Tea, Tales, and Tomes

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. A child can read every word on the page and still not understand what the page is saying and that’s the heart of today’s season finale. We’re responding to a literacy crisis that doesn’t only live in under-resourced schools; it shows up in thriving homes, in “fine” report cards, and in older children and teens who decides they are not readers. When r...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. “Boy or girl?” sounds like a helpful question in a bookshop, but it can be the start of a much bigger problem. After watching Inside the Manosphere, I couldn’t stop thinking about where boys first learn the idea that empathy is weakness and softness is shameful. Long before algorithms and influencers, those messages show up in less obvious places: to...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Today's episode is truly special. We welcome New York Times bestselling author Beth Ferry for a rich, warm conversation about how wonder, research, and a love for a good story turn words into worlds that invite wonder.   We also tackle today’s thornier topics. Beth draws a line between personal digital styles and generative AI that flattens voic...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. In today's episode, I am asking parents to take a backseat and let the kids control the speakers. I am talking directly to kids about why books are not competing with screens but powering the worlds they love. We unpack the brain science of reading, the courage in choosing your own stories, and the reason books get banned when ideas scare people...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Do you think you can find 10 minutes in your day to do the one thing that is proven to not only boost academic performance, but also bring you closer as a family? Reading together. Just ten minutes.  In today's episode, we are talking about small rituals that will create big readers. It's a New Year and a great time for a reading reset. We...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. The mic failed, the tea was hot, and the books were unforgettable. Come sit down with us as we reflect on a noisy 2025 and the stories that stayed: a Kyoto restaurant that recreates lost flavours to unlock memory, a graphic novel that treats young readers with uncommon respect, a middle grade marvel that made our whole family laugh and cry, a picture...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. The shops are shouting buy more, but we’re making a different case: skip the shiny book junk and choose stories that actually get read. Come with me and walk through the holiday aisles together and call out the biggest traps - gimmicky bundles, flimsy movie tie-ins, lazy age-badged anthologies and swap them for books with staying power and more meani...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. The season can sparkle and still feel heavy. Between perfect social media feeds, school concerts, late shopping and burnt biscuits, it’s easy to forget why we gather at all. We offer a simple reset: a bookish Advent calendar that replaces pressure with presence and turns December into a series of small, meaningful pauses. We start with the heart of t...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. What if I told you that you don't need text to raise a reader? What if the most powerful reading practice for growing language, empathy, and imagination uses no words at all? In today's epsisode, we welcome a wave of new listeners, tip our mugs to the Halloween specials that sparked it, and then head straight into the quiet magic of wordles...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. I've been getting some flack about my obsession with all things spooky this season and I totally get why some of us steer clear of the scary, the unusual, or anything that might feel like we are going against our faiths and beliefs. So today, I am diving into the science and soul of spooky season - how safe fear lights up the brain, teaches emot...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Are you ready to join us for this Halloween literary special? This is your ultimate spooky season reading guide... but as with all things Tea, Tales, and Tomes, this is no ordinary episode. Come sit with us around our glowing campfire as we guide you through spooky books for readers of all ages, from gentle picture books to nightmare-inducing horror...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. What if we could teach our children to face life's challenges with resilience, courage, and self-belief? That's exactly what Durban author Shareez Bagaria is doing through her captivating children's book "Luna's Journey" - and she's living these principles herself in the most extraordinary way. Nestled in her warm,...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. What began as a simple recording on the floor with an inexpensive microphone has blossomed into a literary journey spanning 19 countries and 50 cities worldwide. In this emotional season finale, we pull back the curtain on Tea Tales and Tomes to reveal how a passion for making children's literature accessible transformed into a global conversati...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Remember the dreaded book report? That school assignment that magically transforms the wonder of reading into a tedious chore? As parents and caregivers, we desperately want our children to fall in love with books, but sometimes our well-intentioned efforts to discuss their reading can feel suspiciously like homework. During our recent winter holiday...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. In today's episode, I delve into the world of children's nonfiction where science meets art, sharing remarkable books that transform factual information into awe-inspiring adventures for young readers. • Books by Jason Chin like "Your Place in the Universe" and "The Universe in You" offering breathtaking illustrations th...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Have you ever dismissed an entire genre of books only to have your child prove you spectacularly wrong? That's exactly what happened when my son Jaz revealed his preference for nonfiction - a category I'd spent my entire reading life avoiding "like the plague." What began as concern over my youngest son's waning interest in o...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Navigating parenthood can feel overwhelming, but certain evidence-based resources offer invaluable guidance without claiming to have all the answers. Six exceptional books stand out as practical references for parents seeking to build respectful relationships with their children. • No Bad Kids by Janet Lansbury - Explains respectful parenting founded...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Ever wondered how children can learn complex facts without feeling like they're in a classroom? Roslynne Toerien has mastered this delicate balance through her captivating children's books that blend imagination with education. In this heartwarming conversation, award-winning Durban-based author Roslynne opens up about her remarkable journe...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Have you ever felt self-conscious reading aloud to your child? That strange feeling of performing for an audience, struggling with character voices, or wondering if you're "doing it right" when your child interrupts or wanders off mid-story? You're not alone. Reading aloud transforms both reader and listener, but rarely in the pic...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Reading comic books and graphic novels with children creates joyful literacy experiences that build lifelong connections through stories while developing critical visual literacy skills. • Slow down when reading comics aloud to allow children time to explore illustrations and decode visual information • Place your finger under characters who are spea...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Ever found yourself wondering if your child's comic book obsession actually "counts" as reading? You're not alone. Parents everywhere are questioning whether Dog Man and Captain Underpants are legitimate literature or just a phase to endure. Comics and graphic novels deserve recognition as legitimate reading material that offers u...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Ever felt completely overwhelmed in the library or bookshop when trying to select a good book for your kids? One that they and you will love and that won't sit on a shelf collecting dust after just one read? If you answered yes, this episode is for you. I am talking about prolific authors who write greats stories and whose books are easily avail...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. We're continuing our chat today about books to read to our kids in that first year of their lives and curating shelves for a lifetime. This is Part 2 of a 3 part series that is looking at books for your baby's first year. In Part 1 we looked at what we called the extreme baby months and we touched on the touchy feeling books that your child...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. We’re kicking off our show with an excellent question, “What books should I read to my baby during their first year of life?” Now, I’m not saying that I got overly excited by the question or anything but I did create a multi-part episode out of it so you be the judge. Today we are going to talk all about reading to our kids in that first year and cur...

We'd love your feedback. Send us a message. Are you ready? Exciting things are coming! Are you a little bumfuzzled (read: perplexed) in the sea of great books and need some help in choosing books as a reader, raising readers? I got you!  Find us on Instagram @teatalesandtomes and don't forget to join us next time for more bookish wonder.  Podcast music by Lundstroem (Episode 1 onwards) an...