This is the revised edition and is designed with the with age range of readers in mind called "Tweenies," approximately eight to thirteen, that delicate age of transition out of childhood into teenage years; no longer a child but not quite the imperfect young adult. It is filled with all kinds of trials and tribulations, challenges and victories, some bold and some silent. Conquests are sometimes great and sometimes micro-moments in the steps taken on life's journey.
This book is intentional to also provide, when possible, not only entertainment, but a moral in all its complexity, that the reader can work out for themselves, or with the guidance of the adult reader. Because of the intended age range, some stories may prove problematic for the younger readers, but may also prove to be of guidance to them as well.
This revised edition of the Grandpa Stories series is unique in a manner not often found in children's literature: the inclusion of absorbing, penetrating, frustrating, and often refreshing questions to each of the stories in the book. These are found in an appendix to the original volume. This volume will be continued with two additional books entitled: Grandpa's Stories: Advice for Teenagers Living in Today's World, II & III. These complimentary volumes are in production and will be released in the winter or spring of 2016. The back cover to the original volume of Moral Stories for Young Readers continues to have merit and will be found in the opening pages of this revised edition's appendix.
The questions are geared to self-edification and teacher's instructional models for story analysis. They can be used independent of school, or during reading class as a background format for developing a deeper understanding and appreciation of what each story may or may not be about. They are designed to promote understanding, broaden the story's perspective, and liberate alternative interpretations of the stories.
The schema for such an addition is protected under copyright, although readers are encouraged to create their own questions as part of the discovery process in broadening the personal and social implications of each story. That mechanism is also part of the uniqueness of this approach and implementation to the revised edition.
It is also written with current values (even when the story seemingly appears to come from a previous generation), and with this generation of youngsters, kept with their experiences, faults and challenges in mind. We should never underestimate what they go through, especially in their secretive world undisclosed to the adults around them. They are not as innocent as we might hope for them to be, nor as experienced as we think they are.
About the Author:
This is the fourth book (Revised Edition) written by Thomas William Montgomery (non de plume), under the Amazon label, and the first relating to Children's literature. He has lived a rich and varied life that vocationally has included: psychologist, professor, minister, therapist, crisis worker, advocate, parent and grandparent (and soon to be great-grandparent), Spiritual Mentor, consultant, expert witness, combat medic, survivor of PTSD and combat-related injuries (to included Agent Orange Poisoning), survivor of divorce and now happily married, and terminally afflicted from the AOP.
His previous books were about the Viet Nam war (and other life events) from the trauma perspective. They are available from Amazon. He has worked with children, teenagers and adults throughout his life. In addition to his professional careers, he has also been a pilot, competitive sailor, photographer, CISD for police and firemen, suicide hotline worker, parachutist, Keynote Speaker at assemblies, and a variety of other personas, much of which has been curtailed by his afflictions. He now enjoys writing and traveling with his wife making memory events. He is blessed with many grandchildren and gives much praise and eternal gratefulness to the Holy One who had rescued him.
