'Mothering by the Book' by Jennifer Pepito carries a beautiful message about the power of reading aloud and how stories can help mothers and families navigate fear while finding joy again. Pepito’s passion for books and motherhood clearly shines through.

However, she leans heavily into a very Christian, almost orthodox perspective throughout much of the book. While this may resonate deeply with a certain audience, it can feel overwhelming or alienating to readers who are simply looking for broader insights into parenting and the joy of shared reading. Even the Quotes she chose to mention form each book of her list were not so inspiring and intriguing.

Such strictly faith-centered approaches are rare and may not appeal to everyone. Still, the heart of her message—that reading together can transform family life—is inspiring and worth considering.

This book was so inspirational and met me right where I was. The interweaving of literature, scripture and day to day struggles was perfectly balanced. I look forward to owning the physical copy and giving to friends!

Jennifer blends memoir, parenting wisdom, and devotional reflection to help mothers overcome fear and reclaim joy. Each chapter tackles a specific fear—such as being unloved, failing as a parent, or not doing enough—paired with lessons from classic literature and Scripture. Drawing from her own struggles with anxiety, marital strain, and parenting challenges, She shares how reading aloud to her children became a source of healing and connection. With journal prompts, practical tips, and encouragement to stay present, she offers a roadmap for living with faith, delight, and intention. A heartfelt guide for mothers seeking peace and purpose.

Being a mom one of the best times has always been reading together. Love of our children and spending time with them every day is special. Reading aloud and together are important experiences. It helps them learn to read, become creative, learn to discuss things and it is a special time to bond with one another. The author talks about how she found joy in reading aloud to her children every day. She enjoyed spending time with her children and found some of her own joy too. She shares her journey with her readers. This is a creative book and well written. Some chapters were more captivating than others. She keeps it engaging though with personal thoughts, ideas and stories along with words of wisdom. She provides Biblical references as well and gives questions to help with discussion time. Overall it is well designed mentioning some themes and some books, including the "Little House" series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, which dear readers you know is a favorite of mine. She also mentions "Winnie-The-Pooh" and "LIttle Women" as a few other examples. Oh and another favorite, "Anne of Green Gables."

This book was very encouraging. I gained a lot of information and insight from it. I look forward to sharing it with my friends.

Mothering By the Book gives a unique point of view of motherhood based on characters from well-known novels. As someone that has read and reread many of these books, I've not often found myself lingering on these characters as mother. Pepito invites us to lean into the roles of these mothers and look at how their motherhood shapes the story and even reflects cultural expectations of motherhood.

It was a bit slow in many parts, but an overall intriguing concept.

I loved the idea of using stories to talk about motherhood and it’s stages. Using stories to interact with and teach children is such an important idea. I enjoyed the author’s voice and heart while reading this. I give this book 5 stars.

Although I don't have as much fear in my motherhood journey as the author, she still has really great points about trusting in God. I really enjoyed that each chapter had the main book she was tying in to the point, and also a list of other books (for read-alouds and for just the mother) to read.

I loved how life and the different journeys we go through can be explained and empathized through books! We learn so much by reading and Jennifer Pepito uses different read-alouds to relate to different circumstances and characters as their own family went through different ups and downs of life. Being a homeschool mom myself, I enjoyed the advice of reading aloud with family (something that we love to do so much) as a learning tool but also as a source of comfort. I will re-read this book many times and also use the book list as a source for our own family read aloud (many of which we have already enjoyed!)

In *Mothering by the Book: The Power of Reading Aloud to Overcome Fear and Recapture Joy*, Jennifer Pepito weaves a heartfelt memoir with practical insights, drawing on her journey as a homeschooling mother to inspire others to confront fear and reclaim joy. The book centers on how classic literature and stories helped her combat the anxieties and pressures of parenting. Each chapter addresses a specific fear—such as feeling inadequate or worrying about a child’s future—and connects it to a corresponding literary work, including *Pride and Prejudice*, *Charlotte’s Web*, and *The Hiding Place*. These stories serve as both solace and guides, offering wisdom that transcends time.

Pepito’s tone is both empathetic and candid, appealing especially to mothers who might feel overwhelmed or alone in their parenting journey. The book not only reflects on her personal struggles but also includes curated reading lists to encourage readers to incorporate storytelling into their family life. Pepito highlights how literature can bridge generational gaps, foster connection, and instill courage, making this a powerful resource for those seeking encouragement and actionable advice.

While the book primarily resonates with homeschooling parents and Christian readers, its overarching message about the transformative power of stories makes it accessible to a broader audience. Pepito's reflections remind readers that literature can offer guidance in life’s most challenging moments, turning fears into opportunities for growth and joy.

