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Man Reading
John Singer Sargent
MasterM will be setting off for a period in the bush soon. His main concern is not heat, flies or chance meetings with rhinos but having nothing to read. MrsM suggests a kindle and MasterM politely declines on the basis that a kindle does not fit his image. MrsM retreats gracefully and recommends the excellent local hospice book shop.
After a concentrated half hour MasterM left the shop with the following books:
As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning
Laurie Lee
Born Free
Joy Adamson
Out of Africa
Karen Blixen
Jock of the Bushveld
Percy Fitzpatrick
Cry, Beloved Country
Alan Paton
Hangover Square
Patrick Hamilton
Dubliners
James Joyce
Burmese Days
George Orwell
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Beware of the Dog
Brian Moore
The Night of the Generals
Hans Kelmut Kirst
Ice Cold in Alex
Christopher Landon
Ill Met by Moonlight
Stanley Moss
The Great Escape
Paul Brickhill
633 Squadron
Frederick E. Smith
The Dirty Dozen
E.J. Nathanson
The Blue Max
Jack D. Hunter
The Dambusters Raid
John Sweetman
MASH
Richard Hooker
The Colditz Story
P.R. Reid
I can remember talking to a teacher when MasterM was 10 and expressing concern that he did not enjoy reading. The teacher, who was old and wise, reassured me that, although MasterM was not reading the sort of books I expected him to read, he did in fact read a great deal. When I thought about it later I realised that he read newspapers, particularly the sports sections, and non fiction books including war stories but he did not read Heidi, Little Women or Jane Eyre which I subconsciously expected him to enjoy because I had when I was his age. After that I let him get on with making his own choices and I have ended up with a son who reads voraciously. Sometimes, parenting by neglect can work wonders.
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Choice or the freedom to choose and exercise free will. However expressed, the best learning takes place through choice rather than the hand that is forced. Just think, those books will probably broaden the horizons of far more people now as well, as they accompany him on his journey back to the hinterland.
ReplyDeleteOh Alice! You've just pulled a very stiff nerve of mine. Brizio not only doesn't read books ... he also gives me the worst nightmare with school ... SAD FACE ...
ReplyDeleteA kindle may not fit his image but it will save him countless chiropractors bills after he's carried that lot around the bush
ReplyDeleteI take it he's not taking any clothes back in his baggage?
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing you'll ship him some more in a month or two.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful load of books! Well worth carrying . . . in the bags and in memory for years to come.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful selection. I remember having similar worries about sons who wouldn't read but they are also all voracious readers now. They just need time to discover what they like.
ReplyDeleteWhat a terrific selection. And...i love that he (and i assume many others his age) eschew the Kindle et al !! Sorry, but i (who am definitely an OF) consider them totally uncool.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's a serious list. I remember worrying about not having anything to read when I went on a five-month cycling trip from SW England to North Africa. I had to carry the books with me though, so my list was lot shorter! How satisfying to have a child who loves to read. I do hope mine end up like this too.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great selection! The youth in my house won't read kindles either, and I kind of don't blame them.
ReplyDeleteTo be shipped out at intervals? Or perhaps there's porterage on his trip, although I can't see that fitting his image either.
ReplyDelete