LISNews: Librarian News

There have been two types of people who've told me that I shouldn't be reading something.

Back in elementary school the school librarian caught me reading a Hercule Poirot mystery... she threatened to take the book away from me because it certainly wasn't within my "reading level", whatever the hell that is.

Later, in high school, a teacher said I shouldn't be reading something because it was "subversive." Yes, I guess Hunter Thompson is subversive since he was clearly against things like teachers telling kids what they could and couldn't read.

My parents let me read whatever the hell I wanted to, which is probably why I'm such an avid reader today. When nothing is forbidden to you and you're not told that you're not supposed to like it, then you can read anything.

I know this will shock some teachers and perhaps a few librarians, but if the child is reading... then we win. Simple as that. I don't care if they're reading Garfield or they're looking through the Odyssey. Even if they only understand a quarter of it... we win. It's called a win/win situation. The only way to louse it up is to try and involve yourself too much. So what if they don't understand it? Perhaps that means they'll read it again until they do. Worked for me.

Some books contain the machinery required to create and sustain universes. Tycho (Jerry Holkins) @ Penny Arcade