THIS Reads: Mama, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Twihards

BY SWEETMAN

Are you wondering what to give the tween or teenager in your life? Think books. Reading is a gift that never stops giving. Give books, real books, not anything electronic – kids today suffer from waaaaaaaaaay too much electronic crap cluttering up their brains. The act of reading sustains the brain’s ability to solve logic problems and operate on a higher level of processing and reasoning. And there’s nothing like the physical reminder of a thoughtfully given book.

I am not well-versed in books for babies, toddlers or young children although I’ve had two babies (then toddlers then young children). It’s been my limited experience that “popular” and “educational” are somewhat less satisfying for both parents and children. I always leaned toward the classics and books about trucks because I have two sons. Whatever you give to a toddler or non-reading child, make sure it’s something that you’ll love reading over and over and over again, too.

For school age to young adult, here’s what not to give: any of the Twilight books. I know they have a legion of followers breathlessly fainting into the pages because Edward is so amazing and Bella is so amazing and the Twilight books are so amazing and there you have it: indoctrination to repetitively bad writing. Let the tween or teen borrow Twilight from a friend or the library and let’s stop shoving money into Ms. Meyer’s overflowing coffers. There are far better things to read:

C.S. Lewis, Chronicles of Narnia
A classic masterpiece, Lewis’s seven book series takes the reader into the fantastic world of Narnia. Four children – Peter, Susan, Edward and Lucy Pevensie – find the magical world of Narnia through a wardrobe in Professor Digory Kirke’s mansion. In Narnia they join forces with the noble Aslan to save the wintry world from the evil White Witch. Readable chapter books for even the youngest children, The Chronicles of Narnia series has widely influenced and guided the talents of many influential authors, musicians, directors and artists since they were published in the 1950s.

J.K. Rowling, The Harry Potter Series
We can’t thank J.K. Rowling enough because she didn’t just ignite the spark of love for reading in young people: she set the house on fire. The Harry Potter Series, seven epic novels about Harry Potter, Hogwarts School for Wizardry and Witchcraft, and the battle of good versus evil, have become instant coming-of-age classics. J.K. Rowling masterfully narrates an epic and, at times, very dark tale full of memorable characters in a magical wizarding world. These books are excellent on many levels and the writing is superb. I confess I was reluctant – no disdainful – of the books when they first came out because I had no interest in the magical world of wizardry. Fantasy was not my genre but my sister gave a copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stones to my youngest son for his 5th birthday. It was a gift that I believed was a curse because I had to read it out loud to him. However, before the first chapter ended I was hooked and waited as anxiously as all the other Harry Potter fans for the next installment. I read each word of all seven books to my youngest son, a literary experience like no other in my life.

Lemony Snicket, A Series of Unfortunate Events
Thirteen quick-paced, sharp and witty books chronicle the adventures of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire, beginning with the fiery deaths of their parents and propelling them through a number of unfortunate events as they are pursued by their distant relative, the evil Count Olaf. The books in A Series of Unfortunate Events are cautionary tales with dark Grimm undertones but they are clever and engaging. It’s a series that is sure to develop and secure a young reader into a life of good reading.

In tomorrow’s THIS Reads, Sweetman discusses more beloved children’s books by Roald Dahl and E.B. White.

photo: Stephanie Skidmore

“Vampires are bloody annoying”

Robyn Riley at Australia’s Herald Sun newspaper declares “vampires are bloody annoying” (pun intended?) in a rant against Stephanie Meyer, specifically, and all things vampiric in general. Robyn, we hope you keep one eye open at night!

Bermuda Triangle: Vampires, Books, and Film

The undead are everywhere these days. According to Variety , two big book-to-screen adaptations are on the horizon: Jack Kerouac’s American road novel On the Road and Rebecca Skloot’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks , a non-fiction book about a woman whose cancerous cells were collected from her body after her death from cervical cancer and used, without her family’s knowledge or permission, in the study of medical advancements from polio cures to HIV-related treatments.

So what’s the vampiric attachment? Kirsten Dunst recently signed on to star in On the Road , joining Kristen Stewart, among others, on the project. Dunst’s film career took off after her role in the 1994 adaptation of Anne Rice’s novel, Interview with the Vampire , where she played a child-vampire locked in a pre-pubescent body for all eternity. Stewart stars in the Twilight film adaptations. Alan Ball, who is the creator and executive producer of HBO’s “True Blood” series, also about vampires, is attached to produce the telepic based on Skloot’s book for HBO, Variety reports. Oprah, who has yet to reveal her fangs, is also set to produce the project.

Vampire Baby Names

Stephanie Meyer’s literary phenomenon Twilight has exploded into the parenting world with the names Jacob and Isabella coming #1 on the Social Security Administration’s list of most popular baby names for 2009. Also, Cullen (as in werewolf/alternate love interest Edward Cullen) is the fastest rising boy’s name on the list.

In a press release acknowledging their new status at the top, Baby Jacob and Baby Isabella issued a joint statement thanking Americans for “their support and good taste.” They also urged fans to “check out www.socialsecurity.gov to learn about a new ‘twist’ in the law that may help an older relative or neighbor get an average of almost $4,000 of extra help with Medicare prescription drug costs.”

Do vampires need to worry about health care?

Link-o-Rama

Summer colds/flus suck. As I’m getting over mine, here’s some interesting reading to tie you over. Enjoy!

 

The New York Times Parenting blog wrote recently of a Swedish couple who refuse to share whether their toddler’s gender. The parents made the decision in an attempt to keep their child free from the construct of gender.

 

Both Ms. Magazine and Bitch have published recently articles on the problematic constructs within Edgar and Bella’s relationship in the Twilight book series. Both articles are a good read.

 

Ms. Magazine also reviews to recently published books, including The Purity Myth by Jessica Valenti; This Child Will Be Great, an autobiography of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf; and Lisa See’s Shanghai Girls. (I haven’t read any of these yet. Have you? Then send us your own book review!)

 

That’s it for this round! My goal: feel better this week and post some of the recent submissions to this zine’s mailbox – they’re exciting, well-written, and all around awesome!