There are so many business books I have read that have benefited our publishing company or my author platform. Over the next few months, I will highlight some of my favorite business books with a brief synopsis of the book as well as my top ten take aways or quotes.

Book Title: The Intentional BookShelf

Author: Samantha Munoz

Book Synopsis:

You are a parent and with that title comes both endless joy and incredible responsibility. You have the opportunity to mold and shape your child in any way imaginable, and that fact alone is scary and overwhelming. Stop thinking you have to do it all by yourself! In The Intentional Bookshelf author, blogger, and bibliophile-mama, Samantha Munoz shares how her daughter’s carefully curated bookshelf has saved her sanity as a parent and can save yours, too. Through actionable tips, thoughtful personal stories, and tongue in cheek humor, Sam teaches you:

• The value of literature for parents and children
• How to plan and build your child’s library
• The types of books to choose from
• How to organize your shelves
• Unique activities to go outside the book
• and more!

The choice is yours; either struggle through parenting with no backup or learn to craft a library of resources that is a reflection of your child and your family. (Hint, if the second option sounds amazing this book is for you!)

My Review:

For parents who feel unprepared on raising a literate child, one who develops a love of literacy at an early age, then I highly recommend this book to you. It will give you detailed steps on how to curate your family library in a cost effective, intentional manner. Books go beyond teaching literacy skills and if you can tap into this at an early phase in your family, you are bound to see the benefits in your children!

Top Ten Quotes:

1. “An intentionally curated bookshelf serves many purposes: to be your aid and guiding light in your parenting journey, to help your child learn beyond the classroom, to be a safe place outside of the real world, to be a source of entertainment, to be something that can be enjoyed with the whole family, and to be a source of pride and accomplishment.”
2. “The secret helpers? Books. Books are concrete examples of all the values, morals, lessons, and characteristics you envision your child possessing. With a carefully crafted book collection, you can pave the way for a child who understand the world on a deep level. When you run into a moment of doubt or confusion, or you are in need of a a small anecdote to help solidify lesson to your child, grab a book.”
3. “If you knew there existed a special food, that if your child ate it on a daily basis, they would never get ill, would you make sure they ate that food? Books are essentially food for the brain, and if your child interacts daily with books, their brain will get the exercise it needs to thrive. The more they read, the more the synapses in their brains will strengthen due to the activity. Reading is quiet literally and vibrant. A strong brain, leads to a stimulated mind that yearns to learn and can more readily accept and process more knowledge.”
4. “Sometimes as parents we do not know exactly what to say to our children to help them through tough times. With books, you do not have to have the right words yourself; you just have to have the right words somewhere on your bookshelf.”
5. “Books provide an easy gateway to that intimate, tight relationship. Think about it this way, would you rather give your child 20% of your attention 100% of the day, or 100% of your attention 20% of the day? Quality over quantity!”
6. “Before you can even begin the process of accumulating stories and books, you need to be clear about what message you want to send, and what you want this collection to embody. Start by deciding what your values are. What are the wholesome qualities you want your child to possess? What are some lessons you want to teach your child as they grow? what kind of parent are you? What kind of information and facts would you like your child to learn about?”
7. “It is comforting to your child to spend quality time together reading a book. You are engaging in a very personal and close-up kind of way, which is different then watching television together. When you watch television together, you are not required to sit next to each. other. You do not have to turn the pages together and laugh together. You are in essence in your own little world, absorbing whatever is on the screen in a very secluded manner. Take that, and the visual stimulation television provides, and it is a bedtime and family time nightmare.”
8. “Your child’s personal book collection does not need to be filled with thousands of books, it just needs to be intentionally and purposefully crafted.”
9. “You can start building fact that they are older, have experiences in life, and have developed a personality that can be integrated into the process. Include them as you decide what the foundation and core of books will include. Ask their opinion about the message the bookshelf should convey. Have them help you answer the questions about what their values are and where their interests lie.”

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My name is Maria Dismondy. I am a children’s book author who also founded the publishing company, Cardinal Rule Press.

Finding ways to market my messages is a passion of mine. I want to help you gain greater recognition of your brand, to generate new readers and improve your sales. Why? Because I love to GIVE and CONNECT and I truly believe we are all in this together!