Posted on 12/08/2013 6:53:26 PM PST by SeekAndFind
As a reader, the mother of four children, and an author, I want my kids to love to read and to approach reading as joy and nourishment. The following five works of fiction do not encourage and inspire the love of reading in children. They’re terrible books for kids. If you make your children read these they will develop a loathing for reading that will last their whole lives and may possibly poison their very souls. Let’s see why.
Note: Minor spoilers.
This is a set of four short stories set in the western United States and an excellent example of John Steinbeck’s famously spare, elegant prose. Beautifully written, with underlying themes of death and redemption, we can all agree that this is a classic. Did I mention the gruesome death of the title character, the beloved red pony? No? Want to watch your children sob in heartbreak and then continue on to read the next three stories with increasing puzzlement and despair as the complicated themes go over their heads and they must endure the agonizing death of another beloved horse? The Red Pony will not give your children a desire to read for pleasure. Just because a novel features a child doesn’t mean that the work is appropriate for them.
Yes, children should be exposed to stories of heartbreak, loss, and redemption, but there are much better novels than Steinbeck’s to share with your child. Hand over Old Yeller by Fred Gipson, Black Beauty by Anna Sewell, or Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Each of these books will make your child cry, but in the end will fill them with joy.
Oh, take that shocked look off your face. Of course this is a beloved classic and almost every school child has to read the story of Native American Karana and her tale of survival as a stranded young girl on an island off the coast of California. But why? Karana is an emotionless character who plods along in her adventure one grim day at a time. She makes a great sacrifice to save her brother, but her sacrifice is made useless when her brother dies shortly afterward. Scott O’Dell evokes the abundance of life and the beauty of the western coast, but Karana lives a spare, bleak life. She endures on the island for years, alone. In the end Karana is rescued by a passing ship, a passive ending to a sad tale.
Children need stories that teach them heroism, ingenuity, and success in the face of adversity. Try Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, The Incredible Journey by Sheila Burnford, or My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George. I never wanted to see Karana’s island after I finished Island of the Blue Dolphins. But Sam Gribley’s tree house in My Side of the Mountain? I wanted to go live there. Somewhere in my heart, I always will.
Don’t be surprised if your twelve year old comes home from school with this book as part of her required reading. All of mine did, and I read the novel and admired the gritty, urban life that Myers evokes in the story of Steve Harmon, on trial for murder after a botched robbery of a convenience store. Myers uses a nifty movie-script format interspersed with diary entries. This is an excellent book but it’s terrible for children. Why do I say this? Does exposing your child to a description of a homosexual gang rape sound like fun? Later in the story, your child will read about an anal butt plug insertion. My twelve-year-old children were assigned a novel that describes sodomy and sex toys.
Even worse, there is the sympathy that Myers creates for Steve, a terribly misled youngster who was involved in a murder. Pre-teens might identify with Steve so much that they think it’s okay to be found innocent of murder as long as you “didn’t really mean to.” Myers wrote a terrific book and I recommend it for older teens who can understand conflict without confusing it for absolution. Don’t give your children this book.
If you’d like your child to read a novel that describes the complexity and heartbreak of the accused, try To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, The Homelanders series by Andrew Klavan, or the always wonderful The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.
This trilogy written by the English author Pullman consists of The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass, called the His Dark Materials series. They were written as an opposition to C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, a seven book fantasy series that intends to “inkle” a belief and love of Christianity in young children. His Dark Materials is intended to foster a belief in atheism in children. How charming.
Unlike an agnostic tale where God is not present, the His Dark Materials series is all about God, and is full of rage and bitterness at Him and His angels. Children often enjoy the tale of Lyra Belacqua and her Golden Compass, but they are really reading a revenge fantasy. Christian or not, this is not the kind of emotional bile you want your child absorbing.
If you want to show your children fantastical and wondrous worlds of magic and adventure, try The Chronicles of Narnia or the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan.These stories will uplift, entertain, and suffuse your children with the joy of reading.
The worst of the five terrible books for your children is this one, and this is a story that your child will devour in delight. A Series of Unfortunate Events is a tale of nihilism and despair packaged in such a charming way that children and their loving parents will laugh and only wonder later why their stomachs feel queasy and strange. The author, Lemony Snicket, writes incredibly well. The three main characters, Violet, Klaus and Sunny, are orphan siblings who love and care for each other. Their adventures are thrilling. But this is a terrible, terrible series for your children. Why?
At the end of each book, Count Olaf, the villain, has successfully removed the children from a loving home, having killed the person the children have just learned to love, and has turned them back into orphans. In each book, Violet and Klaus come up with a brilliant plan to escape him, or to defeat him, but they always just barely manage to escape, and usually through some plot twist that doesn’t even come from their ideas. Ask a child who loves the series and they’ll tell you that Count Olaf is a great guy. He’s the winner, and who doesn’t love a winner? He never gets his heart broken, he is never sad, dejected, or lonely. He never cries himself to sleep. Violet and Klaus and Sunny survive, but in such abject misery that no one in their right mind would choose to be them. No child looks at Violet and says: “Look how beneficial it is to study and be smart and invent things.” No. The lesson is that no matter how smart you are, no matter how hard you work, the bad guys are always smarter, and will come out on top because evil pays. That is the overall message of these books.
Do you think children understand this? Let me share a story. As an author of a children’s adventure book for reluctant readers, I am often asked to speak at schools. I was recently explaining about heroes to a group of kids in an elementary school in Parker, Colorado, when a young girl raised her hand. She was a cheerful and sweet little girl with long blonde pigtails. I called on her.
