Are you a history buff? Do you want your kids to know all of world history, inside and out? Are you subconsciously planning on one or more members of your immediate family ending up on Jeopardy at a young age and blowing everyone away with their effortless recitation of Justinian’s code, in its entirety? No? Well that’s exactly the way I think. I love history, I want my kids to love history, and, especially in these current times, I want them to know all about it.

It’s the same feeling I get when I find myself in a large store, and everything is on clearance: completely anxious that I will miss out on something life-changing because I can’t see it all at once. My zeal for imparting historical knowledge usually ended up being more frustrating than inspiring when my approach was “how fast can I fill up their heads in case they have to debate a world leader on policy?”

Thankfully, it’s not quite that frantic anymore. The chances that they will be debating world leaders are relatively slim, and It has finally sunk in that they might not know every detail of world history, and that’s ok. This year my approach has been less text, more literature. They may not remember all the wives of Henry VIII, but they will know what makes a good leader, and why. After all, the point of their education, like everything else in life, is to glorify God. I hope they continue to learn and grow in character, and if they end up loving history, well, that’s good too.

What are your favorite history books?