I have been looking for the perfect book to bridge J's journey from childhood to adolescence. The books I read when I was about her age were the ones I first tried to get her interested in. It turns out they don't quite resonate with her. The generation gap has become a gigantic gulf since we started living our lives in internet years - our age adjusted world views are so far apart that I could be a character from her history text book.
Then this summer, I got her A Tree Grows in Brooklyn from the library. She approached it tentatively (as she usually does when I suggest that she read something) but after about twenty pages, she was completely hooked. She can now be found at all places at all times reading the book. If J is not to be seen or heard for some time, she is reading the book. This is exactly what I had looked for in the book that will help her make the physical and emotional transition she is making. She goes into middle school this fall - yet another of many changes she will experience in the next few years.
2 comments:
To Kill a Mockingbird? Anne Frank-the diary of a young girl?
I have a daughter in middle school now, and I'm debating if I should give her these yet. She has already read Are you there, God? It's Margaret. The Good Earth and Lord of the Flies were books I enjoyed as well in my early adolescence, as was Rebecca.
sandhya - both of those books are on my list and she loved all the Judy Blume books she's read :)
Thanks for reminding me of Rebecca - need to add that to the list
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