Some of My Best Friends Are Books: Guiding Gifted Readers from Preschool to High School [Paperback]

Judith Wynn Halsted (Author)

Book Description

Some of My Best Friends Are Books

Finding emotional support for the gifted through bibliotherapy.

Books can provide important emotional and intellectual support for gifted children, many of whom face unique issues in their lives due to their special talents and abilities. The author offers suggestions for using books as bibliotherapy.

The book contains short summaries of over 300 books organized by grade level adn indexed by author, title, and theme. Questions are included to facilitate discussion.

An invaluable resource for parents and teachers who wish for a list of books to recommend to their gifted readers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... a comprehensive guide on the importance of books in the lives and education of gifted and intellectually curious students." -- Maurice D. Fisher in Gifted Education News

"...should be on the shelf of every school library, whether that school offers gifted programming or not." -- Roeper Review

"Halsted... has made book selection for gifted children so much easier and sensbile with this work." -- Communicator, California Association for the Gifted

"Her extensive selection of wonderful books is well thought out and practical." -- Jim Delisle, Ph.D., Kent State University

"Though any parent of a bright child would find it helpful, it is a must-buy or must-borrow for any parent homeschooling gifted children." -- Stephanie Tolan in Roeper Review

About the Author

Judith Wynn Halsted, M.S.

A former director of gifted programs at Pathfinder School, Judith Halsted is now an educational consultant in Halsted Academic Advisors, a program she co-founded. She has been involved with gifted children for over thirty years as an educator, librarian, counselor, and parent.

Product Details

• Paperback: 430 pages
• Publisher: Great Potential Pr Inc; Revised & enlarged edition (January 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0910707243
• ISBN-13: 978-0910707244
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,378,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is definitely the best of its kind on the market!, January 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Some of My Best Friends Are Books: Guiding Gifted Readers from Preschool to High School (Paperback)

Worried that her gifted child was spending too much time reading by himself, a mother admonished her son to go play outside. "But Mom," he replied, "some of my best friends are books!" Thus the name of this wonderful book which describes the role of books in a child's development, and summarizes the social and emotional needs of the gifted reader. In Part Three of the book, Halsted gives an annotated bibliography of over 300 books, each dealing with issues for gifted children. She then presents a set of easy-to-use indexes of the books by grade level and by topic, as well as by author and title. Topics include aloneness, creativity, differentness, intensity, moral concerns, etc. This book truly is "an excellent resource for selecting the right book to guide a child to better understanding of self and situations," according to the California Association for the Gifted Newsletter, and I agree. It is a must-buy or must-borrow book for the parent of any bright child from kindergarten through high school.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful, November 2, 2002

By 

Laura Lynn Walsh "gt-teacher" (Fairbanks, AK USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Some of My Best Friends Are Books: Guiding Gifted Readers from Pre-School to High School (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

I bought this book mainly for the annotations of the books and, for me, the theory and application to classroom situations is a bonus. The part I will use the most is the annotation section, where the book is discussed and pointers are given on what types of issues are addressed. Discussion points, always useful for teachers, are carefully addressed for each book. I wish more books could have been included, but, of course, there are trade-offs in that - longer ==> more expensive.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, August 6, 2003

By 

Kappy Hodges (Kansas City, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Some of My Best Friends Are Books: Guiding Gifted Readers from Pre-School to High School (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

It is wonderful to find a book that helps you guide your child - ANY child, gifted or not - to exceptional reading material. I loved the books it recommended for my 4 yr old - we picked up several of them at the library and some here on Amazon. The book also pointed out what the exceptional qualities for each book were, so that you could have a better discussion about the book with your child. It was worth the money, since it gives recommendations for ALL ages of child and I will reference it as he grows older.