Comprehension?

I'm reading a book to my kids, one or two chapters a night. Tonight we were on page 201. My four year old asks, "Who just went into the tunnel?" (referring to the book)

"Grace did," I answer.

She asks, "Is Grace a girl?" I'm thinking, we are 200 pages into the book and she is just now asking that?

"Yes," I answer.

"I like girls," she says, and snuggles back down to listen some more.

A few seconds later she asks about another character, "Is Marty a girl?" Two hundred pages and she seemed to have missed these minor details.

I'll cut her a break, though, because a lot of the books I read at night to all the kids are a bit above her level. I think most of the time I'm reading those her mind may be elsewhere. I read books to her that are for her age level during the day, so it's not like she is deprived and only has access to chapter books with --gasp--no pictures. The evening book is really a treat for the older kids who don't get read to as much anymore. (I still love to have books read to me, in fact my husband has been reading books out loud to me since before we were married) And I think it helps with their vocabulary a little. They stop me quite often to ask me what a word means.

On another note, my nine year old, who just began to read chapter books on his own, came out of my bedroom today carrying his dad's old college Physical Science textbook. He has been studying it all night. See, a little reading can go a long way . . . I wonder how much he is getting out of it. I'm sure he'll be telling, or asking me all about it tomorrow.

BTW - I JUST DID MY SPELL CHECK AND IT ONLY FOUND ONE ERROR! IT'S A MIRACLE! I must have only used small words tonight. . .