Strange request ... give me the title of a HORRIBLE kids book

[Alicia64]

I don't mean to sound dramatic, but I was appalled when I first read Junie. YUCK!

 

Before I had kids I probably would have thought you were silly, but now that i have my own, I'm just as bad (good?!) as you!!

 

Alley ;)

[SquirrellyMama]

I'm not sure I'd go in the direction of horrible books. I would instead find a well written book that has some things in it that are too mature for your kids.

 

I preread a book about a woman who was taken captive. It was a good book but it had detailed accounts of how her family was murdered and the cutting they did to her face. Way too much information for my 8 year old although it was in the juvenile section.

 

If you go in with "this is a horrible book" you will get more of a fight because that person may not find anything wrong with the book you choose.

 

Even in my suggestion you probably won't get far because we all have different feelings on what is appropriate for a certain age.

 

Kelly

[PiCO]

Also, Coraline. Gave me nightmares for YEARS. I don't even understand who rated that movie but I guess they had no children. I thought it was PG13. Nope, PG. :confused::confused::confused:

 

I LOVED this book. My 11 yo dd recommended it- she loved it also. But we're a little dark...

 

I agree about the movie, though- that was horrid.

[tex-mex]

Well, this sure dates me as an moldy oldy. But the Judy Blume books -- are a tad inappropriate for young girls. Like the topic of masturbation in Then Again, Maybe I Won't. The bullying in Blubber for me as a 5th grader was shocking. The teen sex in Forever was also controversial.

[PiCO]

That is the reason I think this is a difficult argument. My boys have read most of the books that others have indicated as 'bad', and have grown to be discerning readers in their pre-teen and teen years.

I absolutely respect those who find the time to pre-read and purposefully select books for their children, but because our standards as parents are so different, I can't imagine how I would convince someone who is much more careful than I am that my method (or lack thereof) is better. I believe the same holds true for the opposite position.

I'd let this one go and just know that what you are doing for your children is the right thing for your children.

 

I agree with you, Crissy. I actually did pre-read most of my dds' books when they were younger- because I love to read children's fiction- but I can't remember banning any books from my house. (Well I guess that's not completely true- Captain Underpants, babysitters club, and that genre never made it into my house. And some books are not worth purchasing in my eyes- that's what a library is for.)

 

But I just LOVE Junie B Jones. Especially as a read-aloud. The books on CD are brilliant. It's fiction. I have never had a problem with kids thinking fiction is reality and it's OK to behave like Junie B.

 

I do think it's important to have standard for your children though. My daughter loved Coraline, but I can see other children getting nightmares from that story.

[stripe]

And Pippi Longstocking has guns in her house, lives without an adult in the home, and does not go to school! ;)

 

I think it's better to speak about things that were too advanced/scary or whatever for your kids, that actually have caused problems for them (like nightmares), if you really feel you must discuss this, but I am not entirely sure you should! In terms of quality, I dislike advertising tie-in stuff and pulpy stuff with no content (is that a contradiction?), but I wouldn't bother going on about sentence structure and vocabulary, and things being superior. It just seems that if you think, it doesn't really matter if your co-worker thinks you are being over-protective...It's your child. You're not endangering your children, so I don't really see why or how this would come up at work or why this would be discussed at all, for your co-worker to vote on.

 

I was more disturbed by graphic or disturbing scenes in movies as a child. Such as the choice scene in Sophie's Choice, the hanging of someone in some war movie, and graphic sex scenes I saw way too young. I remember them to this day! Scary scenes in books, not so much.

 

Except for ghost stories!

Edited September 18, 2010 by stripe

[Cricket]

I was doing some book searches at the library a couple of months ago. I don't recall any titles but I remember coming across one about an 11 or 12 year old boy with an abusive father (of course). The boy's uncle takes him hunting and he accidently shoots his uncle and kills him. The reviews were all so positive about how well-written it was and how the story was so touching. So many books feature neglectful, abusive parents and violence involving children and directed at children. Uh, I think I'll pass.

[nmoira]

The Golden Compass (and the other two in the trilogy).

 

I'm not saying they are bad books. Lots of people find them interesting.

 

But they are NOT children's books. Which is always how I see them marketed. Sex, violence, horrific situations?

Sex? What sex? Aside from the metaphorical stroking of the daemons, there is no sex: the protagonists kiss. As to horrific situations, it's true there's a particularly devastating moment at the end of The Golden Compass, but it's far from gratuitous... and yes, the readers should feel like they've been kicked in the stomach.

 

Oh, sure, but the protagonist in the first one is a kid, so it must be a kid's book. Right?

I've told DD the Elder (approaching 9) that I think she'd appreciate the books more in a couple years, but not because there's anything in them I think she shouldn't read now.

 

I can't tell you how many people suggested I give these to my kids to read when they were in elementary school. They're nightmare generators. If a kid even understood what was going on.

 

Oh, and there were a lot of horror/ghost stories that were read to us back when I was elementary school. I guess the teacher was trying to engage us in reading. I STILL get creeped out by some of those stories.

It's OK to be scared. It's OK to be devastated after reading a book. It's OK to be so affected by what you've read that it carries with you throughout your life.

[homeschoolin'mygirls]

of the Princess Diaries fame. NOT, Not the movie. Really.

 

exa---main character ponders the question of getting a Brazillian wax before a date? Hello? High School character with prob middle school audience.

 

Another of her books explains how the teenaged character relieves stress by masturb---ting (not sure what the filters will let me type). OK, maybe a valid topic at some point but I sure would have liked to know it was in the book before my 7th grader read it!

 

I believe in prereading until at least high school--and some still even then!

 

Edited to add that I also agree that trying to convince him is pointless--what is it Impish says about wrestling pigs?

Edited September 19, 2010 by homeschoolin'mygirls
Edited to add that I also agree that trying to convince him is pointless--what is it Impish says about wrestling pigs?