I’m glad your boys are an exception to the rule. And it sounds as though the author as done a good job at writing her protagonist so that a wider audience can relate to her.

I also agree parents and teachers should do everything they can to influence kids to read more widely. Though, I worry that if they force them to read stories they don’t enjoy the kids are going to rebel against reading for pleasure in general.

While I can’t find the actual statistic at the moment, I remember reading recently that a very small percentage of college graduates continue to read after college.

Which gets us back around to the authors and the publishing houses having the responsibility to produce more great stories that will entice kids, and adults, to read beyond what they are comfortable with.

As for the literati, they annoy the crap out of me. If it weren’t for comic books and Science Fiction and Fantasy I would never have learned to read for pleasure.

I do think it’s the job of parents and schools to make sure young readers get plenty of opportunity to stretch their mind muscles and read from different points of view. Not just for the sake of making sure there is a market for all sorts of fiction, but because I think being able to recognize and acknowledge that there is more than one way to look at a situation, that can be influenced by having different experiences such as sex, religion or race, is a huge part of being a mature adult.

On the other hand, I get very impatient with people who are reading snobs. If a book entertains and provides a few hours escape and relaxation, that’s wonderful. It doesn’t have to do anything else.