From: Lisa Von Drasek <lisav_at_bankstreet.edu>
Date: Fri, 05 Nov 2010 18:21:21 -0400

books

Maia, I did think this is a public forum so if I misread Marc's statement, I do apologize. It was on the heels of a private e-mail- so I did not name the person who said that publishers were charging too much. I see your point about paperbacks being slim and lost on the shelves... that is why I only buy hardcovers or rebinds for my children's collection. I ranted on a more public forum because I do think this is a issue that has risen not just in our small literary community but with the public at large and for EarlyWord...librarians who hold the pursestrings in large institutions.=2 0

I understand what you are saying about effort, that is a whole other conversation... I do think parents who are stressed and want only the best for their children are being tortured by being asked to read 20 minutes a day to the children. I assure the parents that the twenty minutes don't have to be "all in a row"

And yes, no parent should have to read aloud books that don't resonate for them. I refuse to read books that do not interest me or that I don't find any joy in. There is plenty out to appeal to all kinds of people.

Lisa Lisa Von Drasek Children's Librarian Bank Street College of Education School for Children Pre-K- 8 610 West 112th St NY NY 10025

lisav_at_bnkst.edu

212 875 4452

Lisa,

Marc can of course speak for himself... but I read what he wrote differently than you did, and since you took the discussion to a more public forum, I posted my read there. He can now correct us both! :) =2 0 'Tis copied below...

All the best, Maia

Lisa, I definitely agree with your argument about the importance of books! :) But I'm not sure Marc was presenting the ideology that you are debating.

I believe Marc was saying that paperback picture books are so slim they=2 0 literally disappear on the shelves, which means that in order for folks=2 0 to physically see new picture books, they need to be released in hardback (at least, in current display arrangements)? Not that picture=2 0 books are too slim to have substance.

I also think that Marc was talking about what a given parent *may* be thinking when they go into a bookstore, in these tight economic times -=2 0 not what they *should* be thinking, or what books are worth in a broader 20

sense. For that, I can tell you that he is right in at least some cases, from conversations I have had with other adults.

About the package deals, it seemed he was suggesting that training a non-book-oriented parent into the book experience might be done by creative interplay between books? If I did read that aright... well, there are folks like you and me (and Marc, for that matter) for whom books are staples. You don't have to convince us that we should, or show us how to, incorporate books into our lives. But the Little Golden books and similar series were accessible to the non-book-crazy, and that is a gap group we should consider, and to which I think his package idea was proposed?

And finally, about effort. For many of us, reading with our children is a joy. But when parents are overworked and stressed, if reading is not=2 0 already part of their routine, or if they are asked to read and reread books that do not resonate with them, or if their child is squirrely and won't listen... yeah, I can see how that would be an effort. (If I had=2 0 to read most of the stuff I see featured in mainstream bookstores, trust me, it would take a major effort to stay sane.)

So, again, I agree with your base premise. It's just my sense that from what he has said, Marc does too. :)

Cheers! Maia

Maia Cheli-Colando Arcata, Humboldt Bay, California -- blogging at http://www.littlefolktales.org/wordpress -- -- or drop in on Facebook! --
Received on Fri 05 Nov 2010 06:21:21 PM CDT