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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ban all things Jacqueline Wilson in my house

239 replies

Normalisavariantofcrazy · 05/12/2013 18:09

Off the back of the shit that is Tracey Beaker?

I've yet to hear positive things said about her books by any parent.

I'm happy to be convinced otherwise (although the kids are non plussed about her books)

OP posts:
Emjmc · 05/02/2020 02:10

@TinklyLittleLaugh Totally agree. The books themselves aren’t a problem. The age bracket isn’t appropriate for her, which is probably similar to the OP’s dilemma. Talking to the school in the morning.
@RhiWrites No idea, sorry Confused

ShouldistayShouldigo · 05/02/2020 02:12

YABU (in a sense)

You can do anything you like in your own home, but I was abused as a child and reading a few of her books gave me hope that I wasn’t so alone

I thought I was the only one bad things were happening to until then. Loved Illustrated Mum and Suitcase Kid

A lot of other kids my age who had nice lives, would make my life hell for not loving my parents and idolising them at school because they had zero concept that people had a hard time at home

I don’t think introducing different circumstances (to appropriately aged kids) is a bad idea

LinoVentura · 05/02/2020 02:14

I'm sure JW has a story about a paedo teacher who turned out to be a thoroughly nice chap. Even though he was a paedo teacher. How she got away with that shit I don't know.

I don't know (or care) about her other books.

Redrosesandsunsets · 05/02/2020 02:16

She encouraged our non reader to get into books at the age of 10. So I am thankful for her stories.

Beeziekn33ze · 05/02/2020 02:17

Children who have less than perfect lives and families are relieved to read JW. They feel that they have found an author whose books deal with topics they are experiencing themselves. There are many Suitcase Kids and Cookies out there.

MAFIL · 05/02/2020 02:34

I returned a JW book that my DD was given as a prize for something or other in primary school. I can't remember which one it was but I started reading it before I let her have it and the content was definitely not appropriate for a child of her age so I took it back to school. The teacher hadn't read it and was very apologetic when I showed her the sexual content. Like a previous poster said, I didn't want to be discussing rape etc with an 8 year old.
Considering JW is supposed to be such a great children's author, there seems to be a significant disconnect between the age that the content is suitable for and the age that the writing style is suitable for. I know numerous people who have said the same thing - you have a quick glance at the first couple of pages and it looks like it is the reading level for a typical 8 or 9 year old but carry on and it becomes apparent that the content is aimed at teenagers. But by the time they are teens the writing is nowhere near challenging enough. My DD is fairly bright but certainly not exceptional and she rejected JW books as "written for babies" by the time she was at the supposed target age.
I think that the design of the books and the illustrations give the wrong impression too. I bet many an unsuspecting grandparent who isn't familiar with the author has picked one up in a bookshop thinking they were buying a young children's book and then discovered the story to be rather grittier than they were expecting!

TinklyLittleLaugh · 05/02/2020 02:50

My daughters are both bright, both great readers (youngest got an A in A level English) and they didn’t find Jacqueline a Wilson too babyish in style. They read quite a range of stuff though.

I’m frankly shocked at all these lazy people who give children books without even quickly checking if they are suitable. Anyone who knows anything about kids’ books knows that JW writes for a wide range of ages and addresses more adult themes in some of them. Certainly I’d expect a teacher to know that.

AnotherMonthAnotherName · 05/02/2020 03:07

I'm an adult but picked up Tracey Beaker in Asda and thumbed through it. It's either been rewritten or my memory is shite, because what I remembered reading was completely different!

NotNowPlzz · 05/02/2020 03:35

Tracy Beaker is a child in care who has behavioural issues because of abandonment. This should open up discussion.

All of JWs books show children in bad situations they're not alone, and show kids from more sheltered backgrounds the realities of more difficult lives, and help them develop empathy.

There is always nearly always hope at the end of the books, and they always include 'safe' adults as well as unstable ones.

That said, some are better than others. Personally I'd recommend Suitcase Kid, Dustbin Baby (older readers), Secrets, Diamond Girls, Illustrated Mum (though I think much more unsettling than the others, so older readers again) and Cookie. Avoid Love Lessons like the plague, that one is awful. There are plenty of books she has that are much tamer for younger readers.

Calledyoulastnightfromglasgow · 05/02/2020 04:19

I quietly charity shop them and the crappy fairy books. David Walliams books too.

