Pater Familias … because I'm your FATHER!

Bruel's brill books starring psycho cat has our seriously reluctant reader second-grader poring over the pages for half-hour stretches, even more, without threats or bribery. Only thing she wants out of the deal is Bruel's next Bad Kitty. The series, published by Macmillan (see pub's authorsite), started with funny but strictly little-kid ABC books, then matured into heavily illustrated chapter books. Most recent of the three reader-kid numbers is Bad Kitty vs. Uncle Murray ($10 hard cover at Amazon.com), preceded by Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty ($7 bucks paperback) and Bad Kitty Gets a Bath ($7 paper). Amazon rates all three for 9- to 12-year-olds, but our 7-year-old gets enough to keep her reading and laughing. Adults may find both Bruel's illustrations and humor a mite, you know, primitive, but there's entertainment here for us, too.  And, hey, Junior's having fun with a book. 

Put kid's name on everything he/she wears or carries, as our school mandates, with peel-and-stick custom labels ordered online from this slick site. Love the smallest-size numbers that fit on clothes labels, also the chance for kid to show style with combos of color, fonts, and icons. (We went with peace signs, hot in second grade, in purple.) LabelDaddy™ ain't cheap - 75 of the XS small clothes labels set me back $20, plus shipping. A school pack, including 4 really cool zipper pulls, goes for $40. Don't know yet if stick-on will last like iron-on, but worth a try.www.labeldaddy.com

Stealthy last-minute school prep on Dad's phone or, if you caved in to pleading, the kid's own iDevice. This app entertains like any old memory game where you match things hiding behind squares, which seven-year-old Girl Child happens to love. But the things are words your kid ought to know, so it drills in fast, automatic recognition. All about better reading, Dad. You said you'd keep up with this stuff all summer, am I right? Did you? Here's a way to repent, at least a little. Grade appropriate versions for preschool through fourth. One of many educational apps developed by Ratcat Software. $2 and worth it from App Store on your phone or through iTunes. 

At-home dad saves humankind from nanotech cyborgs, takes care of relationship probs with tense executive spouse. This 2002 technothriller by late (Crichton died in ’08) great master of the genre has the usual Crichtonian messages about technology turning on its makers, but the at-homehood is just as good. The book opens with protag Jack Forman -- laid-off computer guy with three kids -- picking out placemats at Crate and Barrel. Later he takes offspring to the doc: “It wasn’t normal for a man to be in the pediatrician’s office in the middle of the day. So the other mothers pretended I wasn’t there.” Been there, bro, haven't you? Meanwhile the guy's hyper wife works ridiculous hours, ignores him and kids but screws with his parenting. Screws her boss, too, probably. But then Jack finds out that the bugs bodysnatched his wife, zotzes her and her nano-ized boyfriend and cronies in a giant fireball, and -- sweet -- hooks up with a hot Chinese science chick. Subliterary for sure, but Crichton got our lowball entertainment needs like nobody else. Paperback (Harper 2008 edition) $10 from Amazon. Pennies for Used, but really a few bucks with shipping.