A bad library book

After a recent trip to the local library with the kids, we decided to return a book the kids picked out. It amazes me how some of these books even get published, and what the authors write, supposedly for kids. We figured this Caillou book would be safe as the kids sometimes watch the show based on this character and it seems ok. This book however, is a great example of a terrible example that is never dealt with in any way…. See for yourself.

There you have it. A kid’s book with the line: “…thinks the food tastes awful. And that his mommy and daddy are awful too.” What a fine children’s book. The story continues with Caillou’s grandpa showing up and taking him out for a good time without ever confronting or resolving the problem. Needless to say, this book made a quick trip back to the library.

We had another book a few years ago that we got rid of. It was a Winnie the Pooh book with a story that featured an angry Rabbit who is mad at Tigger for always bouncing on him. He hatches a plan and talks Winnie the Pooh and Piglet into helping him teach Tigger a lesson. His scheme is for all of them to go for a walk in the woods, and get Tigger lost. They will then find him and he will be grateful and no longer pounce on Rabbit. It of course backfires, with Rabbit getting lost and Tigger finding him, but again, you have a terrible example of how to deal with a problem that is never confronted or resolved. There is no hint that Rabbit knows that what he did was mean-spirited at least, and likely quite dangerous. Imagine reading a story about kids doing that sort of thing in the news!

What are authors/publishers thinking when they pump this kind of garbage out? My kids don’t need this kind of example. Sure, you can use it as a teaching moment, but I would rather that be a part of the story.

It just goes to show you that you always have to be on guard for these influences in your children’s lives. Even with Winnie the Pooh.