What Then Shall We Read?

Anonymous Patron writes “What Then Shall We Read? is a reprint of an article from The American Family Association Journal.
A pool of enthusiastic Christian parents and experts suggested titles when they asked them for their top reading recommendations (excluding the Bible) for young readers. Some listed books, some listed authors and some listed both. Fiction, biography, history and more were included in both contemporary and classic titles.”

February 18, 2005 by Blake Uncategorized 14

kmhess says:

February 18, 2005 at 8:38 am

Christian Girls: No Narnia for you!
Is ‘public school mom’ a putdown in the evangelical Christian community? Why did she have to be singled out that way?

In any case, I thought she had the best selection of books, but I thought it was odd she didn’t want her daughter reading The Chronicles of Narnia, one of the best series of books for children, ever.

Reply
Korpios says:

February 18, 2005 at 9:01 am

Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output

I’m somewhat concerned at seeing any narrowly focused reading list for children, regardless of their parents’ ideological persuasion; they IMHO need the broadest possible range of exposure to ideas in order to become intelligent, thoughtful adults.

Reply
ChrisTheCat says:

February 18, 2005 at 9:32 am

Re:Christian Girls: No Narnia for you!
It’s not a put-down. It was a lead-in to the discussion of all the “bad” books that were being pushed on her kids by the secular school system. She “was frustrated with the content of many of the popular books targeting her children.” They were presumably exposed to those books through the public schools. This, of course, is one of the primary reasons the home schooling movement has such a large contingent of evangelical Xtians – they don’t want their children exposed to contrary points of view.

I also didn’t see anything that said she didn’t want her daughter reading The Chronicles of Narnia (which I don’t like much, by the way). There was a distinct gender bias in the comparison of the list of books for her son and daughter, but no indication at all that either of them would be precluded from reading the other’s books.

Reply
kylere says:

February 18, 2005 at 7:47 pm

On a plus side
Usually the AFA is against intelligence, education, free thought, tolerance, imagination, creativity, common courtesy, freedom of expression, freedom of thought, and reading.

It is nice to see them partially back reading, while still engaging in all the negative activity.

This group represents everything that is wrong with religion. I am not shocked by anything they do especially now that they have declared Squarebob Spongepants gay. I can’t believe they have not railed against Bert and Ernie yet.

Reply
GregS* says:

February 18, 2005 at 7:54 pm

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
Throwing someone into the deep end of the pool doesn’t make them a good swimmer.

Reply
kylere says:

February 18, 2005 at 8:00 pm

Re:Christian Girls: No Narnia for you!
As a SciFi/Fantasy fan, I was not impressed by Narnia even as a child, of course thanks to a great library I was reading Asimov, Bradbury, Wells, Verne and Heinlein while most kids were reading that tripe.

It is a a safe bet that when it involves the AFA you cannot assume that there are no limitations of crossreading, they are very specific as to what you are allowed to do/not do, think/not think.

Reply
kylere says:

February 18, 2005 at 9:15 pm

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
Never letting them leave the shallow end means they will never reach their potential.

Of course censors would prefer people do not reach their potential, since it would include getting rid of censorship.

Reply
GregS* says:

February 18, 2005 at 9:39 pm

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
A parent is a ‘censor’ a teacher, a police officer, a law maker are all ‘censors’. Anyone who is in a position to put limits on someone else’s activities are in some way a ‘censor’. And they are not all Darth Vader as much you and others would like to label them and myself as such.

Although I am wearing a snazzy black shirt and black tie today… but the tie has got the Hulk on it…

Reply
kylere says:

February 18, 2005 at 9:49 pm

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
If the jackboot fits there Darth 🙂

Reply
Anonymous Patron says:

February 18, 2005 at 11:35 pm

Re:On a idiot side
As opposed to your open-mindedness and tolerance?

Reply
kylere says:

February 18, 2005 at 11:55 pm

Re:On a idiot side
Ahh an anonymous coward with the temerity to call me an idiot because I object to censorship. I am honored and give you my thanks!

Reply
Anonymous Patron says:

February 19, 2005 at 12:18 am

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
they IMHO need the broadest possible range of exposure to ideas in order to become intelligent, thoughtful adults.

Too bad this doesn’t apply to colleges or universities throughout this country. It would be nice if the liberal arts and soft sciences in American colleges and universities were exposed to conservative ideas. It would also be nice if there were more than token amounts of conservatives teaching in those disciplines. Don’t you think it would be a good thing if college students (who are adults) were exposed to a conservative sociology or english professor?

It would be refreshing if the same amount of outrage that leftists had in the defense of the fraudulent Ward Churchil would be spent in defense of Larry Summers.

I won’t hold my breath waiting for any of those things to happen.

Reply
Anonymous Patron says:

February 19, 2005 at 12:25 am

Re:On a idiot side
Hits a nerve, doesn’t it?

Reply
kylere says:

February 19, 2005 at 1:02 am

Re:Narrow Input Leads to Narrow Output
I fully agree that students need to be offered ALL sides of issues, otherwise they are programming victims instead of students.

The only thing I am intolerant of is people who think their side is the only RIGHT side. Which means I dislike the far right nuts, and the far left nuts.

Reply