If you follow me on twitter, then you know I have two little monsters running around my house. For those who don’t, or are new to Literary Escapism, I’m a stay at home mom of two boys – a 2.5yo (Psy) and a 6yo (Monkey). Well, I should say my six year old will officially be six on Tuesday, but over the past few months he has begun reading on his own. We’re still in the “early reader” stage, but I’ve done my job well and the Monkey is just as much of a bookworm as I am as well as has a love of the science fiction/fantasy. While he still prefers to be read to, I’m starting to look for books he can read on his own that will foster his interest in science fiction and fantasy (he loves Dr. Who) and hopefully will get him to read on his own more.
Have you ever gone looking for straight-up fantasy or science fiction children books? And I’m not talking about stories featuring talking animals, but they’re still doing what any normal human would do. I’m talking magic and trolls and aliens – the works! I’ve been racking my brain and I’m having a bit of trouble finding them. I’m not a YA reader, so I don’t know much about books categorized as “middle grade” or younger and I need to change this. Especially if I’m going to be a responsible parent and make sure he’s not reading what he shouldn’t be (ie smutty books at 13 like I did *grin*).
Many of you may not realize, but Nikki is in the same boat as I am. She has two monsters of her own (4yo and 7yo) and has been on the hunt for books that might pique their interest as well. As we’ve been passing recs/finds back and forth, I started thinking that we can’t be the only UF/PNR/F/SF readers with young children. We’re not, right?
So I would like to introduce Story Time with Literary Escapism, where we’ll be featuring various children books that fall directly in the fantasy & science fiction genres. I’m talking boardbooks, picture books, those books labeled as “beginner readers” and all the way up to middle grade. We’re not going to be tackling Young Adult, our kids no where near ready for those and many of us here already read them, but don’t worry that you’ll start seeing a ton of children reviews in your feed either. Nikki and I will be showcasing these books on the 2nd and 4th Fridays of each month with reviews of what we’ve read all in one post.
To give you a taste of what to expect, here’s one I read to them awhile ago. The Wizard by Jack Prelutsky and Brandon Dorman (Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up) is a cute story of a bored wizard who likes to play with the neighborhood kids. Plus there are some really fabulous pictures that are fun to look at.
The wizard, watchful, waits alone within his tower of cold gray stone and ponders in his wicked way what evil deeds he’ll do this day.
What do you think the wizard is planning to do? Conjure a magic spell? Turn a frog into a flea? Fill a cauldron with bubbling brew?
You may think you know . . . but watch out. Because if the wizard is bored, he may come looking for you.
Nikki and I will be sharing our adventures in finding SF/F books for our children and encouraging them down the fantasy path. Have you had to go on this hunt for your children? Do you have any books that you think Nikki and I should take a look at? And even more importantly, why aren’t there any Dr. Who books for this age bracket. *grin* There should be. I know Monkey would love it.
Peter Pan’s a fine start, I still read it every year or two and I’m creeping up on 40.
My personal philosophy though is that if a kid can understand something, they’re ready to understand it. Give them real books and let them absorb as fast as they can. Yeah, you’ll have to answer “what is this word” and “what does this mean” a lot until you teach them how to use a dictionary. You may end up having to discuss uncomfortable topics before you think you should have to. But they’ll learn quite a lot more than kids reading neutered books.
There are a ton of great children books out there, don’t get me wrong; but at 6 years old, the Monkey is not ready for the classics. We can barely get him to sit through Harry Potter or Aesop’s Fables before he loses interest, so I don’t even want to try some of the classics just yet. BUT I still want him to enjoy reading and to get to a point where he could sit through them. So I’m planning on bribing him with books with topics he has an interest in already and then getting him to read the others. *grin* Raising kids is just another war game – its all about the battle strategy.
I must be really odd then. I read The Hobbit at 6 and sometime before we read them in class at 9, I’d read the Lord of the Rings books. I blame the animated movies. They were like the mose awesome cartoons I’d ever seen, my folks had the books, and I didn’t know I wasn’t supposed to be able to read them.
Anyway, you could also try comic books. Not as many words there but plenty of sweet artwork and enough action to hold the attention of even a 6yo.
I am a huge science fiction fan, though I came to it backwards. As a child I read books that apparently adult books and now as an adult I really enjoy children’s books. I guess since I’ve decided to be a teacher and want my room library stocked with an assortment, but also with diversity, I’ve been paying attention more. I came across the Golden Duck reading list (http://www.sff.net/rff/readlist/goldduckrl.htm) that features recommended science fiction for children. Thought I’d pass it along! Have fun!
Thanks Starr!