19 done, 11 to go

Avery and I started reading the Dark Materials series by Phillip Pullman about a year ago. We read the first book, The Golden Compas, last spring. Then read the second book, The Subtle Knife, in the fall. We started the first few chapters of the third book, The Amber Spyglass, before Christmas break, but it was like pulling teeth. Really. Avery has grown out of reading aloud together. Being a teenager, he provides me with plenty of opportunities for battling, but reading is not a battle that I'm willing to fight. He does plenty of his own reading without me needing to drag him into a reading situation that makes him dislike reading. So, I have chosen not to fight the 'read aloud' battle and have waved my white flag. I am going to finish reading the last book on my own because it is a good series and definitely worth finishing. Since we did, in fact, read most of the series together and I am going to finish it on my own, I am counting Number 21 on the birthday list complete.