February Focus: Day Sixteen
a) Possibilities in pages
I found one of my favorite books as a kid in my parents’ house. D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths. My best friend and I would spend hours looking through it when we were young, marveling at the beautiful illustrations and captivating stories, laughing at our own jokes as we pointed at the drawings. It was one of the happier memories from childhood, and now that book lives with me.
Only it won’t for long. I’m going to give it to my friend the next time I see her, so she can build new memories with her sons. I can picture her pointing to the photos like we did as kids, laughing along with her sweet-natured sons and giving the stories new depth with the new generation. Really, the book was our book, so I’m happy to give it away. I bought my own copy on Amazon the other day so I can start my own tradition when it’s time.
It makes sense to me to give the gift of books. I just hope we’re all cognizant enough of what’s inside the pages.
b) Being booksmart
In September of last year, another friend of mine had a party for her son’s first birthday. Her card said no gifts, but of course everyone brought gifts. I was at my parents’ house the week before, going through all the junk in the third room, when the idea struck me to give away some of my treasured childhood books. I found Strega Nona, which was one of my absolute favorites, and as it turns out, I had a few more books in the series. At first, I wanted to save the original first book for myself, as I could see myself reading it to my kids, like my mom did for me. So I was going to give away another book I had, Strega Nona’s Magic Lessons, which I didn’t read as a kid, I just had it as part of the series. But I needed to give it a read before I gave it away.
It was innocent enough. Strega Nona’s two helpers wanted to learn her magic, but only women were allowed to be stregas [witches]. The baker’s daughter Bambalona came under Strega Nona’s tutelage, but the farm boy Big Anthony was out of luck. So he hatched a plan to dress up as Antonia, pretending to be a girl so he could get in on Strega Nona’s magic lessons.
I felt weird just reading it. It felt like this was something that shouldn’t have ever been put to paper. Even though Strega Nona saw through Big Anthony’s disguise and tricked him into thinking he turned her into a frog, the narrator was still calling him “she.” I thought of my friend reading this to her son and her wondering why her friend Gina gave this to him. The book was written in ’84 and the entire premise was supposed to be, “Haha, look at the boy in girl’s clothing,” but I still didn’t feel right about it. Instead, I decided to give away my copy of the first book, making the present much more of a special edition than previously thought.
c) Deductive reasoning
I know I may be reading into this too much and looking through too modern a lens, but it’s important for adults to be aware of what’s going into our children’s heads. They’re just little people who need all the guidance in the world from responsible adults. That sometimes means being the first set of eyes on the copy before it goes to print.
I don’t like how my first instinct was to essentially book ban, but I can only go off on what I’d be comfortable letting my own kids read. Men can put on a dress if they want, but I don’t need to confuse my children when they’re too young to understand adult choices. I’ll have no say when they’re old enough to make their own decisions, but I can sure monitor what’s on my own bookshelf until then.
I think it’s fine to be more critical about what art is being created and what stories are being told. Not every facet of life deserves widespread acknowledgment. There are certain things parents will have to explain to children when the time is right. Books are a great learning tool, but they’re not necessarily meant to be the sole tutor. Family should play the top role in that. Including honorary aunts who just want to share the magic of literature with those she loves the most.
And really, why’d they have to do Big Anthony like that? He’s a fool, but we needed to put him in a dress now too? That’s a book I’m fine with remaining closed forever.
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