Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Children's books

Join in for children's book recommendations.

Original poster

Do you censor your children's books?

22 replies

vanillalavender · 10/01/2016 20:03

Purely or of interest, and obviously I don't mean giving a 6 year old 50 shades Grin but do you censor what they read?

I think some of the books I devoured in childhood perhaps didn't have great messages but at the same time censoring books sits uncomfortably with me, so am interested to hear what parents do.

OP posts:
FreshHorizons · 10/01/2016 21:36

No. As a child I had free choice and did the same. The best thing is a library ticket and leave them to it.

Alonglongway · 10/01/2016 21:45

No - have always let them read what they like.

DD1 was an advanced reader so I used to worry about this occasionally but she just navigated for herself.

My rule these days is that I don't have anything on the bookshelves I would be happy for them to read. They are teens btw so it's not too hard

abbsismyhero · 10/01/2016 21:52

yes i wouldn't let dd read the final twilight book due to the sexual nature of the book i told her why and she said ok i might let her read it now she is older

i also wouldn't allow her to read certain sections of anne frank the uncensored version i just pinned them shut she read the rest of the book

BYOSnowman · 10/01/2016 21:58

yes - i won't let 8yo ds read the hunger games (some of his classmates are) for example. Generally not though. I can only think of a couple of books I have taken away as I felt the content was inappropriate at his age.

he reads a lot of non-fiction though and I don't censor that - although some may be a bit gory

TannhauserGate · 11/01/2016 12:56

I do- we read a lot of older books that have some ideas about people that aren't white, middle class men that should be consigned to history!
I alter words that are offensive, but we have discussions about how attitudes in the past differ from now and the reasons behind it.
We have also stopped them from reading some things that they're just not ready for yet. I was given free reign as a child, but there were things I read at 13 or 14 that I really should not have read.
Mine aren't teenagers yet though.

mrsmortis · 11/01/2016 14:12

My DD is 7. I think it's part of my role as a parent to guide her reading. Is it censorship to steer her away from one book and towards another? Or is it me pointing her at things I think she'll enjoy?

FreshHorizons · 11/01/2016 15:33

Suggestion is fine, everyone likes to have that.
Censoring just makes the book desirable and I would certainly have tried to get hold of a book if my mother had banned it.

StepAwayFromTheThesaurus · 11/01/2016 15:44

I censored some of the old noddy books one of DH's aunts gave us. One of them was horribly racist about gypsys and I wasn't willing to read it/have it read to DS2.

I've generally just let DS1 read what he likes. He's never really been interested in reading anything inappropriate and now he's 15, he can read what he likes anyway. DS2 (who is 6) is also interest-led and I have no reason to say no to How to Train Your Dragon/Tom Gates/a million books about Star Wars vehicles, etc.

gingercat12 · 29/01/2016 20:51

I thought I did, but we started the Narnia books this week, and I had a terrible shock. I did not realise that it starts with a creepy old man trapping a young girl and boy in his bedroom. DS was so scared! I had to continue reading it so that he knew they were safe(ish).

We had to stop reading the Jamie Johnson series for now as well, as I am not sure DS (7) quite understands or is even interested in teenage relationships.

balletgirlmum · 29/01/2016 20:54

Yes, I've always censored what I considered to be age inappropriate content.

Doublebubblebubble · 29/01/2016 20:55

Nope. Its actually one of the reasons I love reading to and with DD. I've been reading a lot of Roald Dahl to her and she has the rotten rhymes memorised and they are pretty graphic. Love it x

scrappydappydoo · 03/02/2016 23:30

Yes and no - dd1 is 10 and i'm mostly ok with what she reads. if I'm not sure about a book I read it alongside her so we can discuss anything that comes up. My theory is to try and teach a bit of discernment e.g what message is the author putting across. I do this with films, TV, advertising too as I want her to be wise to all the messages being thrown at her. (That makes it sounds terribly pretentious and earnest but it's normally something like 'I can't believe this happened what did u think....')
DD2 is 8 and quite a sensitive soul so I do tend to steer her away from stuff I don't think she's quite ready for although she's still in rainbow fairy territory so I think we're fine.

UmbongoUnchained · 03/02/2016 23:35

I took nightmare on elm street into school as my reading book in year 5 Grin
I was never censored with anything! My daughter is only a baby so don't have to worry about that yet but I'll probably be the same.

allegretto · 05/02/2016 21:24

No but my 11 year old reads newspapers which worries me more.

BIWI · 05/02/2016 21:31

Why? That's a really good thing for them to be reading\

FellOutOfBedTwice · 05/02/2016 21:37

DD is only 18 months so not there yet but I absolutely wouldn't. I was an advanced and avid reader and read a lot of "inappropriate" stuff for example the first couple of Adrian Mole books when I was 7/8. Absolutely no harm done- I understood what I understood and not what I didn't. I read Bridget Jones when it first came out and I was about 10. 90% of it went over my head and when I read it as an adult I laughed at the assumptions I had made about some things in the book. First adult book I ever read was when I was in year 2 and it was a copy of Michael Caine's autobiography that I picked up at my grandparents. Read it cover to cover- didn't have a Scooby of what most of it was going on about. Was not traumatised. Same with films... I watched when Harry Met Sally aged about 6.... The famous orgasm scene passed me by. I thought she was angry!

QuietWhenReading · 05/02/2016 21:43

It's difficult. My parents never thought to censor me and I certainly read lots and lots at about 8/9 that was inappropriate in hindsight.

I'm very keen to encourage my children to read although we do tend to put the newspaper away if there's something inappropriate in it.

My PILs gave my DS a Star Wars book the other day which I've said I'll need to read before him as it looks a bit teenager-y on first glance.

allegretto · 06/02/2016 15:18

Why? That's a really good thing for them to be reading\

You're right and I do let him read them but with some of the extreme violence that is reported, it worries me that he might be upset.

RockinHippy · 06/02/2016 15:32

Yes, for a while, but she was a very advanced reader, reading & preferring adult books by 8/9, so I did have a tricky few years of making sure the content was suitable, not too smutty etc. She's 13 now & polices herself very well.

ijustwannadance · 06/02/2016 15:37

Depends on content really. I read adrian mole when I was about 9 as my big bro had it. I started reading Dean Koonst/Stephen King in early teens.

Themodernuriahheep · 07/02/2016 22:28

Yes and no. I follow my DM's way of saying

"I think you'll enjoy that more when you're a bit older".

Seriouslyffs · 07/02/2016 22:33

No. DD2 was an omnivorous reader and picked up at friends one summer The Room and The Virgin Suicides. Hmm when she was 12/13.
I felt there was no point snatching them away before she got to the resolution but I debriefed her on both, talked about the authors' motivation etc.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page