Pen Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 At what age (if ever) would you allow a child to read, say, The Stand by King? How terribly "horror" and gory is it for a child who likes things like Planet of the Apes, Harry Potter, LotRings level of gore, but found the newer movie version of Jekyll and Hyde too horrific? (I've never read The Stand, and at around 1000 pages don't think I'm up to a pre-read right now, but would read it along with him if it seems like it would not be too horrific.) He is already familiar with the Stephen King novella The Body and that was okay. Or are there any others that might be recommended for a tween boy? What about adult John Grisham novels for a child past the Theo Boone stage? I don't want something with a rape/attempted murder of a child, such as in A Time to Kill, and think something like The Appeal would be too hard to follow, but are there any that might be a bit beyond the Theo Boone stage, but not as either graphically violent as Time to Kill or complex as The Appeal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwjx2khsmj Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 Stephen King, especially The Stand, which happens to be one of my favorite books, I would say not until high school, at least. And then only if your child is not prone to nightmares or replaying book scenes mentally. It's pretty graphic. I would rate it at an 8 on a 10 point gore scale. John Grisham, maybe The Pelican Brief or The Client. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 High school, and I would say later on in high school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 I like The Stand quite a bit, but there's a fair amount of things like rape, gore, etc. involved. I don't think I'd snatch it out of a kid's hand, but I sure don't think I'd hand it to them, either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 I see them as two different genres. King is horror, and Grisham is suspense. I might hand a tween Runaway Jury, for instance (don't recall if there is graphic sex in that one), but I would not hand a tween a King novel. An aside - I teach a co op class on literature analysis, and one student (5th grade girl) told the class that she had watched The Shining. Now, The Shining (book and movie) scared the crap out of me so I can't imagine exposing a 10 year old to it. She seemed nonplussed, but it might well have been bravado. Who knows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 John Grisham...wouldn't "The Firm" be ok? and "The Rainmaker"? Oh, and definitely "Skipping Christmas." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
songsparrow Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 My husband and I disagree about allowing the kids to read Stephen King. My husband is very hands off and of the belief that if a kid picks up a book that's not appropriate for them, they probably won't be interested enough in it to get very far. I am of the view that King has really graphic depictions of disturbed thinking and acts from inside the heads of messed up characters - imagery that's not necessary to be in one's head at a young age. Although my cousin and I both began reading King when we were younger teens - around age 14, I'd say - and loved his books. We probably got away with it because our parents hadn't read any of the books and didn't know his style. That said, I don't think it messed either of us up in any way! LOL I think it's probably appropriate starting around age 15. I am considering re-reading ​The Eyes of the Dragon because my 13 yo has asked to read it (she asked a year or two ago because she likes dragon stories). I think it may be milder, but I want to read it first to make sure. If I read it, I'll report back. An aside - I teach a co op class on literature analysis, and one student (5th grade girl) told the class that she had watched The Shining. Now, The Shining (book and movie) scared the crap out of me so I can't imagine exposing a 10 year old to it. She seemed nonplussed, but it might well have been bravado. Who knows? My 10 yo watched The Shining with her sister and dad. The kids were begging to watch a "movie that would really scare them" and that's the one he picked. They were both disappointed because neither one found it scary. They found Poltergeist much scarier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 My husband and I disagree about allowing the kids to read Stephen King. My husband is very hands off and of the belief that if a kid picks up a book that's not appropriate for them, they probably won't be interested enough in it to get very far. I am of the view that King has really graphic depictions of disturbed thinking and acts from inside the heads of messed up characters - imagery that's not necessary to be in one's head at a young age. Although my cousin and I both began reading King when we were younger teens - around age 14, I'd say - and loved his books. We probably got away with it because our parents hadn't read any of the books and didn't know his style. That said, I don't think it messed either of us up in any way! LOL I think it's probably appropriate starting around age 15. I am considering re-reading ​The Eyes of the Dragon because my 13 yo has asked to read it (she asked a year or two ago because she likes dragon stories). I think it may be milder, but I want to read it first to make sure. If I read it, I'll report back. I think it's quite a bit milder. I think a lot of kids also skim or self-censor bits that they aren't ready for. I know I've told this story before, but I read all of Anne McCaffrey's Dragonrider books when I was about 10-11. I did not even notice the sex. I re-read them at about 17, and was utterly gobsmacked by how much sex there was in them, and how dark some of it was! I really didn't like King for a long time, but that was because I picked up Pet Semetary when I was quite young. I wasn't traumatized ... but I was repulsed. The only reason I read anything by him again was The Green Mile, and after that, I started reading more of his works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Obligatory responsible answer: I would wait until high school, for Stephen King. Real answer: I had read all of King's then-published novels by the time I was 14. They were eye-opening and some scared the heck out of me. For years after reading It I was scared of drains. Good times. :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Real answer: I had read all of King's then-published novels by the time I was 14. They were eye-opening and some scared the heck out of me. For years after reading It I was scared of drains. Good times. :laugh: Want your boat, Georgie? I remember my mother telling me once that it was YEARS after she saw Psycho before she could take a shower without wedging a chair under the bathroom door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
