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Children's books

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Original poster

Can you tell me what Lemony Snickett books are like and would they be suitable for ds just 6?

14 replies

MilaMae · 16/01/2010 23:03

Ds is a good reading and is loving Secret Seven,Jeremy Strong etc. I looked at the text and it's perfect abilitywise but I don't want to ruin them by giving them to him too soon.
Also are they too dark and what is the general gist of the storylines?

TIA

OP posts:
sanfairyann · 16/01/2010 23:05

they are really dark and there is no happy ending to any of them and all the carers of the orphaned children always die so - if your ds can cope with all that - they're great . really funny grown up humour and I love the language in them. ds1 loves them - he's read them since the age of 6 but I usually read them to him. ds2 detests them and runs and hides when they come down off the shelf. he isn't 6 yet but he wouldn't be ready for them at 6 either

mimsum · 16/01/2010 23:09

The first two or three are quite fun - good to read aloud actually, more fun than reading in your head, so dh and I took turns reading them to the dc (who were all perfectly capable of reading them themselves)

However, Mr Snicket really should have known when to stop ... after a while the plots get ridiculously convoluted and there are so many strands going all over the place and the page counts increase dramatically. By the end of book 11 or so you're wondering how on earth he's going to manage to bring it all back together.

I won't give it away in case someone's still ploughing their way through ... let's just say the dc were extremely disappointed ...

seeker · 16/01/2010 23:12

Not at all suitable for 6 IMHO. I see no reason for rushing ahead - it spoils them for when they reach the appropriate age. As you very wisely said, OP, just because they can read something doesn't mean they should!

Original poster
MilaMae · 16/01/2010 23:23

Yes think I'll hold off a bit all that dying might be a bit of a jump up from jolly old Enid Blyton

Seeker The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe???? Should I hold off a bit more,I loved that book and want him to when he reads it for the first time but it's calling me.

OP posts:
seeker · 17/01/2010 00:40

Oh I'd read him the L the W and the W - lovely read-aloud stuff!

BelleDeChocolateFluffyBunny · 17/01/2010 00:43

Ds read them at 6. There's explanations in the texts for the harder words IIRC. He did have a mature approach to the context though and had already read a lot of different books before he started reading these. They wouldn't be suitable for a sensitive child.

seeker · 17/01/2010 00:47

As I said, just because they can doesn't mean they should. There are lots of books written and suitable for 6 year olds - they've got years and years to read the stuff for older children. If they skip the 6 year old books they are missing out on important building blocks.

BelleDeChocolateFluffyBunny · 17/01/2010 00:48

depends on whether they had already read the 6 year old books though seeker, and the ones for 7 year olds, and the ones for 8 year olds etc.

seeker · 17/01/2010 00:58

I still don't think that a 6 year old should be reading books intended for much older childern. I have a precocious reader too, and I've been very selective in what he reads. Sometimes he reads "down" - I'd rather he did this than read stuff that he's not emotionally ready for.

BelleDeChocolateFluffyBunny · 17/01/2010 01:07

It depends on the content of the books and the child's maturity surly seeker. These books are not in the teenage section of Waterstones, they are in the 8-11 IIRC, if a child was a very early reader and has the maturity to cope with a variety of books then their age shouldn't be a barrier. You can also say the same for some of the Roald Dahl books if this is the case, James and the Giant Peach and The Witches are not early reader books yet they scare the hell out of alot of children.

TheLadyEvenstar · 17/01/2010 01:12

DS1 has always been a brilliant reader and read them when he was 6, he also read the Harry Potter books that were out, the LOTR, and many other books of a similar nature.

He enjoyed them and now has the full collection which when he wants a "down" read he will pick up one of these.

Atm he is reading the hitch hikers guide series, which he got for christmas and has read 4 of them already.....roll on easter.

seeker · 17/01/2010 08:59

I was careful about the Roald Dahl titles my ds read too!

And he hasn't yet read the later Harry Potters because I don't think they are age appropriate.

I'm always interested in the fact that people are very aware of age categories for films but don't think in the same way about books.

Goblinchild · 17/01/2010 09:10

My daughter read Terry Pratchett when she was 9 and quite enjoyed them. Read them again at 12 and loved them, she understood all the references, parodies, puns and rude bits so much better.

sanfairyann · 17/01/2010 22:12

i've never paid the slightest bit of attention to the age guides in bookshops

it depends on the child's emotional maturity and sensitivity - why some books are fine for ds1 who essentially takes after his mum, has a finely developed sense of sarcasm and toughness, and can cope fine with irony, and not at all fine for ds2 who is very sensitive to other people's emotions and to sad situations. he cried several times in that film, Up, that got a crappy rating of U if I remember correctly (?) because of the woman's miscarriage and later when she died. don't think ds1 even noticed either of those events

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