myfunnybunch Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 (edited) Chris in VA's (Oops, JennifersLost...sorry!) Little House thread made me think of all of the read-alouds I've had to squeak my way through. No matter how I try to hide it, I am a Huge Sap. Several parts of the Little House series. The Very Best Christmas Pageant when Imogene starts crying. Every. single. year. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but nooooo. The Sword in the Stone when Sir Ector kneels before Wart. Lassie, Come Home when Lassie comes home. And Where the Red Fern Grows.....sheesh, get me a hanky. I read it to my oldest a few years ago, and when she saw I was reading it again to the boys she offered to read the ending for me. My boys are used to it by now. "Mom, is this part making you cry?" (To which, of course, I indignantly reply, "No." :D ) What are yours? What do you tell the children? Cat Edited January 4, 2009 by myfunnybunch goofed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill- OK Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving, lol. (Every. Time.) And America's White Table (a picture book about Veteran's Day) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 We haven't read too many heart-wrenching chapter books yet, but I blubbered my way through the ends of the picture books Ruby's Wish and Grandfather's Journey (oh man, that was a bad one too), and of course, Love You Forever. I knew it was a cheesy book before I even started, and I know some people actually hate that book, but I almost couldn't finish it, I was crying so hard. I also recently overheard Jami Gertz retelling a book called The Tie Man's Miracle: A Chanukah Tale on a PBS show the kids were watching. Ugh, I had to leave the room for that one too. (I'm crying now, just remembering it :rolleyes:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Johnny Tremain, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Tha Castle in the Attic, and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. I make dh read those parts :D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4summergirls Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Chris in VA's Little House thread made me think of all of the read-alouds I've had to squeak my way through. No matter how I try to hide it, I am a Huge Sap. Several parts of the Little House series. The Very Best Christmas Pageant when Imogene starts crying. Every. single. year. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but nooooo. The Sword in the Stone when Sir Ector kneels before Wart. Lassie, Come Home when Lassie comes home. And Where the Red Fern Grows.....sheesh, get me a hanky. I read it to my oldest a few years ago, and when she saw I was reading it again to the boys she offered to read the ending for me. My boys are used to it by now. "Mom, is this part making you cry?" (To which, of course, I indignantly reply, "No." :D ) What are yours? What do you tell the children? Cat Your post brought back memories for me about the Little House Series. It was absolutely my favorite as a girl, (read it at least 7 times) but I never remember it making me cry. Fast forward to last year when we did the series as read-aloud, and as an adult I have so much more appreciation for the hardship and near-death experieces they encountered. Reading it anew with adult perspective brought me to tears several times, and I think my girls were wondering, "What's up with mom?" :) Understood Betsy had some very moving parts for me. I loved that book, and had never read it as a child. Island of the Blue Dolphins had parts that made all of us weepy. Fun topic, thanks for starting it - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bula Mama Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Oh my, let's see. There are so many! In fact, my dc just roll their eyes and offer to read for me a bit now. What is it about speaking the words that makes it worse?! The Witch of Blackbird Pond Eric Liddell Johnny Tremain Little Britches Cheaper By the Dozen Those are the first ones that come to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulubelle Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 I just recently read Sign of the Beaver to my boys and I was crying through the end of the book! The older I get the more sensitive I get. There's been more I just can't remember them. One short book I read to them was about a Dad that comes home on the day man walked on the moon and he is still in his car inside the house in the drawings! It was so powerful! The Dad could not disconnect from work to home. I cried! I tried to read a non-fiction book about the Challenger and I just couldn't even get through it. I just pretended it was the end of the book practically in the beginning! I'm sure there will be more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 There are three in particular: Understood Betsy, The Little White Horse, and The Chestry Oak. Understood Betsy and The Little White Horse get me in just a couple of places, but those places get me every single time. I've been reading them for over 40 years and I still cry. The Chestry Oak...oh.my.goodness. I cry like a baby from beginning to end. I don't know what it is, exactly, but I do. I even cry when I tell someone about it. I read it aloud to each dd once. We'd sit on the sofa, I with a big ol' cloth napkin, and I'd say, "Dear, Mommy's going to cry in this chapter." Or "Mommy's going to cry A LOT in this chapter." And I'd read and cry. Oh, and there's another: Hurry Home, Candy, by Meinert DeJong (sp?). I embarass myself when I read it. It's the ugly cry--nose running, eyes spurting tears, sobbing, snorting...yeah. The original short story of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever makes me cry more than the book, but yeah, there's crying going on there, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMindy Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Anything sad Anything sentimental Anything patriotic Anything where goodness triumphs over evil My kids are used to me crying in books! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plain jane Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 The only book I can think of that has ever really made me cry is "Where the Red Fern Grows." I bawl my eyes out every. single. time. It is one of my all-time favorite books! I haven't read it to dd yet as I think she may be a bit too young. I may have to get dh to do the reading for this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Anything sad Anything sentimental Anything patriotic Anything where goodness triumphs over evil My kids are used to me crying in books! :-) That sounds like me. I'm a big cry baby. I know better than to ever read Where the Red Fern Grows to my kids. Many places in the Little House series made me cry, but the part where Mary leaves for college was the worst. Summer of the Monkeys Black Beauty The Giving Tree All the Places to Love (which is really sweet and not in the least sad) Julie of the Wolves There are far too many to list. This is just what I can remember offhand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 The only book I can think of that has ever really made me cry is "Where the Red Fern Grows." I bawl my eyes out every. single. time. It is one of my all-time favorite books! I