“The Kids’ Books Are All Right”
August 11, 2010
“The Kids’ Books Are All Right” (NYT 8.8.2010) http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/08/books/review/Paul-t.html
found me chuckling to myself, as if the cat was finally out of the bag—disclosing the fact that the best of childrens’ and YA (Young Adult) literature is quite simply, great literature. And to correct the erroneous notion that it was the Harry Potter books that started this phenomen—let me set the record straight. The Harry Potter phenomena did indeed lure many adult readers into the world of childrens’ literature but before Harry, adults were already reading, perhaps secretly, the best of that genre. To name a few, Bridge To Terabithia, Tuck Everlasting, The Real Thief, Abel’s Island, Dominic, Sun and Spoon, All Alone in the Universe, Mrs.Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, The Chocolate War, Because of Winn-Dixie, Crazy Horse Electric Game, Crazy Lady and the list goes on and on.
I have been reading and teaching children’s/adolescent (YA) and adult literature for over 20 years and I am continually struck by how superlative the best of childrens’ and YA literature is. These are books with compelling plots, with characters you care about—offering no easy or simplistic answers to some of life’s biggest questions.
I sit on many an airplane reading childrens’ literature, and I am continually asked, “WHY are you reading a kid’s book?” I love the opportunity to launch into one of my favorite subjects: “What is the difference between a great book for children and young adults and a great book for adults?” I say very little. The question that great literature asks—“how do I live my life and on what grounds do I accept life as I know it?”—was first asked by Plato, and Alice and Gulliver and continues to be asked. To be sure, the perspective and the point of view changes but the question remain the same.
I never met a reader who came to a book too late. They just bring more to the experience. As E.M.Forster said: “I suggest that the only books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and which have gone a little further down our particular path than we have yet gone ourselves.”
For those of you who do not yet read books written for children, you are in for a treat. And for those of you who do read books written for children …well, you already know the riches they offer.
Happy Birthday P.L. Travers
August 9, 2010
As a child I was introduced to P.L.Travers as the author of her Marry Poppins titles, about a magical nanny of unknown origins who arrives at the Banks home in Cherry Tree Lane where she is given charge of the Banks children and teaches them valuable lessons with a magical touch. As an adult I […]
Children choosing what they read significantly improves reading skills.
August 6, 2010
With the beginning of the school year just around the corner, it is a good time to acknowledge the fact that many children experience a summer slide in reading skills. In fact, “a child can lose up to two months of school each summer, according to the National Summer Learning Association. And the loss compounds […]
Cast your vote for your favorite Librarian!
August 4, 2010
I fell in love with libraries as a child and the love affair lives on. Thank you Ben Franklin who was instrumental in bringing about the public library as we know it today. But way before Ben, there was The Great Library of Alexandria, a public library open to those with proper scholarly and literary […]
What is the impact of home computer use on schoolchildren?
August 2, 2010
August finds us one month away from the traditional start of the school year. Although many communities have year-long school and many schools begin in August, September brings to mind “Back to School.” To begin our back to school state of mind re-entry, let’s begin to think about what is the impact of home computer […]
