Children's books too bleak, blah blah blah.

It seems that every couple of years, someone starts a round of realism-in-literature-is-too-much-for-children-to-handle.

This time, it's Anne Fine*.  Which I think is interesting, because, like the author of the essay I just linked to, I think of Fine as an author who does deal with some pretty tough stuff, and does it realistically.

Anyway.  The Guardian also has some thoughts on rewrites for a bunch of children's books to make them cheerier.  I'm sure that someone could "improve" The Chocolate Warby adding in some Rocky-esque training scenes which would lead to an ending that doesn't make the reader want to stab herself.

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*Actually, hasn't she gone off about this before?  Oh, wait.  I'm thinking of her blistering review of Melvin Burgess' Doing It.  Which I really liked.  The book, I mean.  It was amazingly raunchy, yes, especially towards the beginning, but I remember the character development being very strong and I also remember feeling that a whole lot of the book was in line with what I remembered from high school.  But that brings us back to the children's-literature-shouldn't-be-TOO-realistic argument.  Which, in case you're wondering, I don't buy.  I'm not saying that all books should be gritty and rough -- but I don't see why, with the bazillions of books out there, noneof them should be.  Yeesh.

Comments

[Str4y]

Back when I was working at the bookstore, I had a woman come in who was upset because the ending of the '3 Little Pigs' book she had purchased for her children (grandchildren? No matter.) had such a violent and cruel ending. She was sure she could find a version that had, I don't know...the Wolf and Piggies ending by sitting down for tea together. (Sadder still...I think she found one.)

This need that modern parents have to sanitize everything that their children touch drives me nuts.
a) Children can handle a little reality. I grew up on traditional fairy tales and fables and turned out fine...I found it interesting and a bit gross that Cinderella's step sisters cut on parts of their feet and found it fitting justice that birds pecked out their eyes. This did not warp me and turn me into a sociopath. My mom read me 'Ivanhoe' and I didn't run off and join the crusades, either.
b) The first time those children are exposed to real life, their mental immune systems will be about as prepared for it as their physical immune systems after years of being doused in anti-bacterial gel every time they got within 5 feet of...anything.

[Margaret]

There is! There is a book called "Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig" or something along that line. But it's not relevant to the theme of this post, because it's clever and witty and non-soppy in spite of its pacifist message that ends with the three little wolflets and the big bad pig all getting along.

[Jodie]

I need to read this article but before I do just want to agree that I think of Anne Fine as a writer who writes very realistic books (Goggle Eyes is about divorce and the problems of a fractured parental relationship after all). I think when some people complain about books being too realistic what they actually mean is books are too sad (again Goggle Eyes deals with tough issues, but it has a happy ending). It's crazy that some people think teens shouldn't read books where everything doesn't end perfectly, where else are kids suppoused to explore this kind of thing safely and if they don't learn that everything not turning out ok doesn't mean their life is a loss, how can they be expected to deal with the troubles you routinely find in the real world?

Ok so yes, um ranting, I will stop now

[Elizabeth]

I also liked _Doing It_, but I found _Smack_ a bit hard to take.