Children's Books!

I was so surprised to hear that so many of the people in our class had not read a children's book in a long time, or that they were not exposed to books like these two when they were growing up. Maybe I am a bit of a dork, but I love children's books and still like to read them, although it is usually for a family member or because I have picked it up in a doctor's office or a friend's house from it's place on the coffee table. When I was a kid, I wanted to write and illustrate children's books, even long after I had moved on to Boxcar Children, Babysitter's Club, and Judy Blume.

I try not to judge children's books to harshly, for the most part. Whenever you are writing about something in a way that is supposed to be simplistic but also will grab the attention of a child, it can be hard to avoid images or texts that some may see as stereotypical or even racist. I think both the stories that we read were wonderful, especially the first one, but it is still important to take the discussion further. Perhaps you could ask the child afterward, "Where do you think this story took place? What is it like there? What are the people like?" And then help them to understand not only how they are different from the child, but also how they are alike. For example, in the first story, you could ask, "Why do you think Ahmed writes his name so differently from how we would write it?" or, "Do you think that everyone in Cairo dresses this way?" Reading to children is important, but it is only a small step in their development. If there is no discussion about the issues, the story may be remembered for it's bright colors, and nothing more.

I thought I would include some books on here that are different than what most of us think of when we are talking about children's literature:

I remember reading this book in elementary school. It's about a boy learning about his grandfather and the Vietnam War. I don't remember much about it, except it made me kind of sad and I wanted to go look at the wall.










This book tells the story of a family going through a divorce, and how although it is difficult, Dinah's parents still love her, and although things are changing, many things will be the same. My cousin's had a book very similar to this one when we were growing up. I remember it scared me but also helped me understand what they were going through.




This is a story about four animals that live together, but then the fox dies. The book talks about remembering all the wonderful things about Fox, and about how that keeps him with the other animals in their hearts. I also had a book similar to this one growing up. I don't remember when it was originally bought for me, but I do remember reading it and being just... mad. So I guess it moved me on to that second stage of grief! Oh well...

And there are books that deal with even heavier subjects...

Some of the best new books deal with different families...