Messages in Childrens Books - Book Report/Review Example

MESSAGES IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS Name Professor Date There are many children’s book in the world today that give different messages to the children that read them. Books serve many purposes to children, parents and teachers. They keep children busy during the vacations and when at all times. They also teach important valuable lessons to children. The writers of children books take a lot of care to ensure that their books convey the right message and that these books do not contain vulgar and unrefined terms and phrases in their messages. The four books that this paper aims to study examine the overt and covert messages passed to the children when they read them. It also seeks to show how the lessons children learn from these books affect their development. Diary of a wimpy kid was written by Jeff Kinney. Jeff Kinney was brought up in Fort Washington, Maine. He went to the University of Maryland where he had a comic strip in the paper known as lgdoff. The many comics he wrote turned into the book which is now loved by children and some adults. The diary of a wimpy kid is written in a superficial sub urban setting. The book shows the thoughts, deeds and views of a young boy by the name Gregory. The book is written in the words of this young boy who takes care to point out that it is a journal and not a diary. Gregory has a family of five where he is the middle children. His oldest sibling is known as Rodrick who belongs to a heavy metal band. Rodrick is not nice to Gregory and is always pushing him around. Gregory also has a small brother called Manny who is the youngest in the family. Many is the baby in the family and Gregory thinks that their parents favor him. The parents Mr. and Mrs. Heffley are loving parents who can sometimes be embarrassing. Gregory is the wimpy kid the book speaks about. He has a friend called Rowley who is frequently involved in careless accidents. The book speaks about the funny obstacles that Greg Heffely faces. The book is written in a funny free way that any child can understand. (Kinney, 2008) The suitcase Kid written by Jacqueline Wilson is an interesting children’s book. The book is about a ten year old girl who is particular big for her age known as Andrea. Andrea is caught in the middle of her parent’s divorce. The book describe the feelings of a little child who is caught between her two warring parents who divorced each other recently. Both parents have moved on and started living with different people who have other families. Her father lives with his new partner known as Carrie and her children Zen and Cristal. Her mother now lives with a man known as Bill who she refuses to call uncle. She actually calls him un-uncle Bill in the Book. Bill has two children Graham and Katie who is the same age as Andy. Andy has to live for one week at her father’s house and at her mother’s place for another week. This is not an ideal condition for Andrea who wishes to go back to the Mulberry Cottage where she had lived with her mother and father before they got divorced. Andrea has a toy rabbit she have the name Radish who is very close to her and who goes with her wherever she has to go. Andrea’s step- sister Katie is quite mean to her as she gives her the name Andy pandy. Andrea feels like she does not belong to either of her new families. (Wilson, 1992) The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾ was written by Sue Townsend. This book is set in the early 1980s in a town in England. This book shows the challenges that are faced by an ordinary working-class family at the time. There was high unemployment and the education and medical services cuts that were common during that time. This is a story about a young boy approaching teenage that is written in the form of his diary. This young boy’s name is Adrian. Adrian is 13 ¾ years old when he starts writing this diary which ends when he turns fifteen. The year is very eventful for Adrian who falls in love to a girl in his geography class, has to deal with marital problems at home and also starts his pursuit to become an intellectual. Adrian has many problems such as being bullied, has an interest in sex that seems to be increasing and the marital problems in his parents’ marriage. His parents are not the best parents in the world. At some time Adrian points out the possibility that they may actually be alcoholics. His life becomes even harder when his parents get separated and when his mother runs away with their next next-door neighbor, Mr. Lucas. The book shows the interactions between some key people in the life of Adrian. Towards the end of the book, Adrian’s mother returns home and his parents start to mend their broken relationship. Adrian receives a response from John Tydeman which encourages him on his effort to become a writer and an intellectual. When Adria turns fifteen some sort of order is restored in his life. (Townsend, 1982) The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon is a book that is unique in many ways. It attracts the attention of both child and adult readers. The book has a narrator known as Christopher John Francis Boone who is a unique character. Christopher is a teenage boy who has a disability that makes him a genius in mathematics but makes him unable to understand any human emotions. The book is written as a school assignment written by Christopher for class. The book starts when Christopher discovers a dead dog on the lawn of a neighbor. This motivates him to seek the person who murdered the dog. The book shows a lot about the life of Christopher and that of his neighbors. It also shows the different aspects of a teenager living with a disability. (Haddon, 2003) All these great children books are aimed at passing various messages to the children who read them. These messages can be passed directly in the case of overt messages or indirectly as covert messages. These books provide information on family, relationships, divorce, the gender roles, poverty and wealth, social class and status, cruelty and violence, the natural environments and race among other social issues. The way these issues are presented by the authors influences the way children view the world and issues in the world. Diary of a wimpy Kid and The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole show the thoughts, feelings and wishes of two young men. These feelings are observed subjectively through the eyes of these young men. They show major themes in the lives young men and adolescents. One major theme is the quest to have an identity that is personal and separate from the family. This is seen when Adrian decides to search his own identity by writing to an intellectual he can relate to. He is