More Magic

In my last post I wrote about the long-lasting effects reading has on kids, and about the kinds of books I was personally drawn to. Here are a few more thoughts on that subject…

A watershed moment in my reading life was discovering Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, around age 12. I suddenly found a new role model in Jo March, the feisty young woman who wanted to be an author, and who, long before the word feminism was coined, wouldn’t let anyone put her in her place. I loved the whole March family, but also Alcott’s descriptions of Civil War-era New England, with its formal parlors and musty garrets, its wild apple orchards and shaded dovecotes. It somehow seemed homespun and exotic, both at the same time.

And I was at least a little bit in love with Theodore “Laurie” Lawrence, whom Jo could only love like a brother. For a long time I thought she was crazy to turn him down for the stodgy old professor. Eventually, though, I understood that the professor was a better match for Jo. He was the one who truly understood her and who encouraged her passion for writing. “You must write from the depths of your soul!” he tells her, when she has gotten bogged down writing trashy stories about things she doesn’t care about. And listen to his beautiful declaration of love: “Your heart understood mine. In the depth of the fragrant night, I listened with ravished soul to your beloved voice.” No wonder Jo felt she had found her soulmate!

Another author I loved, for completely different reasons, was the peerless Dr. Seuss. I remember reading And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street to my younger brother approximately 3,758 times. Years later, I was thrilled to do the same with my sons. I read The Happy Birthday Book to each of them on their birthdays—it was as much a part of the celebration as cake and ice cream. The Sleep Book is pure genius as a bedtime story, and you’ll find no better lesson about how to handle the challenges life throws at you than in I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew.

Reading books to my boys gave me a chance not only to revisit some of my favorites but to discover wonderful new work as well. Matthew loved Hatchet and other Gary Paulsen adventure stories, along with Matt Christopher’s many sports series. Paul liked the humorous stuff, like Audrey and Don Woods’ King Bidgood’s in the Bathtub, and the gentle but hilarious Henry Huggins/Ribsy books by Beverly Cleary. David’s first favorite was Sendak’s classic Where the Wild Things Are; he went on to read lots of fantasy stories, eventually devouring the Redwall series by Brian Jacques and Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings.

So did their reading play a role in developing their identities and personalities? Matthew still loves sports and is never happier than when he's hiking in the mountains. Paul is an animal lover with a unique sense of humor. And David's favorite genre is still fantasy; in fact, he writes in that genre, too. So judging from their grown-up personalities, I have absolutely no doubt that reading shaped their futures, just as it did for me and as it will for their children. And that’s the true magic of children’s books.