The Boy in the Dress is not appropriate class reading for 8 or olds.

[Brightlightsbigcity]

Haven't read this myself, so am willing to accept that this may just be my dcs perception of it, but the feedback from kids talking to me about reading this in class appear to be:

1. The mum and dad fight a lot. Mum leaves.
2. The boy wears a dress. (I have no issue with this. Neither do DC. ) )
3. The dad hides rude, naked picture magazines under the kids bed/s.

I do have an issue with 3. Is it really appropriate for 7, 8 and 9 year olds to learn about naked pic magazines, which are rude, therefore dad hides them? (In the kids room, of all places. ) I'm not clutching pearls, but I don't think this is an appropriate subject matter for this age group, do you?

(I'm almost hoping it's a story from a friend, which got tangled up in the plot somehow... )

There’s a difference between a book a child might pick up themselves and a book that’s chosen by the school to read. I would be furious if my eight year old was getting the message pornography was normal. How damaging.

DD read it in Year 4 I think in school. There is a huge difference in reading in school then to reading it unsupervised at home. They talked a lot about the various issues in the book and DD came home with a very serious view about the points you listed.

I personally don't like DW but I think he picks serious topics in a way children can relate to and understand. My main issue is the writing style and that all books follow a very similar set up, if you read 2 you know what to expect in the rest. We had the audiobooks and at one point (after hearing them at least once) DD moved to listen to them with headphones as I got to the point I wanted to throw them out of the window.

DD read Jacquline Wilson but found her "problem" books too serious and - maybe because her life is very different - hard to get into. She loved the history ones though.

I don't especially like DW. I find some of the themes sexist and cliché. My kids have read them though. I don't feel strongly enough to not allow them. Thinking about it I also don't like Horrid Henry or Harry Potter.

On a side note I think it's perfectly reasonable to ask before reading. It's not a book I would wish upon someone. If you asked for opinions on going to Lanzarote would everyone say "just go there you lazy arse"?

My 8 year old loves Boy in a Dress, infact she loves all the David Walliams books she's read. They've been absolutely brilliant for her. She was such a reluctant reader, found it very difficult to engage with books, but they really opened up reading to her.
She goes back to the Boy in the Dress every once in a while to reread and she also loved the TV adaption. I've read it, her older sisters have read it. I have no issue at all with the themes in it and we have talked about every one of your points in your OP in a way that she understands and can relate to.

Oh fgs this reads like porn is a major theme of the book. It’s a little side joke.

Maybe. It’s still a side joke inappropriate for eight year olds.

I have read all the DW books to my 7 y.o. There are bits he doesn't understand and I explain them if he asks. The hiding magazines under the bed bit went straight over his head. I could read very well by 7 and read all sorts of inappropriate books at age 8 and 9. If kids can read it's hard to stop them reading stuff you might not like. Much better they do it under supervision - whether it's yours or the school's.

I remember reading the wonderful Adrian Mole books to my son when he was your childrens age.Utter filth they were...adrian measuring his thing! adrians mum mending the washing machine with the next door neighbour and adrian not allowed in but hearing all the banging and heavy breathing and summerizing they must have ben working really hard! Adrians dad having an affair with doreen slater who left red lipstick on his pillow and Adrians secret copies of big n bouncy magazines! It all went over my sons head at the time but he found them really funny.It might not have been appropriate to his age but all of us adored those books and still do.My advice is read everything and anything,To get lost in a book is a magical thing to do!

I think it's important we discuss things like divorce with our children (age-appropriately). I respect the fact DW unashamedly writes about different family set-ups.

I separated from my ex-husband when my boys were just 3 and 6 and, although I still strongly do not believe it to best interests of children, courts ruled 50:50 shared care.

I am not ashamed that I left an abusive man so my children could have a happier life. I am proud that I am no longer married and happy to say I left!

Literature that recognises and celebrates these differences is all good with me.

My 7 year old has read all of his books. The content you describe isn't a problem. The fact that the books are terribly written is more pertinent. Lazy and tedious writing, relies on lists and poor humour, obsessed with people's weight and poorly observed. But they're rubbish, not inappropriate.

@teddybear45 Willy Wonka didn’t murder those children!!

OP - read it, then come back to us. Utterly ridiculous to condemn it without reading it first.

Jesus. Don’t be so lazy and read the god damn book before commenting on it maybe?

Bought it for my Kindle haven't read any of his books so I will be interested to see what I think.
I was a Young People's Librarian hence the interest

Ella1980 - and you are absolutely right to be proud! It is good for divorce to be normalised in children’s fiction although mostly writers make single parents as a result of the death of the other parent. No idea why. Easier plot device?

Sorry, what is the link between divorce and pornography?

I don't recall the book explicitly mentioning poronography?

*minus the extra o 😉

David Walliams finds a way of getting adult themes into his books but I usually find it's in a clever and thoughtful way.

Mr Stink had a lot of politics in it which I'm pretty sure went over my 8 year olds head but he still enjoyed the book.

This is mild compared to the original fairy stories...there was a thread a while back saying how violent and awful they were esp sleeping beauty

I agree the naked pic storyline is inappropriate for that age group. However, it is increasingly impossible to shield kids from this kind of stuff with the internet, so they are exposed to it so much earlier.

David Walliams books are brilliant as they take real life situations and make normal kids stars. I think it's very relatable to children and therefor brilliant. Read the book then judge

DW also choses to put the young female character as the strong and grounded personality in some of his work which I can only commend. Not like the awful old-school books of princesses and villains/ heroes!

Have you or your children ever read Beatrix Potter books? How did your children cope with the fate of Peter Rabbit's relatives?

Agreed with other posters in that you should have a read of it and then judge. Many books aimed at kids like the Jaqueline Wilson books describe child neglect, abandonment, absentee parents and this unfortunately is a reality for some kids.

Also kids today will be reading books aimed at them with themes about gender identity and social media use as it is relevant to the times in which they are growing up. The porn mention is a bit iffy though but if it creates healthy dialogue between you and your child then that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Why didn't DW just include a part where the kid walks in on the parents having sex......that could also create a healthy discussion! Never too early to to learn!

Or maybe a menage a trois, in the name of being progressive....throw in a bit of French education too lol