P-Day

I enjoyed your rundown of your kids' actual and potential relationship with Harry Potter. I'll be curious how kids who haven't read the books yet will interact with them in the future? Is there a classic (and still very popular) piece of children's literature that kids encounter first as a movie? Or is there something about discovering that private world on the page which resists that public projection on screen? I can't remember if I read Willy Wonka (aka Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) before I saw the movie, but it was one of my favorites as a kid. On a serious note, I wonder if these fantasies of the ordinary, anonymous kid being thrust into a major role in a magical world (Oz, Wonka, Middle Earth, Hogwarts, Star Wars, etc.) are also the archetype of popular children's literature in non-Western cultures which are less focused on the individual. Any places you can think for us to look for evidence?

BTW, I remember that you were telling Emily an original, extended goodnight story at bedtime when she was younger. When did you start that? There's only so much more of "Pajama Time" I think I can take. :)

Re: the value of reading for its own sake, that is a very interesting question. We'll have to save the "deep dish" topic of the quality of art for another day (though I'm inclined to agree with you that today's popular fancy may be tomorrow's art). On the one hand, I agree with the received wisdom that reading is a good thing, encouraging imagination, reflection and a depth of experience that watching TV (for example) doesn't foster, and that those "skills" are both useful and just plain enriching for an adult life. But, I do think we should be on guard against the prejudice against the new. Perhaps in the future, the skills fostered by the Nintendo Wii (or Facebook) will be viewed as most essential for participants in a thriving democracy. :) Have you read any Montaigne? I did back at Brandeis, and have been thinking more about him recently. Perhaps that could be a future project for us, to pick an essay or two and see what that sparks.

Thanks for your G-rated movie reflections. (And thanks for giving away the ending to The Lion King! To return the favor, Rosebud was a sled. :) ) Any additional Bonds/roids thoughts? Two HR's away. I read one BB-blogger who reflected on the mixed emotions surrounding Maris' and Aaron's feats and thought that 30 years from now, people would look back on this chase fondly as well. I think not. Moving past nostalgia is one thing. But "condoning cheating" in achieving "the most famous record in sports" is something else.