The guys I hang out with certainly do. But parents and teachers (and data) will tell you their boys don’t read much fiction. There are lots of theories about it, but kids’ author Jon Scieszka (rhymes with Fresca)—a former teacher—was in Nashville recently for a signing at the Nashville Public Library, and had this to say about it:
As a parent, teacher, and author, I have assembled a great list, from actual live experience, of what not to do to engage a kid in reading:
• Do not tell them reading is magical or good for them or important or something they better do for an hour before bedtime or goddammit they will end up like shiftless Uncle Dave who is always asking to borrow money.
• Do not denigrate kids’ other activities—video games, texting, talking to friends, watching TV, sleeping … as stupid in comparison to reading.
• Do not insist they read “classics” because you had to.
• Do not refuse to get a book for them because it isn’t up to their reading level.
• Do not tell them (or me, or anyone) that they are “reluctant readers.”
(You can read the interview in the Parnassus Books blog here for what Scieszka thinks you should do. And you can read this for how it worked in my house.)
The Nashville Scene also interviewed Scieszka, and there’s plenty more about reading for boys (and about the Guys Read initiative) … but you writers will love this. Asked if he has to work harder to write humor (his specialty), the author noted:
I have a harder time not writing humor than writing humor. If people aren’t laughing, it makes me nervous. But contrary to what a lot of people think, it is not easy to write humor. It is the same kind of ditch-digging as writing anything. To make it really good you have to write and rewrite and rewrite some more.
I have been having all kinds of fun writing the Frank Einstein series. Robots, chimpanzee CFO, crazy inventions—but in the middle of Book 1, about the fourth or fifth or 28th rewrite, I realized again, like I always do, that writing is a very hard and very anti-social job. You have to hide yourself away, and get that story in your head down on paper. One. Word. At. A. Time. Excruciating!
One word at a time, friends. 🙂
Tweet: Do guys read? Parents & teachers (& data) will tell you boys don’t read much fiction.
Tweet: Kids’ author Jon Scieszka has some thoughts about getting boys to read more.
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