The Reading Habit

http://epaper.navhindtimes.in/NewsDetail.aspx?storyid=9279&date=2016-07-03&pageid=1

                                                             The Reading Habit

In the previous post, we explored literature for children between age groups four and eight years. Publishing houses in India, Tara, Katha, Tulika, Rupa and Navneet, to name a few, have done wonders by publishing reading material for very young children. Today we delve into reading material for preteens where a lacuna exists in terms of Indian children’s fiction for age group 8 years and above.

As parents we are primarily concerned with improving academic proficiency of our children. Little or no attention is paid to let children imbibe the pleasures of reading for reading sake. If we want children to inculcate habits of self-discovery through reading, we must stop being didactic, preachy and moralistic in our outlook. The idea of reading books with the sole aim of improving communication skills needs to be thrown out lock, stock and barrel.  A few Indian authors are contributing in this regard; the preteen book market is a significant market and publishers and distributors need to tap it better.

Ranjit Lal’s books like ‘Faces in the Water’, ‘Battle for No. 19’ have a following as they deal with contemporary issues such as female foeticide, terrorism and riots, deftly using children characters to tell stories.  Manjula Padmnabhan’s ‘Unprincess’ is about a maverick girl who takes up her own battles and knows her mind. This shift in portrayal of female characters is liked and appreciated by young readers. Subhadra Sen Gupta has made historical fiction writing her forte and she churns out a fine blend of fact and fiction to hook her readers. This is a good example for how history can be relayed through colorful and imaginative stories instead of a series of dates in dry prosaic text.  

Luckily, in today’s global world, our children also have access to foreign literature. Authors abroad understand the need for fast and pacy action in their books for young readers. Their books are oriented to thrill and charge their young readers like a video game. Geeky personalities, technology wars, adventurous characters and myths keep children glued to books like Wimpy Kid, Dork Diaries, Big Nate, Percy Jackson, and Harry Potter series. While Enid Blyton, Geronimo Slilton and Roald Dahl still remain favorites, new age fiction has become quite varied for kids today.

Kirsty Murray, an Australian author of children’s fiction, is another good example. Her writing speaks to children who have outgrown candy floss and are not yet clouded by the consciousness of an adolescent - an ebullient set, who are no longer naïve and have a mind of their own. They think actively and search for answers to questions that tweak their curiosity. She says it is a moment in space between childhood and adolescence. Murray’s book ‘The Year It All Ended’ deals with female protagonists grappling with post World War I trauma and death. In ‘The Secret Life of Maeve Kwong’, the bold heroine goes looking for her Irish father across the globe, even when he does not know about her existence. 

Beverly Cleary, a Newbery awardee, was a children’s librarian before she became a full-time author. She guided children to select books of literary merit comprising characters that they could identify with. After years of helping young readers and hosting live storytelling sessions, she started writing her own stories. Thus Henry Huggins, his dog Ribsy and the Quimby sisters Breezus and Ramona were born as literary characters. Beverly Cleary series are a craze amongst young readers. The responsible Ramona clearly becomes a role model for young girls in the twin books - ‘Ramona and her father’ and ‘Ramona and her mother’, where she helps her parents overcome great hardship.

Children’s classics can become a delightful read for preteens with guidance and follow-up discussions. They work best in book-club meets and story-hours with an interested adult.  Beware of abridged, excerpted versions that many small-time publishers try to pawn off as good classical reads. The mantra is slow, careful reading chapter by chapter, interspersed with book-readings from contemporary bestsellers. Background contexts, old world places and map work flesh out characters and bring stories into focus. Robert Louis Stevenson, Johanna Spryi, Frank Baum, Daniel Defoe, Rudyard Kipling, Frances Hogdson Burnett and Eleanor Estes are authors that young teens can explore and have fun with. Such an engagement would grow on a young reader, and make them appreciate good literature.

Previously, the culture in India did not encourage literature on any of the erstwhile taboo topics - love, sex, money or death - for young readers. Many children stopped reading beyond 10 years of age, because they did not find literature that stimulated their minds. But today, the story is very different and children are spoilt for choice. There is a book for each one out there!

(to be continued…)