I ‘ve got a new favorite episode of the Read-Aloud Revival podcast. It’s no wonder, because in this episode, I’m having a conversation with Kate DiCamillo on reading aloud for connection.

There is so much packed into this conversation.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

  • what Kate really thinks when we ask our kids “what did the author mean?”
  • how books help us jump into the Great Conversation (“unwittingly”, as she says)
  • that stories are smarter than their authors… and what that means for readers

Listener Guide

Use the time stamps below to skip to any part of the podcast:

  • 1:28 Reading aloud with kids in school
  • 5:35 Kate DiCamillo is here!
  • 9:29 ‘Same side of the table’
  • 10:54 In a new light
  • 12:03 Trying to get to the table
  • 15:12 How we talk about books
  • 18:45 Not getting in the way of the story
  • 25:11 The Great Conversation
  • 28:19 Themes and stars
  • 32:02 Microscopes, telescopes and flashlights
  • 34:21 Character wants versus needs
  • 36:16 More Mercy
  • 37:10 Writing advice
  • 39:01 A coffee invitation
  • 41:01 Let the Kids Speak

A quote to remember:

“Reading aloud ushers us into a third place, a safe room. It’s a room where everyone involved: the reader and the listener, can put down their defenses and lower their guard. We humans long not just for story, not just for the flow of language, but for the connection that comes when words are read aloud. That connection provides illumination.”

– Kate DiCamillo

Books from this episode:

(All links are affiliate links.)

Because of Winn-Dixie
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Mercy Watson to the Rescue
The Magician’s Elephant
Bridge to Terabithia
Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures
Mercy Watson: Princess in Disguise
Good Rosie!
Bud, Not Buddy
A Sense of Wonder: On Reading and Writing Books for Children
The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread
The Tiger Rising
Mercy Watson Fights Crime
Ribsy
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
A Piglet Named Mercy
Leroy Ninker Saddles Up: Tales from Deckawoo Drive, Volume One
Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster
Raymie Nightingale
Louisiana’s Way Home
Jayber Crow
Great Joy (midi edition)
The Last Battle
Island of the Blue Dolphins
If You Want to Write
Beverly, Right Here
La La La: A Story of Hope

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