haven't read it to dd yet as I think she may be a bit too young. I may have to get dh to do the reading for this one. I refuse to read this one to ds for this very reason. Bridge to Terabithia Because of Winn Dixie most of the Narnia books Johnny Tremain Roll of Thunder, Hear me Cry Wanderings of Odysseus (the ending got me) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacqui in mo Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 The only one so far I've cried while reading aloud is "Dear Napoleon, I know You're Dead But..." The part where the mother tells her son that his beloved grandpa has died. Eerily, I read this aloud just a couple of months before my own father died. Maybe God was preparing me and the kids with this book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 OH gosh! I had to stop and get a hold of myself reading Where the Red Fern Grows to my kids a few months ago. I not sure how I made it to the end because I was sobbing so hard. The kids were quite amused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Good-bye My Lady, the part where the boy has to return the dog, is one that really gets to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Well, not read-alouds per se, because I was pre-reading. But I cried in "The Bronze Bow" when the guy chooses to cross the street and invite the Roman into his house. Yesterday, we were watching "Free Willy" - my kids are orca freaks. My son cried from beginning till end, my daughter from the middle till the end, and she cried openly when she realised the tank was destroyed and Willy might die. Big big sobs. And I cried too, I didn't remember much from that movie, but if that's not an ode to families, I don't know what is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Well, not read-alouds per se, because I was pre-reading. But I cried in "The Bronze Bow" when the guy chooses to cross the street and invite the Roman into his house. I cried often in that book. The part you mention was just one instance. My kids had to continually take over the reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Country Mouse Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 Most recently it was Ida B, when her mom tells her she will always be with her. Welling up now.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staci in FL Posted January 4, 2009 Share Posted January 4, 2009 For me, it was From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I was sobbing uncontrollably at the end. After coping with infertility for many years, it was the first book that accurately communicated just how painful it is to not have children. My kids (the four that I adopted) had no idea why that part of the book made me so very sad. Let me tell ya, it REALLY got to me. I remember having to take a long break from schooling that day. The worst part about it was that I was so excited to read something that so accurately communicated the emotional pain I had felt for so long, but I had no one to share it with! Anyway, it is a great book and I highly recommend it, especially if you are having a hard time getting to Art Appreciation. Staci Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie Laurie Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Little Britches Cheaper by the Dozen The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane The Clown of God And many, many more that I'm forgetting; I'm the sentimental type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. That one got me too (and is one of my wife's favorite books). Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse made me sob. December by Eve Bunting. A Christmas story of a homeless family that takes in a old woman to share their cardboard box home on Christmas. Got me. The Ugly Menorah by Marissa Moss. A heart warming (and heart breaking) story of a girl's first Chanukah without her grandfather. It was our first holiday season without my father-in-law so this hit home. Don't tell anyone I get weepy reading kids books:D Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The end of the last Harry Potter book. Lots of picture books that are sweet or remind me that my babies are growing up too fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 It was a good kind of cry : ) One song that never fails to put me into tears is Puff the Magic Dragon: A dragon is forever, but not so little boys...all three of my "little" boys know it never fails to make me cry. How about some of the books from Five in a Row? Who Owns the Sun? And The Rag Coat. Snif. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhonda in TX Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Oh, my word. I cried at the beginning. I cried at the end. I have cried at many others, but that's the most recent. For those unfamiliar with the book, it's The Penderwicks on Gardam Street. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Orphans. Things that I would never cry over on my own make me cry as read-alouds. Especially orphans (or otherwise neglected children) finding love and care... "The Story of Holly and Ivy" *should* be hokey and ridiculous -- but we read it every December, and every year I have to choke my way through so much of it! And "The Lion in the Box" is the same... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer in NH Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 "The Birchbark house" My kids cried at that one too! My young son talked about smallpox for 2 weeks. Books with really sappy endings make me cry too, so do movies.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakeside Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Anything sad Anything sentimental Anything patriotic Anything where goodness triumphs over evil My kids are used to me crying in books! :-) I'm the same way. I think I'd have an easier time listing read alouds that don't make me cry...except that I can't recall what the last one would have been. We've been reading through the Chronicles of Narnia again and it has been draining! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merry Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The Bronze Bow..I sneak off when it comes to the end, I don't want to scare my kids since I'm just not a crier Johnny Tremain and some of the Narnia books are not as bad but still... and I've seen my boys shed a tear or two over these And most recently, the Holly and the Ivy got me choked up. Thanks, Colleen, for posting about this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FriedClams Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Pink and Say (and most books by Patricia Pollaco) The Story of Ruby Bridges The Rag Coat The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane The Light on Tern Rock And let me say - I am NOT a crier - but some books, MAN. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homeschoolmom Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The Velveteen Rabbit "What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?" “Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real." "Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit. "Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt." "Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?" "It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. “ You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in your joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can’t be ugly, except to people who don't understand." and the Giving Tree and the Red Fern Grows and... oh, yeah, I'm a sap. Shhh, don't tell anyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. :iagree: Absolutely, times a million. Even my HUSBAND cried when my 9 year old read it to him. That has to be the sweetest book EVER. Also, A Tree Named Steve by Alan Zweibel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