If you’re looking for inspiration to embrace the challenges of motherhood with grace and resilience, *Mothering by the Book* offers a blend of practical tips and heartfelt storytelling. It’s both a celebration of classic literature and a guide to finding courage through the power of words.

This is a Christian book where the author learns lessons from characters from different books and writes about times in her life where she applied those lessons or gained inspiration from those characters. It was more of a memoir than I expected.

I liked the idea of forming a book around inspirational fictional characters. I'm a big fan of reading aloud to my children and this was another encouragement to keep on reading aloud and the value of good books. There were some good insights in this book and I gained a few book titles to add to my reading lists. I appreciated the author's honesty but it was a little repetitive in recounting difficulties and house moves before moving to Mexico, while in Mexico and after relocating back to the USA.

I did also have some theological issues with the book. It never set out a foundation of the Gospel and grace. The author talked a few times about writing yourself a letter from God. It was quite me-focused.

I tried but could not get into this book. I love following the author on Instagram, but after a year of trying couldn’t get into the book. DNF.

This book brought out principles of motherhood through examples from classic literature. I didn’t really connect with the book as a whole, but I thought she had some really great suggestions for other books to read. I added several of her recommendations to my “to read” list.

I think the conclusions she drew from literature moms would be helpful if you’ve not spent much time around Christian mothers or Christian mom culture. There are some important points about attitude shifts and showing up for yourself and your children in basic ways that make a big difference. I’ve read a lot of “Christian mom” books this year, so they were not revolutionary to me.

This book made me laugh, cry and think. It was a delight to work through. I enjoyed reading the books listed to my son and processing through the chapters and questions on my own. In a season where special needs and gifted parenting has really thrown me for a loop, this books was affirming, challenging, and encouraging all at the same time. It's likely I'll be buying several copies of this for friends. I think this book will resonate most strongly with homeschool moms, although the audience certainly isn't limited to that lifestyle.

I have been intrigued by this book for a while, as it kept coming up on ‘recommended for you’ lists based off other books I’ve read. I was worried it would be too similar to books like Sarah Mackenzie’s The Read-Aloud Family or Jim Trelease’s The Read-Aloud Handbook. I am so glad I was able to listen to Jennifer Pepito talk on Sarah Mackenzie’s podcast where she talked about Mothering by the Book. I kept thinking how she had drawn inspiration from Ma Ingalls and I knew I had to read it.

Mothering by the Book is perfect in that you can pick up, read a chapter, and return to when you’re ready for more. Pepito weaves in her own life experiences and how characters in books have inspired her to persevere through hard times. As a mother of 7 and a missionary, she has quite a lot of stories to share. I really liked the messaging and overarching ability to relate books with positive character development as a mother.

I would recommend this for the mothers that are also passionate about introducing good literature to both themselves and their children!

Thank you to NetGalley, Bethany House, Bethany House Publishers, and the author Jennifer Pepito for a copy of this book!

I was really excited about this title -- I'm a book loving, book selling, homeschooling, Christian mama. The title and description was spot on for something I was bound to fall in love with. I liked how the author connected life events to books she read, but sometimes the lessons she learned seemed like a stretch. I also liked the book recommendations in each chapter. Unfortunately, I got a couple chapters in and started skimming/speed reading because it just wasn't doing it for me but I made it through. I really wanted to like this one more than I did. This is more memoir than advice/inspiration for mothers and it wasn't one I particularly connected with -- she is much more fearful than I am. It was okay but I didn't get as much from it as I thought I would.

This was a bit of a DNF. I got the point that it was more skimming to grab the book recommendations than anything. Its a good book and well written. I think sometimes I just burn out on personal stories, especially if I can not always relate to the authors thinking. And the theology at times wasn't quite aligning with my beliefs either. That said I appreciate the curated book lists and I anticipate coming back to the book for good readaloud suggestions.

This book is compulsively readable because it is very well written and is full of advice, biblical references, and journaling opportunities. Each chapter is based on a particular book from the author's past.

This Was An Interesting Book For Me…



I am a huge reader and read to my kids all the time. This book caught my eye even though I don’t have young children.



Jennifer makes many good points and shows how classic stories can help shape us and our children. She brings us on a journey where we learn about things she faced and look at ourselves… asking many questions and answering them honestly to ourselves. 



Many books she has mentioned and she has you read aloud or read yourself have been books I’ve read through the years and already made a an impact on me.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the Publisher and was under no obligation to post a favorable review.

Thank you for the ARC! This was a different type of parenting book with many great insights. The author clearly relies on her faith quite heavily so for those who may feel differently this wouldn’t be the best read but there are many insights worth pulling.