Yesterday in the Guardian books blog, Tim Martin asked the question "how close can we get to a canon in children's literature?"
Today, Robert McCrum asks readers to consider what makes for children's classic? Near the end of the article he writes:
This is not a blog about lists (truly!), more an invitation to reflect on what makes a good book for children, who are the children's literary greats, and (ideally) what the mix of new and old should be.These two men are asking the same question really. There are those who work in the field of children's literature who will argue that there are books one must be familiar with to be a scholar or librarian or perhaps even a classroom teacher. But what of children? Are there books and stories that every child should/must know? There are those in the Cultural Literacy and Core Knowledge camps who would answer with an emphatic YES!
The answer is not so easy for me anymore. I look at my own son who had no taste for any of the Pooh stories, but loved Alice. How do you serve up a "must read" to a child who has no interest? In the end, I think this discussion should lean more towards matching a book to a child and his/her particular interests than towards making sure he/she is reading the "right" books. How about you?
I agree with you. A classic is a book that's still in print, that's all. If people like it and keep buying it, it'll stay in print. I think there are definite cultural touchstones, but they shift, so I think its silly to carve anything like this in stone.
ReplyDeleteThanks.
I would say that there are certain books/stories/poems--whatever--that kids should be exposed to. But if they're not feeling it, then it's not something that should be forced. Ever. Trying on books is a good thing, feeling that you have to finish what you've started no matter what...isn't. So as long as parents (teachers, librarians, whomever) approaches 'classics' and must-reads with that attitude--that no one book is for everyone...and you can't 'make' someone like something...then all is good. Something else to remember is that sometimes liking something is a matter of timing.
ReplyDeleteI agree too, even though I was devastated when, like yours, my son showed absolutely no interest in Pooh. But I do think that we should maybe think about why some classics are near and dear to our hearts. What did we get out of them? What do we want to pass on to our children? And if one book doesn't work, is there another that might? My son also was not interested in Greek myths...until I handed him Rick Riordan's The Lightning Thief. Then we had a lot of backstory to explain. We'd been through a lot of other books, all of which he shrugged at. That was the right one. Knowing mythology is important for understanding other literature, so I kept pushing for that one. But I'm also learning to let go. I'm sorry he didn't go for Pooh and Babar, but I loved sharing Nate the Great and Paddington and the Narnia books. He doesn't need to read them all.
ReplyDeleteI'll go as far as saying that there may be some books that each child should have the opportunity to read (and just what those books are would certainly vary from country to country and from culture to culture). But stories that every child must read? No way.
ReplyDeleteMy kiddo won't have anything to do with Pooh, either. The books are "for babies, Mom." I attribute that idea to the videos, which are popular with much younger children.
ReplyDeleteI see Classics (big c) and classics, with the former being what some of us see as timeless literature, and the latter as the book that is a personal, perennial favorite from your childhood. Pooh is one of several classics (Watership Down) that I didn't read (or have read to me) as a child. Still, I know the stories and they are lovely. My daughter loves books and now, as a first grader, wants to read everything she sees. I'm afraid I'd kill that joy if we started plowing through a list of things we "must read."
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing such a thoughtful post. I've featured it on my blog as one of The Cornerstone accolades for February 2009.
ReplyDeletehttp://thecornerstoneforteachers.blogspot.com/2009/03/cornerstone-accolades-february-2009.html
Hmmm, let's try that link again with a tiny url.
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/bcazmp