Just Keep Reading
I was reading aloud from the first Harry Potter book to my son (6 years old).
“Why are there no pictures in the book, Daddy?”
“Books for adults and bigger kids rarely have pictures. The author wants you to imagine the scene. She might tell you a few details but you must use your own imagination to complete the mental picture. You must imagine what Harry’s school, Hogwarts, is like. What you imagine and what someone else might imagine will be two different things.
This is the wonderful thing about books: no two people will imagine exactly the same scene so everyone who reads a book will be reading a unique story. You complete the story by adding your own mental images.”
“Daddy?”
“Yes?”
“Just keep reading.”
“Why are there no pictures in the book, Daddy?”
“Books for adults and bigger kids rarely have pictures. The author wants you to imagine the scene. She might tell you a few details but you must use your own imagination to complete the mental picture. You must imagine what Harry’s school, Hogwarts, is like. What you imagine and what someone else might imagine will be two different things.
This is the wonderful thing about books: no two people will imagine exactly the same scene so everyone who reads a book will be reading a unique story. You complete the story by adding your own mental images.”
“Daddy?”
“Yes?”
“Just keep reading.”
posted by Michael Higgins at
18:16
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5 Comments:
Very true, Michael. Precisely why Im skeptical about movie versions of my favourite books. I'm always afraid, and with good reason, that the film-maker's vision will clash with mine, and the story will never be the same again.
Thankfully, Peter Jackson did a good job with LOTR; he had to cut and edit quite a bit, but the movies certainly retained the vivid and rich imagery, and was true to the spirit of Tolkein.
The Harry Potter movies have unfortunately left me disappointed...
By
Anonymous, at 8:25 PM
Hi Ash
Thank you but I think my message just wasn't appreciated fully by my son. The humor in this piece is understanding that what I was saying was meaningless to a 6 year old. I only recognized that after he said "just keep reading."
By
Michael Higgins, at 9:07 PM
:-)
Sho Shweet son you have. Children can sometimes be so amusing (& pithy ;-)
By
Suhail, at 2:19 PM
Hi Suhail:
Long time no see (in my comments that is). Yes, my son can say some very funny things.
By
Michael Higgins, at 4:24 AM
Just browsing through your archives came across this piece,
One question and have you thought about this?
Is your "little star" a Calvin in the making?;-)
By
Minal, at 4:49 AM
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