Tag Archives: Children

Books Gave Me a Refuge

By Robin Bates | Published: January 15, 2019

Tuesday I’ve been dipping into A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader, given to me by my good friend Sue Schmidt and recommended by reader Glenda Funk. A range of writers, artists, scientists, philosophers and others were asked to write a letter to young people about the value of reading. Original illustrations accompany […]

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He Comes to Shatter Expectation

By Robin Bates | Published: December 23, 2018

Spiritual Sunday Anyone with children knows the chaos they bring into one’s life. Even when they arrive longed for and expected, the parents have no idea what they are in for. This surprise factor is at the basis of a lovely Advent poem–published in the Southern Poetry Review–by my friend Jennifer Michael, currently chair of Sewanee’s English […]

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When the World Is Mud-Luscious

By Robin Bates | Published: March 21, 2018

e. e. cummings ushers in spring with a joyous celebration.

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What Draws Kids to Eating Dramas

By Robin Bates | Published: June 13, 2016

Eating stories enthrall my grandchildren because they reenact the childhood drama of separating from the parents and developing autonomous selves.

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Child Heroines Who Die for Our Sins

By Robin Bates | Published: November 2, 2015

The child heroine who dies, a common trope in the 19th century, continues to fascinate us, appearing in “Bridge to Tarabithia” and “The Fault Is in Our Stars.” One of my students has this as a senior project topic.

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Children Wrestling with Faith & Doubt

By Robin Bates | Published: September 28, 2014

Alice Munro’s “Age of Faith” is a powerful portrait of how children turn to God–and also why they turn away.

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The Children’s Hour, Pros and Cons

By Robin Bates | Published: July 21, 2014

Longfellow’s “Children’s Hour” may be overly sentimental but, as I played with my grandson, I found myself not caring.

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A Child’s Connection with the Dead

By Robin Bates | Published: April 30, 2014

Wordsworth’s “We Are Seven” captured my son’s sense of connection with his dead brother.

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