Friday, 22 March 2013

Vetting Science Fiction Books For Teens

By Jill Faulkner


While parents absolutely love it when their kids enjoy reading, they are cautioned to find the most appropriate science fiction books for teens. Not everything that is out there which kids get their hands on is acceptable for them to read. Parents are warned to be guarded about what their children are reading, as some of what is out there is pretty wildly inappropriate.

One perfect example are some of the vampire stories which have become quite popular over the years. There are some which are okay for ages fourteen to sixteen, but others that no one would want their child to read under the age of eighteen. Some of these stories delve quite deeply into erotic descriptions of coupling between vampires and humans.

Violence is an aspect of this genre which many parents find a little less disturbing. Violence being described in a book is a little different from seeing it on a television or movie screen, and children are not unaware that violence is a part of reality. However, should a parent have a young reader on their hands, even some political thrillers might be too mature for that reading audience.

The fact is, some really wonderful book trilogies have come out in recent years that are completely geared towards young people. Having the advertising targeting children at specific ages does help parents through some of the muddy water. In fact, as a rule, these stories can be found in their school libraries, which is usually a good sign that the material is okay for their age group.

In fact, it is a good rule of thumb for parents that what is located at the school library is very likely to be geared toward that age group. The schools are given very specific information about age appropriate reading material. It is the materials that are purchased from a store or obtained from a public library that parents need to look at most closely.

Different families can have very differing views about what is regarded as appropriate as well. A religious family might not regard books about magic to be acceptable for any of their children. Even so, once their kids reach a certain age, attempting to control what they read becomes impossible, and quite possibly rather counter productive.

This is a trick that smart parents will use to actually encourage their children to read. Placing a particular series of books on a top shelf and stating that the material is not age appropriate guarantees that those stories will disappear at night. Something about human nature makes us always seek out that which is forbidden.

The smartest parents who really are concerned about what science fiction books for teens contain will simply take the time to read it themselves. It makes parents look really foolish when they create a big issue over content of a book that they have not actually read themselves. Besides, when parents and children both read a story, it becomes something they can talk about and share.




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