I don’t feel they are well written or promote any of the things I hope a book will do at that age.

enchantedspleen · 05/02/2020 04:50

Jacqueline Wilson will always have a special place in my heart and on our bookshelf! I will take great pleasure in introducing our little girl to them when she's old enough. JW helped me foster a love for reading along with authors like Roald Dahl (I especially relished stories about rebellion) And I still pick up her books and have a cheeky read!

JayDot500 · 05/02/2020 05:17

YABU, many of her books at least try to engage the reader with topics they can either relate to directly, or learn about distantly. The Bed and Breakfast Kid is my favourite, because I, erm, lived in a bed and breakfast when I was 7-8. When I eventually read the book a few years later, it actually put a lot of things into perspective for me; the reason why my mum bought a camp stove and cooked in our rooms, the reason why we had to share facilities, the reason why my mum cried randomly about living there, the reason why we used to have to camp out in the council's offices, etc. I also appreciated the humour aspect of her stories. Reading JW books well into my teens didn't stop me from jumping out of my skin at the words 'You are the dead' in Nineteen Eighty Four. Graphic Novels are my favorites now, (Guy Delisle's books are my favourites) but I do recall Nick Sharatt being the first illustrator I took a fancy to.

If my mum had taken my JW books away from me, I'd have despised her tbh.

JayDot500 · 05/02/2020 05:35

Oh wow, old old thread lol

Doryhunky · 05/02/2020 05:50

I miss the jw obsession now dd has moved to twilight!

KittyWindbag · 05/02/2020 06:15

Yabu totally unreasonable. I grew up on Jacqueline Wilson, I adore her. She writes about some quite hard, often sad and serious issues that affect many children but makes it relatable and digestible for young children who both have and don’t have experience of such things.

Her heart is firmly in the right place, I learned so much about family dynamics and complicated relationships from her books. One of the greatest influences on my reading life, honestly. When my kids get old enough I’ll happily let them read her books.

GlendaSugarbeanIsJudgingYou · 05/02/2020 06:29

I was 23 when this thread was started.

EnidBlyton · 05/02/2020 06:35

JW started DD's love of reading.
I love JW as well.
YABU

EnidBlyton · 05/02/2020 06:37

oh yes DD was probably reading Twilight when this thread was started, having progressed from JW ! Now at uni studying literature

monstersltd · 05/02/2020 07:14

They are absolutely dreadful books so no, YANBU. Those and David Walliams books would never have seen the light of day in our house, thankfully none of mine liked either of them.

Standrewsschool · 05/02/2020 07:16

Haven’t read thread so apologies if this has been mentioned, but the teen magazine Jackie, which I used to buy regularly as a teenager, was named after Jaqueline Wilson.

ukgift2016 · 05/02/2020 07:18

im a 30 year old woman and I read JW since I was a child. I will definitely be introducing her to my DD soon, maybe for her 8th birthday.

JeansNTees · 05/02/2020 08:29

I'm glad the debate didn't actually rumble on for 7 years. I'm very grateful for JW for writing about the really tough stuff and helping kids make sense of difficult topics. Especially now that a friend has been taken into care, so nice that DD kind of understands the system and how complicated it all is.

Vulpine · 05/02/2020 08:29

Ive very rarely checked any books my kids read but they are all prolific readers so i it would be rather time consuming and i kinda dont care either cos glad they like reading so much. Jw was very big in this house. I think she's great

DefConOne · 05/02/2020 09:48

I think she’s great too. DD1 has behaviour issues due to her ASD and has a miserable time at primary. JW books helped her realise other people were going through challenging times as well. They also have her an escape from the world around her. She was a bit slow learning the read but JW helped her really get in to it and now she is excelling with her reading and comprehension abilities. Top of her year at secondary.

DD2 lives JW, particularly the historical ones like Hetty Feather. She absolutely loves history. Wave Me Goodbye has sparked an interest in WW2.

Streamside · 05/02/2020 12:22

My daughter loved her books and they were widely read by her friends.They seemed to be enjoyed by children of all abilities.
I wouldn't ban any books unless there were wildly unacceptable.Throughout the years my daughter read the books her little year group experienced parents dying by suicide, children going into foster care, new step parents,death of parents etc.Life's tough for many children and it's important for them to learn this.

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