Nancy Brown’s latest book, The Chesterons and the Golden Key, is an engaging read for the beginning chapter book level reader. It also makes a great read-aloud. The vocabulary is challenging enough to incite some learning, but not so obscure as to frustrate young readers. The chapters are short, with lovely illustrations interspersed throughout. As a read aloud for bedtime, it should last for a week, with the kids begging for “just one more chapter,” so they can solve the mystery of the golden key. A family story, and based on a real relationship the Chestertons had with the Nicholls family, we find a young single parent family headed by a grieving widow who live in the seaside town of Lyme Regis. They have 6 girls and a boy, including Clare, an aspiring author who idolizes Chesterton and invites both GK and Frances to tea with the family, where they form a friendship which lasts a lifetime. Filled with happy anecdotes of a joyful childhood, we follow the Nicholls through preparations for a play, a roller skating accident, disagreements and reconciliation, and of course, a mystery involving a missing golden key. This story was charming and delightful, and I’m not ashamed to admit that, upon finding out it was based on a real relationship, I was moved to tears at the thought of the love that the Chestertons showed to the children of the Nicholls family. The interactions in this story give our children a good model for relationships and self sacrifice. I strongly recommend this story without reservation for readers from grade 3-5 and as a read aloud for the entire family.
