Portrait of a Mother Reader - Rachel, Australia
Reading habits, rhythms and book recommendations of Mother Readers the world over
Hello, I’m
. An English and history teacher by training and experience, and currently an unpaid domestic adventurer by choice. My husband is in the military and we have a wild and curious daughter, Hazel. As such, home for us is peripatetic, an idea particularly close to my heart. I don’t have nearly as much time to read now as I did pre-Hazel, but I find slices of time to immerse myself, and, naturally, spend large parts of everyday animatedly reading her favourite books over and over.
Who inspired you to become the reader you are today?
Initially, my mum. It was a core value of hers when we were children. She spent lots of time reading to us and always made sure we had plenty to choose from. So, partly that, and also partly my temperament I think. I have three siblings, and I often escaped into books as a way to be in the proximity of family and the hub-bub of daily life without having to be at the centre. My parents often fondly say they never thought reading would be a problem, but that I rarely focused on a task with two hands because one was always holding a book, and that after my lamp was removed (because I kept staying up past midnight reading), I persisted with a glow stick and my calculator light. It’s no wonder I have glasses now! My godfather, upon reflection, also fostered this love of reading. There was always a stack of books I could select from at his house, and he would read books I had read to discuss them with me, and always genuinely wanted to hear my thoughts and recommendations about books, which as an adult I can now see was such a lovely thing to do.
Who are your favourite authors?
As a small child I loved Roald Dahl, and J.K. Rowling, but was equally captivated by specific tales like The Wind in the Willows and The Secret Garden, and I have fond memories of reading the Blackberry Farm books on repeat.
As an adult, I really had to consider this. I think it shifts and changes, but constant fiction companions have been C.J. Sansom, Charlotte Brontë, Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde, Bridget Collins, Fredrik Backman, Ben Aaronovitch, Patrick Rothfuss, Daniel O’Malley, and Keavin Hearne (can you tell I am a Harry Potter millennial who grew up with the books?)
These days I read more non-fiction and I dearly love
, Raynor Winn, Robert MacFarlane, and Yuval Harari.
Who do you discuss books with?
I am not currently in a bookclub, although I have been previously. I’ve found since becoming a mum that a week night at 7.30pm is not really manageable!
I talk to some of my wonderful friends, particularly Eve at
, about whatever I am reading and we swap books often (which I don’t do with many people as I am quite fond of my books).My husband and I will often read the same book and then discuss it too; usually non-fiction or magical realism/fantasy.
What are you currently reading?
I am currently reading How to Raise a Secure Child, Chai Times at Cinnamon Gardens, and Rivers of London is on CD (yes, CD) in the car.
What’s in your TBR pile?
It’s not so much a pile as a hoard I select from when one calls to me. I am certainly not the kind of reader who methodically makes their way through a TBR list! Currently the hoard contains a lot of non-fiction:
Belonging: Remembering Ourselves Home by Toko-pa Turner
Modern Miss Mason: Discover How Charlotte Mason’s Revolutionary Ideas on Home Education Can Change How You and Your Children Learn and Grow Together by
Regenerative Design for Changemakers: A Social Permaculture Guide by Abrah Dresdale
Matricentric Feminism: Theory, Activism, Practice by Andrea O'Reilly
Quaint Deeds - Unlikely Adventures in Teaching and Treasure-hunting: A Memoir by A.J. Mackinnon
Up: A Mother and Daughter’s Peakbagging Experience by Patricia Ellis
The Book Of Roads And Kingdoms by Richard Fidler
108 Discourses of Guru Dev by Paul Mason
Beyond Left and Right by David McKnight
What have you read so far this year that you would recommend?
Hold On To Your Kids by Gordon Neufeld and Gabor Maté. It busts some common myths and platitudes that get thrown around about raising children. I found it insightful and provocative.
Also, The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heap by H.G. Parry, which is actually a reread for me, but I can’t not recommend it. Unputdownable. I loved the intertextuality so much. Even if you don’t know many of the classics I still think it would be a fun read. And, there is always Google if you suspect a character is literary but you don’t already know them. It’s inspiring to me that a professor has drawn on all of her literary knowledge to craft a new work like this.
What are your favourite genres?
Nature writing, anything about walking, magical realism, and bibliomystery (fiction books about books/libraries/book shops). Having said that, I voraciously read non-fiction, and will pick up just about any genre.
Do you read books more than once?
Yes. I do. Both fiction and non-fiction. The former are generally books that feel comforting to me and take little active brain power to sink back into because I know them so well (think Rivers of London); the latter are books that either I feel contribute to my core values (Blackie for instance), or provide solace upon rereading (MacFarlane, say).
In this season of early mothering, I find myself re-reading more for that sense of comfort and knownness. I listen to the Stephen Fry Harry Potter audiobooks basically on repeat when I feel like putting something on in the background. Pure comfort.
What have been your most treasured read alouds and why?
What a wonderful question! Currently, with a toddler, I love to read aloud and the Acorn Wood books by Julia Donaldson are on repeat.
As a teacher, one of my favourites to read aloud was The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It’s a wonderfully evocative short story that builds in pace and wildness. Students couldn’t help but be pulled in for the ride and then inevitably had questions and exclamations at the end.
What do you use as bookmarks?
I am chaotic, good you might say, so anything can be used as a bookmark so long as it doesn’t damage the book. I wouldn’t, for instance, fold down a corner. Although I do fold corners to mark non-fiction books where I have made a note.
What books have shaped the person and mother you have become?
If Women Rose Rooted by
The Nurture Revolution: Grow Your Baby's Brain and Transform Their Mental Health through the Art of Nurtured Parenting by Dr Greer Kirshenbaum
Do you read multiple books or one at a time?
Yes, always! It’s common for me to have three on the go: a non-fiction, a fiction or lighter non-fiction, and an audiobook. I chop and change depending on how I feel at the time.
Do you read consistently or does your reading rhythm ebb and flow?
My rhythm is responsive to my life and l’ve never worried overly much. For me, reading is sometimes full absorption, and at other times, squeezing in a poem is my capacity. That’s okay. All things ebb and flow, and breaks between reading often allow time for alchemising.
Where do you love to read?
My favourite is by a fire with a pot of scalding hot tea, with no background noise, but I’ll read anywhere in pretty much any conditions. One excellent thing about growing up in a full house is I can happily sink into a book despite a full cacophony of deafening proportions.
Why do you read?
There are myriad answers to this question, but they can all be distilled by considering the concept of the human experience. I read to challenge my preconceptions, gain new perspectives, reaffirm my own experiences, to foster critical thinking skills, understand and empathise with others, to delve into the depths of inquiry that are not to be found in the immediacy of modern technology, to know myself better, for comfort, and for the sheer joy that occurs when you are so immersed in a book, time and space cease to exist. I cannot fathom a life without reading. It remains one of the few resources we all have access to that is still freely accessible — a way to connect, explore, and escape.
Whenever I read, I undoubtedly feel like a human being, rather than a human doing.
Reading, for me, is life adjacent.
Website - www.hearthsiderhythms.com.au
Instagram - @hearthsiderhythms
Substack - Hearthside Rhythms
Thank you for reading Rachel’s Mother Reader Portrait.
If you are interested in sharing the ins and outs of your own reading life, reach out:
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Oh wow! All of this was a gorgeous read itself. Thank you for sharing ☺️