To read subtext and backstories into children’s stories that simply aren’t there?

[Essexpanhandler]

DD has recently moved to ‘chapter’ books at bedtime and with some exceptions, they’re mostly pretty tedious, although I accept I’m not the target audience and she loves them. To get me through reading them, I’ve started inventing, in my own head, subtext and backstories that just don’t exist.

Take her latest book. I think there’s clear sexual tension and ‘history’ between the eccentric uncle and the woman who works in the garden centre. There’s also a very tedious subplot that I’ve livened up by pretending two of the characters have unresolved beef from their home country, and that another is gay but feels unable to admit it to himself and others.

I also have a theory that the uncle plays fast and loose with the law in his business dealings.

Anyone else do this? AIBU?

A lot of people have read too much into George from The Famous Five and assumed that she must be trans... when she clearly lived in a time when boys were routinely allowed to do lots more fun things than girls; and she obviously (very reasonably) wanted to do the fun 'boy things' too, rather than actually BE male.