My new favorite book...

     I was wrong. There. I said it. I thought that great English literature would be as difficult to read as other great works I have read. The Count of Monte Cristo was excellent but it was work to read. Well, it was French after all. Dante’s Inferno was hard to follow, well worth it, but I had to go slow and use a dictionary half the time.

     So when my wife recommended Charles Dickens I resisted for a while. Not that I didn’t want to have such an important English writer under my belt, but I was preparing myself mentally to slog through pages of difficult prose and literary imagery.

     I was wrong. I borrowed a copy of A Tale of Two Cities on CD from my sister and I’ve been listening to it the last week and a half. I love it. Let me be clear. This is one of the best books I have ever read. I don’t mean best in the English Major’s sense of the word. I mean it is actually enjoyable.

     From the first sentence, I was hooked. Dickens has it all. The language is beautiful and he wields it so effectively to create images and moods. His settings and characters are perfect. The story has a depth you can get into and swim around in. I’m almost finished with it and I’m already thinking about when I’ll read it again.

     My wife, as I’ve alluded to, has already read a couple of books by Dickens and she’s told me he’s good. I didn’t know. People say books are good all the time. I trust her judgment, but labeling a book a classic can be the death of that book for popular fiction readers. I have no doubt anyone willing to give it a shot will be delighted by what they find in this excellent book.

     Needless to say, I’ll be trying a few other Dickens books in the future. As antagonistic as I’ve been toward French writing, it feels good to be vindicated by one who is a master of my own language. I’m sure this won’t be the final word on this particular book, but for now, enjoy a little hero worship of Dickens and my ringing endorsement of A Tale of Two Cities.

An Overlooked Genre

I love books. I love long books and short books, I love scary books and sweet books, I love fiction books and fact books, I love funny books and action books and thoughtful books. This  has been true as long as I've been able to read. As a kid I could wear out a Dr. Seuss book in no time.

For a while, as I grew up, I forgot about children's books. I went on a sci-fi fling followed by a fantasy binge. I took a short break to get married and have kids and now I'm back to heavy reading. But with the advent of children has come a resurgence in my love for childish books.

I don't think I ever stopped liking them, I just stopped reading them. According to a recent article by the New York Times, this is exactly what is happening to kids across the country now. As parents feel the pressure to prepare their kids for rigorous school standards (see that pesky institutional school ruining another good thing?) they are pushing their early elementary kids out of picture books and into chapter books. Never mind that the text is equivalent or below the picture book's level. It doesn't have pictures so it must be bigger. Right?

Wrong. C.S. Lewis said, "A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest." In other words, any book that a child is expected to enjoy should be enjoyable for an adult. I have found this to be true. For one example, I have already shared Axe Cop, the webcomic written by a six-year-old. This work comes directly from a child's mind, yet it is captivating readers of all ages. Also, in my own case, I have found that I pick out the books I like, when I go to the library. The kids have their favorites, but some how one or two of my own favorites end up in the stack.

Or they used to. When I read the article I was cut to the heart because even I have begun to follow this pattern. My oldest is only nine. My youngest is four and it would be perfectly ok for her to be read picture books daily. Yet, as I've gotten more preoccupied with doing a good job homeschooling, I've pushed higher-level books on the kids. Some of it is an impatience to share what I love, but some of it is the stereotype that books with pictures are for babies.

The truth is there are many books released in over sized format with lush illustrations that contain fifth-grade level text or higher. They discuss themes, explain concepts and inform worldviews that adults are still learning about.

But even with all that aside, children's picture books are fun. They are witty and delightful and I have never failed to laugh at a well made one. My favorites include the Pigeon books by Mo Willems, just about anything by Jon Scieszka, and David Shannon. I still enjoy the 'classics' by Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein.

The idea that children's books are beneath anyone is ridiculous. We would be wise to stop trying to outgrow childhood, but rather carry what is good about it with us to keep us joyful and humble. One final quote from C.S. Lewis and I let it go.

"Those of us who are blamed when old for reading childish books were blamed when children for reading books too old for us. No reader worth his salt trots along in obedience to a time-table."