Two weeks ago I was nursing a bad cold, and now I have pneumonia. If this sounds like a pathetic play for pity, you’re correct. But as I’m sitting here feeling sorry for myself and wondering if my children are really helping with chores or just goofing off, I remembered something that’s related to the previous post about Write4Children.
When I was 11 years old there were two things that I was reading that were equally interesting to me and were read many times over. One of them was a copy of Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë that was given to me by a teacher, and the other was my large stack of Archie comic books I thought I couldn’t live without. My parents weren’t readers, but they didn’t limit my own reading, and they never made judgments about my reading choices. I truly believe that if someone had told me then that the comic books were inappropriate because they were not literary enough, or that Jane Eyre was inappropriate because it wasn’t written for children, my love affair with reading might have come to an end.
There is a place for literary critics in this world, and there is a place for creative writers. The former are concerned with the activities of the latter because that’s their job, in a nutshell. But I don’t believe creative writers should be concerned with what critics say, at least not during the act of creation. For this reason I don’t think Write4Children is likely to be a source of cross pollination between the two. I hope I’m wrong.
10 responses to “Jane or Veronica?”
So, were there any books that were “suggested” to you to read, that you refused to read just because someone else was suggesting them? Or because they were “a good book for girls?” For me, it was Anne of Green Gables. Still haven’t read it. I guess it’s time to stop being so pigheaded and just read the damn thing!
I loved Archie comics as well. But I must admit I never discovered Jane Eyre until my 40’s. Glad I did though.
Don’t hate me because I liked Anne of Green Gables.
I don’t recall ever having a book pushed on me. I read Little Men because I had my father’s copy from his childhood. I don’t remember what I thought of it, but I do remember feeling guilty because I had no desire to read Little Women. I wondered if there was something wrong with me. I used to read the same books over and over, and to some extent, I still do that. There’s something to be said for providing lots of reading material, and then leaving children the bleep alone. I think someone should start a betting pool on whether or not you make it all the way through that Canadian classic.
So, were there any books that were “suggested” to you to read, that you refused to read just because someone else was suggesting them? Or because they were “a good book for girls?” For me, it was Anne of Green Gables. Still haven’t read it. I guess it’s time to stop being so pigheaded and just read the damn thing!
I loved Archie comics as well. But I must admit I never discovered Jane Eyre until my 40’s. Glad I did though.
Don’t hate me because I liked Anne of Green Gables.
I don’t recall ever having a book pushed on me. I read Little Men because I had my father’s copy from his childhood. I don’t remember what I thought of it, but I do remember feeling guilty because I had no desire to read Little Women. I wondered if there was something wrong with me. I used to read the same books over and over, and to some extent, I still do that. There’s something to be said for providing lots of reading material, and then leaving children the bleep alone. I think someone should start a betting pool on whether or not you make it all the way through that Canadian classic.
Argh! Little Women – that’s another one I haven’t read – yet.
What about Black Beauty? National Velvet? The Call of the Wild? Treasure Island? The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm?
Let’s go out for coffee instead.
Argh! Little Women – that’s another one I haven’t read – yet.
What about Black Beauty? National Velvet? The Call of the Wild? Treasure Island? The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn? Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm?
Let’s go out for coffee instead.
No, no, no, yes, no , no and a definite yes! :)
No, no, no, yes, no , no and a definite yes! :)