Children's Books

As we've mentioned in a previous post, we believe that truly good children's literature must appeal to all age groups. The same person who loved The Chronicles of Narnia at age ten can re-read the series at age thirty and come away with an even deeper understanding of these beloved stories.

The main quality that makes a book rise to this level is intelligent content and writing. An author need not write in such a way as to make their story too difficult for a child to comprehend, but children don't need their stories dumbed down, either. Not only are kids smarter than we often like to think, they will also be encouraged to grow even further if challenged by sophisticated narratives.

We've already used C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia as an example of this sort of sophisticated literature. Other examples include Roald Dahl's various books and A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. Though the books by these authors are very easy to read, they are also full of deeper content that you might not expect from books written for kids. Dark humor abounds, and many parallels can be drawn between the exaggerated characters portrayed in the books and people in real life. 

Other gems to be found in the children's section of the library include Beverly Cleary's ever-relatable Ramona and her sister "Beezus", E. B. White's tales of friendship and loyalty, A. A. Milne's beloved stories of Winnie the Pooh, (who, for a bear stuffed with fluff, is extraordinarily wise) and L. M. Montgomery's beautifully written Anne of Green Gables series.

What we are illustrating here is that you should never judge a book by what section of the library it's shelved in - even if it's a picture book. After all, Dr. Seuss's books are marvelous examples of great children's literature, full of fantastical illustrations, funny characters, and sound life lessons. Some of Seuss's best include: Horton Hears a Who, The Sneetches and Other Stories, and Oh the Places You'll Go.

In the end, all literature, no matter what age it was written for, should work to expand the imagination through such tools as multi-faceted characters with complex emotions, as well as compelling story lines. Too often children's books are overlooked, or thought to be beneath anyone over the age of twelve. But the fact is, these books can be learned from and taken to heart, no matter who you are, and no matter what stage of life you are in.