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As a classical homeschooler, I’m always on the hunt for classic literature. Most of the curricula I use in my homeschool require classical literature. I also believe in the importance of reading the classics and becoming well-read.
Disclosure: I was compensated for my time in creating this review. All opinions are mine.
Collecting Classical Literature for a Classical Education
That being said, there are a couple of problems I’ve come across. The first is that collecting classic literature takes up so much space in my little house. My shelves are bursting at the seams and we still need more books!
The second problem is the cost. Buying the number of books needed for my homeschool quickly adds up, even when I purchase most of the books used.
Using the library helps, but I’ve found it comes with its own set of issues. The first question is whether or not the library carries the books needed.
The second is whether or not I can get the books when we need them. It doesn’t help to have the book arrive six weeks after we needed to complete that assignment.
So I’ve been on the hunt for a good solution to my book problems. It needs to be a solution that would allow me to have most of the books we need available when we need them available. And without either breaking the bank or taking up my entire house!
I finally found the solution I was searching for: Heritage Humanities: The Online Library of Western Heritage Education!
The Online Library at Heritage Humanities
Heritage Humanities is a free platform that carries books from the Western literary tradition for kids between six years old and eighteen years old. To be honest, the books are excellent literature for kids of all ages no matter if you’re eighteen or eighty!
For instance, do you want to read the Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas, Plutarch’s Lives, or the Aeneid by Virgil? Heritage Humanities has them available for free on their site.
Perhaps you’re looking for something for your younger children, like Bulfinch’s Mythology or the Iliad for Boys and Girls by Alfred John Church?
Again, you will find the books available free on the Heritage Humanities app!
And the app works for all platforms! You can read the books on your phone, tablet, or computer. Your elementary kid can read Aesop’s Fables in the car. Or you can let your teenager curl up on their bed with a table to read the Iliad.
In addition, the app also allows you to listen to the books instead of reading them.
This is great if you have a kid who’s dyslexic or you spend hours in the car. It’s also the perfect solution for kids who learn best through auditory methods. They can listen to the books on their device instead of needing you to read the books aloud.
More About Heritage Humanities
Heritage Humanities has a goal of providing an academically rigorous approach to the traditional Western humanities and giving kids the opportunity to learn tradition Western values and logic.
This means that kids in high school should have the opportunity to read literature written by great thinkers such as Aristotle, Cicero, Burke, and Adam Smith.
Their hope is that the collection of books they are putting together will allow children to think for themselves, understand where our culture comes from, and live responsible, moral, ethical, and hopefully happy lives as adults.
Heritage Humanities’ vision is right in line with the principles of classical education.
So head over to the Heritage Humanities and check out their online library of books for the Western Canon. And take a look at what they have to offer your family!