Karen Andreola's Charlotte Mason Companion is a compelling, in-depth journey through Charlotte Mason's philosophy of education—"the gentle art of learning"—that many will find to be a much more practical source than the original volumes by Mason herself. Andreola emphasizes how a loving home environment provides an atmosphere for establishing good habits and motivation for children to become independent learners. She shows how allowing children to follow their own curiosity helps make this happen. Charlotte Mason Companion stresses the importance of reading real "living" books and using the technique of narration (oral retelling) rather than textbooks and worksheets.
Andreola shares much from her own experience homeschooling her children. As the subtitle suggests, this is a personal interpretation of Charlotte Mason that ranges beyond basic information about Charlotte Mason's ideas to include Andreola's wisdom regarding parenting and other practical issues. The book is 384 pages in length, but you can skip around rather than read straight through if you need to learn about particular topics in a hurry. Those new to Mason's methodology as well as those who have been implementing it for a few years are likely to glean much helpful wisdom and advice from this book.
