Thursday, June 05, 2008
Once Again, Texas (Alvin, Texas) Leads the Way
The Alvin Sun Advertiser Online: "This is to inform parents of the kind of material being required of Alvin students to read. The book “Ender's Game” is required reading for eighth grade pre-AP students in the Alvin ISD. This book has been a requirement for several years now, apparently with little or no complaints. It is my opinion this is because parents do not know what is in this book."
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5 comments:
Apparenty, this woman hasn't 'read' Ender's Game. As far as I'm concerned, it is one of the most touching, human, books I've ever read and more than appropriate for 8th grade readers. There is even a more juvenile friendly version of the book to be found on the young adult shelves of your local book store.
Sheeesh! Can Farenheit 451 be far away?
Well, burning F 451 is an old sport for this kind of campaign. I've now twice in ten minutes been moved to Mixed Emotions, after another blogger implied David Sedaris's writing is hilarious...now I find myself tempted to jump into the breech to defend the use of a novel I haven't read, either, by a writer whose work I have read has been simpleminded and pat when not filled with a dark resentment of difference. But I was cheered that the letter in question, when I looked at it on the link, with all its nattering on about theoretical teen innocence (remarkable how little some people remember their teen years, or they simple had almost unbelievably different experience than I did), was wrapped around an ad for the film JUNO.
I've not read Ender's Game but I've discovered that if we start telling our kids NOT to read a particular book, that is the very book they will sneak a copy of to read.
Whatever happened to reading the book to discuss coherently with your child? I know, I know, we're supposed to read books to decide what to hide from our children.
These are the same people who think that the likes of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn are racist tomes because of the language.
While we're at it let's remove Lord of the Flies from our kids' reading lists because of the violence--forget that the kiddos can learn something (maybe how to think) by reading thoughtful material.
Bad idea, Benjie. Children learning how to think.
I remember a news story a few years ago about a woman, in Tennessee I think, who wanted The Wizard of Oz removed from the school library. Her reason: it taught children to think for themselves and not rely on God to get them through. Have you ever heard anything so silly?
I read the first half of Ender's Game. Couldn't drag myself through the rest. I suppose I object to it on the grounds of boredom.
It might make a good movie though. If they can cut out Ender and put in somebody interesting...
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