learning2gether Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The very first read aloud that has made me cry is the one we are currently reading. Sounder. I could not control the tears and finally my 10 yo dd asked if I would like her to take over. The 13 and 8 year old were crying along with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in VA Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 The Single Shard. My dd was weepy too but claimed she wasn't LOL Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacy in NJ Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Johnny Tremain and Old Yeller. I was blubbering like a baby at the end of Old Yeller. I knew the ending but still it got me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughing lioness Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Heidi. Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes. Lots of others :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanie Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Where the Red Fern Grows, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Old Yeller. Anything with animals! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricket Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Understood Betsy and The Little White Horse get me in just a couple of places, but those places get me every single time. I've been reading them for over 40 years and I still cry. I read Understood Betsy for the first time last year to our oldest. I probably cried at the same part you did. I'm reading it again this year to our 7 yo. I'm probably cry again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sgilli3 Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Im such a sooky la la, when it comes to reading books with ANY sort of emotion in them ( happy...makes me cry, sentimental...makes me cry...lol) Black Beauty Anne of Green Gables Watership Down Currently reading Bridge to Terrabithia- I have read it before, so I know what is coming up- and I know Im going to cry like a baby when I read it- which means I'll end up with red puffy eyes, a snotty nose - and the - someone will ring the doorbell! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buddhabelly Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Toohy and Wood, by Mary Elise Monsell. (Sniff. Snort.) It was the first book that brought my son to tears. He was five or six. He was startled by the suddenness of his grief, and came running into the room holding the book and yelling, "MOM! Read this, read this!" He had tears running down his face. I told him to always remember this book, because it was the first one that moved him to tears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Understood Betsy had us all in a puddle. The Last Battle never fails to get me. The Velveteen Rabbit Anne of Green Gables Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liberty Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Ones I blubbered over while reading aloud: Island of the Blue Dolphins Sign of the Beaver Old Yeller I Love You Forever (for the 1st 10-20 readings, now not so much) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LanaTron Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 I'm the same way. I think I'd have an easier time listing read alouds that don't make me cry...except that I can't recall what the last one would have been. Yesterday, I was reading a newspaper article about the Secret Service to my family and got choked up when thinking about how brave the men and women who protect the President are. My dc all looked up from their breakfasts like, "Oh, man, here she goes again." :D I'm reading Little Women right now to my dc. I don't know how I'm going to make it through the part when Beth dies. Guess I should forwarn my kids now that I may really loose it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in OH Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Oh my--am I the only one who cries reading Charlotte's Web? Where the Red Fern Grows is my biggest weakness. I'll never forget my SIL walking into my kitchen where I was sitting on the floor reading it to my dc and crying like crazy. We must have been a sight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homeschoolmom Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Oh my--am I the only one who cries reading Charlotte's Web? Nope, you are def. not the only one. And I discourage anyone from watching the movie when you are pregnant. Unless you like bawling your eyes out. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted January 5, 2009 Share Posted January 5, 2009 Most anything by Cynthia Rylant. Her prose gets to me everytime. Bridge to Terrabithia If People Could Fly (from an anthology by the same name. I have never been able to get through it). Ruby Bridges Where the Broken Heart Still Beats And others I can't recall. My kids laugh at me, really. They have had to take over many times. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Shiloh, Leo the Magnificat and many others! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynnG in Arizona Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 We've done several cores of Sonlight over the years . . . so, yeah, lots of tears at various points. ;) The main two that come to mind for me are: Cheaper by the Dozen and The Hiding Place But there have definitely been others. My girls make fun of me for these moments, even though they have been known to have glistening eyes themselves. :) I can identify with the person who wrote about the Little House books. I read them a zillion times when little and never thought of them as particularly sad. But when I read The First Four Years as a newly married young adult . . . I bawled my eyes out. They did not have an easy time of things, not by any stretch of the imagination, and it took my being an adult myself to appreciate all the losses they went through in such a short amount of time. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Yep, I'm there. I cry over just about anything. It's a regular occurrence around here.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diane in CO Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 (edited) "And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so? It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes or bags!" And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch though of something he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas he thought, doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas....perhaps....means a little bit more!" Yep the Grinch before Christmas has me boo hooing every year :D Edited January 8, 2009 by Diane in CO I wish I could type without mistakes!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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