also critical to the life led by his parents, their lifestyle and their view of the world. He illustrates the different life his parents and Pandora’s parents have. This is seen when he mentions that his father is unemployed and that some of their utility bills are unpaid. Adrian’s search for an identity sends a message to children than having and knowing the identity is important. When children read this book they become motivated to seek their own identities that is separate from that of their parents and their families. (Townsend, 1982) Children books show children that mothers know almost everything. Children can see this when the mothers in the books find out the little secrets the young men try to keep. They also point to the love that parents have for their children. Susan Heffley, who is the mother of Gregory and his two brothers is always encouraging her children and husband to read books and spend some family time together. She encourages her children to perform tasks by rewarding them with monetary compensation. She promises to give Greg some money for every day he makes an entry to his diary. She presents a good illustration of maternal love that does not change. She notices that her child is cold and offers her woman’s parka.” Except for your father’s jacket back. It is too cold to be wearing that to school. (Kinney, 2008)Here you can wear my quilted, belted, knee-length woman’s parka instead, honey” .This shows the lovely bond that exists between mother and child. It helps the development of children by showing them that parents do love their children even if they may embarrass them at times. The secret diary of Adrian Mole shows Adrian’s nose stuck to a model aeroplane. His nose gets stuck after he stiffs glue at a solo craft session. It is clear that the experience he had sniffing glue is not worth the embarrassment he endures when he has to explain what happened to a doctor. This shows young children the disadvantage of taking drugs. It points out to the bad and embarrassing things that happen when people are under the influence of drugs. This helps the development of young minds as they grow up with the knowledge of the bad effects of drugs hence encouraging them to keep of drugs. (Townsend, 1982) The books contains an indirect message to children against worrying very much. The initial diary entries made by Adrian show his growing worry over the state of his skin. He devotes a lot of time examining his face and also measuring the size of his erect and flaccid penis. This points the worry of most young teenagers and shows that worrying too much does not change things. The constant examination of his physical appearance may also motivate young men to take note of such things and start obsessing about them. This may hinder healthy development of children when they start to perceive themselves either as small or ugly because of spots or pimples that may appear on their faces. (Townsend, 1982) Children’s books pass messages concerning the future, growth and development. In the diary of a Wimpy Kid, Gregory Heffley believes that he will one day become rich and famous. Although he is a narcissist and lazy he still believes that he will be a billionaire. The school’s job questionnaire predicted that Greg will become a clerk a role that he denies. He says” Well, there must be something wrong with the way they set up these forms or something, because I don’t know any clerks who are billionaires…I know exactly where I’ll be in fifteen years: in my pool, at my mansion, counting my money. (Never mind that) there weren’t any check boxes for that option.” It is evident that Greg believes he will be rich and famous one day as he figures out that he will give people his diary to read other than spend time telling them about himself when he will be rich and successful. (Kinney, 2008) Family is a crucial theme in Jeff Kinney’s book” Diary of a Wimpy Kid”. Family deals with mutual love, compassion, kindness, loyalty within the group and the support that family members provide to each other. The family unit is found throughout this book. It is during the whole road trip from the beginning to the end. The interactions of Greg’s family greatly influences the events that take place in the novel. The novel” The suitcase Kid “and “the secret diary of Adrian Mole” all have family units that the key characters belong to. The way family is presented in each of these books shapes the way children view the family unit as a whole. When the family is shown as a source of pain and agony, children get the idea that family member cannot be trusted at all times. This affects the healthy development of children as they start seeing faults even when faults are not there. (Wilson, 1992) The challenges that are faced by children during the divorce and separation of their kids is clear in the suitcase kid and the diary of Adrian Mole. When Adrian’s mother runs off with Mr. Lucas Adrian is left to care for himself and he experiences many other hardships such as dealing with his bad-tempered father. The divorce between Andrea’s parents cause her to live out of her suitcase as she is frequently on the move. She does not feel like she belongs to any of her new families and she wishes things could go back to normal. Divorce has become a common thing in the world today with many children who read these booths being able to relate with the pain of the characters. When children read these books they start seeing divorce as a normal thing that can happen to their families. This may hinder their development if they spend their time worrying that their parents will get divorced whenever they argue. The sufferings and pain that characters in these books endure may cause children to think that it is not possible to be happy after a divorce. (Wilson, 1992) Sibling rivalry and competition is evident in the diary of a wimpy kid. Gregory feels that his parents favor his younger brother as they do not rebuke him when he does bad things. Gregory does not take into account the fact that his brother is still young and that he does not know many things. (Kinney, 2008) His older brother is a bully who does not mind hurting Greg. The events and descriptions of the relationship between these three bothers may encourage sibling rivalry and bullying among siblings. This may cause children to view their siblings as a source of competition and hence hinder healthy development. References Haddon, M., 2003. The Curious Incident of the Dod in the Night-Time. 1st ed. London: Jonathan Cape. Kinney, J., 2008. Diary of a Wimpy Kid. 1st ed. London: Penguid Books Ltd. Townsend, S., 1982. The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 3/4. 1st ed. England: Methuen. Wilson, J., 1992. The suitcase kid. 1st ed. s.l.:Yearlng. Read More