Explorando la Literatura

The Classics

The ability to resonate generation after generation. Classic books present
something that moves us, something that we want to hold on to and pass on to our children.  These somethings could be the story, the images, the words, or often the sound of the words. When we revisit a classic, memories of the book rush back, memories like the question you sat and waited for (“Well if you were a bumble bee and a bull sat on you, what would you do?”) or the deliciously scary thought of the wild, wild woods or Bonecruncher giants.

Children see themselves, their newly conceived thoughts, and their struggles through amazing characters: a little, well-loved bear returning to
a warm bed after visiting his grandfather in the wild woods; a huge bull with a gentle heart not afraid not to fight; or a young lonely girl, who makes an unlikely friend and saves the children of England.

Some classics are striking in their ordinariness: Ramona and the Quimby family are ordinary; the same with Frances and her family of badgers.  Others feature imaginative journeys: Harold creating his purple universe or Roald Dahl’s world of giants, witches, chocolate factories, and giant
peaches. Some classics are both, such as the story of a not-so-ordinary bull in an exotic land with picadors and matadors.

Classics sometimes recede into the the back of the shelf, overshadowed by newer works of the author or films that often reduce the books’ power and insight. Or in some cases, like with A.A. Milnes’ Winnie the Pooh, commercial success changes how we view the book, and it becomes more of a cartoon for “little kids” rather than a thought-provoking book for
young school-age children.  There are roomfuls of classics out there for every generation of children to discover. Let’s help them find them.

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