“What about evil? I like books where evil wins,” she asked me. I stood speechless as the teacher explained with a laugh that, not to worry, her student was currently enjoying the Lemony Snicket books.
There are places where evil wins, but that place should not be in our children’s hearts. Want to share a wonderful tale with your children that teaches them that evil doesn’t pay? Read Holes by Louis Sachar or A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my list. Which books did you despise as a youngster or love with all your heart? We all want to give our children the love of reading by sharing books with them that will encourage and inspire them, and avoid the books that don’t. Happy reading!
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Not always. But animals are not immortal, either, just like people. Charlottes Web was a favorite my daughter when she was six.
My children loved the Little Britches series during our morning and evening readings.
loved Tree Grows In Brooklyn
As charming as the movies were, they weren't very faithful to the books. As I recall, by the end of the book Tarzan speaks perfect English and can drive a car. Tarzan is smart.
There was actually a Tarzan television series in the late '60s starring Ron Ely that was fairly faithful to the spirit of the books, much more so than any of the films.
I would recommend any of the “juvenile” novels of Robert A. Heinlein.
Ah, Kipling. As a child living in the Commonwealth, I certainly was confronted with Kipling. For me, the final stanza of “The Young British Soldier” was always especially memorable, and certainly the kind of thing that would warm the heart of any kiddie...
When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains,
And the women come out to cut up what remains,
Jest roll to your rifle and blow out your brains
An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier.
Of course there are other verses that deal with alcohol abuse and having a colleague sleeping with your wife, but nothing satisfies like desperate suicide. Thanks Rudyard, for searing that imagery in my mind for the last 45 years.
I feel like I missed out. I was reading Churchill in sixth grade.
I pretty much had complete freedom also but I wish I had not spent so much time reading junk. I could have used more guidance from my elders.
Maybe the nuns were too strict with your wife...it’s certainly good to have some freedom to read what you like. But too much freedom can end up badly as well.
Loved the Little Britches series. Every Freeper should consider this series for their kids or grandkids
I started that one, but didn’t finish it. I forget why, it was OK.
I used to read that book to my kids, with my own suitable alterations.
The book ends with the rainbow fish -- who has torn off his own scales to give to his 'friends,' swimming happily off to join them in the ocean.
My version, which I read in my best cockney was "But as the now mut'ilated, slowly dyin', rine-bow fish swum off wiff 'is newly purchased mates, 'ee wondered exactly why 'ee wanted those koind of pals."
My wife agreed the book was awful, but she found Dad's version somewhat gruesome for the three and four year olds. [Actually, kids like that kind of stuff.]
His Dark Materials is nothing short of a Satanist screed. Although Pullman denies being one, in the final book, the child heroine sets all the souls "free" from Pullman's idea of "Heaven" (it's actually more like Limbo, which is part of Hell) where they're annihilated.
Meanwhile, the adult "heroes" make war on a senile, impotent old "God" who's on life support as his archangels terrorize the universe.
This is obviously intended to be offensive to Christians of all stripes -- as an agnostic I even found it offensive.
In any event, It's not in the same class as Lemony Snicket's books, which are written tongue firmly in cheek, and which intelligent kids who like to read will not be fooled for one second into thinking is about the iconic struggle between good and evil, anymore than are Dudley Doright's unending travails against Snidely Whiplash.
The movie has pretty much nothing to do with the books. Not even the characters are really very close, and the plot is somebody’s idea of a bad joke.
In high school, mom got angry that I was reading, “The New Centurions” and threw it out. Too many curse words, I guess. That was the only time she ever banned me reading anything. Our kids were allowed to read anything they wanted. However, I did have to limit the Harry Potter reading hours or they’d never have have any sleep.
I would agree, they are mostly nihilistic or heavy handed socialist.
But Travels With Charley is wonderful. It's a tale where Steinbeck drives around the country with his poodle.
Then again, it's non-fiction, so I guess it doesn't fit with his novels.
As far as books being "forbidden fruit" if they are controversial, that made me want to read them more.
There was an episode of Lou Grant where Rossi was talking about Catcher in the Rye being censored.
I read it soon thereafter and really enjoyed it.
I re-read it in HS as an assignment and didn't enjoy it as much as when I was 12.
But I did learn a whole lot about the symbolism that went completely over my head the first time. We also read the Lord of the Flies, and contrasted it. I didn't like it as much as Catcher.
Another "controversial" book is The Giver. I think it needs to be read by everyone. A totally dystopian society where old people are euthanized when they are no longer useful.
Not sure if it was the author's intent, but this is a very anti-socialist book. And it's very easy to see that this is how our society will turn out unless liberalism is completely vanquished.
I felt forced to read The Red Pony in government screwool. Hated itto death and it probably ruined me for most fictional reading for the rest of me life.
I once clapped when Judy Blume announced she wouldn’t be writing any more children’s books.
Regarding censorship: Does everybody realize that leftist critics and the folks in power in the American Library Association have already censored our books? Most anything with traditional values has been pulled out or prevented entry. There are tens of thousands of new books published every year so they can censor away under the guise of being selective.
Not sure if it was the author's intent, but this is a very anti-socialist book. And it's very easy to see that this is how our society will turn out unless liberalism is completely vanquished.
Another great Antisocialist, anti-big government series is the "Hunger Games"
Great series for kids from the opposite end of the spectrum from the "Giver"
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