librarymama Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Goodness, well... I read The Stand in 7th grade so I was about 12. I was also reading other King books like Carrie, Misery, and Gerald's Game (which, wow.). I also read Roots at that age. I certainly wasn't scared by it and I think being free to read more mature books helped me to mature as well as build a love for reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 I read most of Stephen King's books when I was 13-15 and John Grisham's first several (except A Time to Kill, which I didn't discover until later) as they were published, starting when I was about 14. DD is still young, so I can't answer regarding her, but I'm unlikely to limit reading material. My mother never limited, on the grounds that children would self-censor or skim over what they didn't understand, and it worked out well. For Stephen King, I would be more inclined to start with Firestarter, Misery, The Shining, or Carrie. They aren't as graphic as The Stand, in my opinion. For John Grisham, only read the first six or seven he published then lost interest. Of those, I would probably start with The Client. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 FTR, I do allow my kids to read Harry Potter and Twilight. (They love HP and we all agree that Twilight is poorly written, but that's beside the point.) We also studied some real doozies in modern literature. I am not one who believes in only reading Henty, lol. That said... Stephen King--never. Why fill your mind with darkness like that? He's not a great writer, and his books are nasty. Grisham--high school. Choose wisely. Some of his novels are icky, but some are not. He's not the greatest writer either, IMHO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMissMagnolia Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 I guess it depends on the "maturity" of the tween.....I think I started reading Stephen King in my teens..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 I read them at a young age, but I read and was exposed to a lot of things that I shouldn't have been, honestly. My kids are free to read most things, but I have steered them away from King novels. Well, I have suggested a few to my 17 year old recently, but she doesn't want to read them. The Stand does have some graphic sex/rape scenes, suicide, and very mentally disturbed thought processes of some violent characters. If your kid isn't emotionally ready to handle those types of things, then stay far away from most King novels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 For Stephen King, I would be more inclined to start with Firestarter, Misery, The Shining, or Carrie. They aren't as graphic as The Stand, in my opinion. Yes, let your kid read Carrie if they fall prey to all the "but what about the prom?" questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 My 10 yo watched The Shining with her sister and dad. The kids were begging to watch a "movie that would really scare them" and that's the one he picked. They were both disappointed because neither one found it scary. They found Poltergeist much scarier. I recall reading The Shining and the moment when I discovered what "redrum" really meant. I don't think I am the same yet, and that was in college. I swear. Maybe I am just easily scared. I do think that sometimes the full impact of things go over kids' heads when they are youngish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmandaVT Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Obligatory responsible answer: I would wait until high school, for Stephen King. Real answer: I had read all of King's then-published novels by the time I was 14. They were eye-opening and some scared the heck out of me. For years after reading It I was scared of drains. Good times. :laugh: Glad I'm not the only one! I read everything of Stephen King that I could in Jr. High. My best friend and I watched the It Miniseries in 1990 and scared ourselves silly! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
librarymama Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Re-reading the OP, I think that if your child has expressed an interest in reading something like The Stand, knowing what it is about and approaching it with the understanding that it might get intense or graphic, that in your shoes I would allow him to read it. If he finds it to be too much, he can stop. But you know your child and what he can handle and if you don't think he's mature enough, then maybe wait a year... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 I am easily scared and so is ds7 so imagine he will self censor like I did. John Grisham is lightweight writing but does deal with people's weaknesses and character flaws. He needs to be well past innocent trust of authority first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted August 22, 2014 Author Share Posted August 22, 2014 Thanks everyone. It'll be no to King at least for now. I'll check out some of the suggested Grisham ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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