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Sue wrote:
My friend didn't want her 2nd grader reading Sounder because the
dog was killed. Her daughter's temperment was such that she would
be really upset over that. But, she *could* read it.

It's interesting. As a child I had poor tolerance for sad books, (and
sheepishly admit I still do). So I completely understand this kind of
'protection' and I did keep upsetting books from my kids when they were
little. But by about 8 or 10 or so, I stopped.

Oh, goodness, I'm still this way. I will shamelessly admit to never having
read such classics as _Sounder_, _Old Yeller_, _The Yearling_, _Where the
Red Fern Grows_, or _Ring of Bright Water_ for precisely this reason. I have
zero emotional tolerance for sad stories about animals, to such an extent
that I actually never even got through _Lassie Come Home_ because, even
though it has a happy ending, I found the middle entirely too sad to read!

Funnily enough, I was at a meeting in a fifth grade classroom at my kids'
school last month and noticed that they were obviously reading _Old Yeller_.
I commented that I thought it was tantamount to child abuse to *make* 10yo's
read that story and I stand by that assessment. Any kid who *doesn't* want
to read an emotionally heart-wrenching story like that shouldn't have to!

Whether it would bother my kids or not, I can't say, of course. I am,
however, dealing with the dilemma of finding appropriately challenging
reading material for my 7yo, who has advanced by leaps and bounds this year
and is probably reading at close to a 5th grade level, but who isn't
necessarily mature enough to want to read stories written for kids 10 or 11
years old. Any suggestions would be welcome. (He has read or is
reading--either by himself or with his dad--all of the Captain Underpants
books, most of the Little House series, a fair portion of the Oz books, _A
Wrinkle in Time_, and _Because of Winn-Dixie_. He's liked all of those. He's
started the first Harry Potter book, but it didn't seem to grab his
interest, so we set it aside for the time being.)
--
Be well, Barbara
Mom to Mr. Congeniality (7), the Diva (5) and the Race Car Fanatic (3)

I have PMS and ESP...I'm the bitch who knows everything! (T-shirt slogan)