator.

My whole family loves this books. They don't write children's books like they did back in 1855. So we'll written and wisdom. Live the scripture at the start of each parable. My kids are ages 3 to 10 and they all enjoy listening.

This book has become one of my favorites! There is so much depth in these stories, and while they're a little wordy, the language is beautiful. The quality of the book itself is good. The paper is a little on the thin side, but nothing terrible. When I ordered it, I wasn't expecting heirloom quality, and I've been pleased. My 7 year old listens to me read the stories, and though she doesn't grasp every word, she usually gets the concepts and we talk about the stories over and over again.

I was so excited to get these because I didn’t want the watered down versions out there, but this is so text heavy and the stories are unnecessarily wordy, it’s hard for me to read it aloud. They could have used a bigger font and more white space at the least.

This is one of our family’s new favorite books. The stories are timeless and share God’s truth is beautiful ways. My 7 year old loves to read it.

We've read a couple of the parables, and they're great! This version of the book is lovely to read, and beautiful to flip through. I'm sure we'll enjoy it for a while.

Perfect for our family. Hits character building and nature study. Does speak of death right out of the gate in the first story, I know some young children are sensitive to that. It will be a beloved book in our family.

This book is heartwarming. Beautiful story and this edition is full of tiny wonderful illustrations. Would recommend.

Terrible print by forgotten books!

Wonderful parables. My bookshelf was not complete without this.

Excellent little book

This volume contains sweet stories rich in language and meaning.