Wisdom and the Millers: Proverbs for Children

Miller Family

by Mildred A. Martin

Proverbs for children.

Genres: Childrens, Christian, Fiction, Chapter Books, Christian Fiction

100 pages, Paperback

First published August 28, 1990

Reviews

[Majenta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read in the mid-1990s.

"What better place to be on a chilly wet evening like this, than the warm family circle with a Bible at the center?" (p.68)

The Millers were featured among other characters in STORYTIME WITH THE MILLERS, but I think this is the first "Miller Family" book. In Chapter 1 they start right in with focusing on Proverbs during their nightly family devotions. The Miller four, from preschool-aged Laura through tween Sharon, with brothers Peter and Timmy in between, are not perfect little goody-goodies, and their parents tell stories that reveal that THEY weren't perfect little goody-goody children either! Readers will get to know the family and meet some of their relatives, neighbors, and friends.

Thanks for reading!

[Rachael Marsceau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who knew Mennonite stories of morals that rely heavily on scare tactics could be so riveting? lol The kids loved this, but it definitely required some discussion and/or censoring to keep the proverb lessons closer to the heart of Christ instead of outward performance and reverse-prosperity gospel-type results. (eg: wanting to be popular doesn't mean you'll end up divorced and smoking cigarettes, smh.)

[Elizabeth Santelmann · Rating 2 out of 5]

These were a staple of my childhood.
I had kept these at the top of the closet because I knew our way of interacting with our kids was pretty different.

One day something my son was struggling with was illustrated well by one of the stories, so I dug down my old book. The kids like that one so I attempted to read more. I had to skip several stories and sentences. Because of judgmental attitudes, and condescending behavior. I also skipped the spanking bits because I want my kids to obey God out of love for him, rather than fear of me.

I’m giving it an extra star because the kids enjoyed some stories, and they gave us some good launching points for conversation. Just only read if you’re good at reading ahead while reading aloud and be prepared to skip.

I also wouldn’t allow my kids just to read these to themselves.

[Sasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book of Proberbs in the Bible is one of my favorites. This book is about a family who applies the lessons in Proverbs to everyday life in stories appealing to children and clear for them to understand. I LOVE IT!

[A'ledyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book taught me how to read under the covers at night!

[Shannon Cahill · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Kids Loved this book. We read it as a devotion and then started on it again. The stories and morals are great!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

We all absolutely loved this book and will definitely read it again. Looking forward to reading another book by the Miller's....Story time with the Miller's.

[Rebekah Barkman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read-aloud for Bible time during our school morning time. Once you get past the somewhat startling conservativeness of the Miller family, the lessons are pretty good for all alike and Judson really enjoyed the stories about Peter and Timmy.
3 stars because sometimes after reading we would talk about things I personally would’ve arrived at a different conclusion with than the author.

[Alysia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple, sweet stories of family life and lessons in character. My kids enjoyed the stories, and they always provided great material for discussion.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joe wants me to read from this book every night. It's all short stories with morals. The family depicted is Mennonite.

[Mandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic devotional for kids!!!

[Abigail Rasmussen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when I was 8 years old. My Mom has also read this series out loud to us, reading a chapter each night to go along with our family devotions.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful practical book for kids about how to incorporate the wisdom of the Proverbs into their everyday life. Highly recommended!

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think we read this book when we were a little old for it (10, 9, and 7). The stories are simplistic, generally with the plot of kids making unwise choices and their parents addressing it during family devotion. The morals of the stories their parents told were a little simplistic too, like "The popular girl is now a divorced smoker, and the obedient girl is now a respected minister's wife." In some places I felt the book equated old-fashioned living with godly living, which made me a little uncomfortable. I don't think I would've had issues with any of this if I had just read it aloud to my kids years earlier in our home school life, when we were little and just getting some of these principles under our belts, but as we get older I'd like more emphasis on our only true hope for a blessed life, the Gospel rather than our own behavior. However, I am thankful for many of the proverbs it highlighted and illustrated.

[Susan Collinsworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

One thing I like is how the scenarios applying the Bible verses are normal, relatable everyday things - not wanting to put away your toys. Many aspects of the Millers' lives differed greatly from ours: The children go to school, the mom always wears a dress and head covering; they are farmers. They are much more conservative. I thought it would be off-putting to my children. But they enjoyed the stories and asked to hear them, so much so that I bought another book about the family.

My adult son asked me about this book, which i had read to him & his sister when they were young. So I dug it out.

[Jenna Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

We read this as a fun read aloud to go along with our study of Proverbs and definitely enjoyed some chapters and stories more than others. It was a little moralistic, and obviously since I am not Mennonite there were some theological differences. I don't know that this book makes me want to pick up any of the other books in this series.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it!

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty moralistic (and preachy at times), but cute stories reinforcing Biblical values and principles overall.

[Partridge Public]

Martin, Mildred A. PB