Octavian Nothing / Northanger Abbey
DiscussieBooks Compared
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1msbaba
"The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I, The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
compared with
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
with assistance from
Jane Austen by Carol Shields
Time Period
Both of these books are set in approximately the same time period: Northanger Abbey is set in rural and small-town (Bath) England in the late 1790s; Octavian Nothing is set in rural and small-town (Boston) North America from 1760 to 1775.
Genre
Both are coming-of-age sagas; however, whereas Northanger Abbey is light-hearted, silly, and humorous; Octavian Nothing is gothic, horrifying, and abundantly rich with weighty subtexts. Northanger Abbey is a coming-of-age saga told in the usual fashion: an emotional, immature youth has experiences over the course of the novel which help the child to develop, by the end of the novel, into a mature, appropriately rational adult. Octavian Nothing is a most unusual, backwards coming-of-age saga: a child raised as a scientific experiment by purely rational philosophers and scientists has experiences over the course of the novel which help the child to develop, by the end of the novel, into a mature, appropriately emotional adult.
Language
Both novels are written in exquisite 18th century language: Northanger Abbey, because it was the language of the day, and Austen one of its preeminent masters; and Octavian Nothing, because the author chose to narrate this novel completely from period documents. The novel is told entirely through fictional primary resources—Octavian’s own manuscript testimony, newspaper clippings, letters, scientific papers, and the like.
Personally, I was positively dazzled by the authenticity of the period language. How Anderson was able to accomplish this feat, and maintain it through countless different narrative voices is astounding—in my opinion, an unparalleled modern literary tour de force. In an interview with the author on the publisher’s website, Anderson admits: “This book was difficult to write, technically. Every time I started a stint of work on it, it took me days to get back into the language. Sometimes I felt exhausted. I’ve had to keep my reading ‘diet’ incredibly pure over the last four years—the time it took me to write the novel—confining myself usually to books from or about the eighteenth century or things that would have been read then (such as Livy or Ovid).”
Subthemes
Northanger Abbey is the first novel that Jane Austen wrote. It is considered to be her most light-hearted, often downright burlesque. Austen’s novels are never weighted down by historical, political, or scientific subthemes. Major events and issues of the day appear in her novels only indirectly through implication (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 2-3). Jane Austen is often criticized by scholars as a “countrified person in intellectual drag, imprervious to the noises of the historical universe in which she was placed” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 3). This is a point which Shields disputes. In 1996, Shields and her daughter, Anne, presented a joint paper at the Jane Austen Society of North America called “The Politics of a Glance.” The Paper reinterpreted Austen’s novels “as wide-ranging glances…across the material of the world she inhabited, and that material includes an implied commentary of the political, economic, and social forces of her day. These glances, like ubiquitous sunlight, sweep and suggest, excoriate and question…By indirection, by assumption, by reading what is implicit, we can find behind Austen’s novels a steady, intelligent witness to a world that was rapidly reinventing itself. Every Austen conversation, every chance encounter on a muddy road, every evening of cards before the fire, every bold, disruptive militiaman is backed by historical implications” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 3-4).
On the other hand, Octavian Nothing is a novel composed almost entirely of direct, in-your-face weighty subthemes. Well-known events in the American Revolution form the historical framework and provide the story with many of its most thought-provoking themes. The book deals with an extremely wide complexity of controversial issues, including: racism; slavery; hypocrisy; the ethics of scientific inquiry funded by commercial interests; the importance of virtue; the nature of altruism; the meaning of freedom; the meaning of being human; the ethics of human and animal experimentation; the ethics of ends justifying means; whether civilization is predicated upon commerce; the importance of forgiveness—to name but a few.
Reading Northanger Abbey for the first time a few weeks ago provided me an absolutely lovely day of literary pleasure; however, it is unlikely that I will read the book again in my lifetime. On the other hand, Octavian Nothing gets better with every rereading. It was one of those rare books that, upon finishing for the first time, I turned around immediately and reread the novel for the second time. The second reading took longer than the first because I found myself pausing repeatedly either to savor the beauty of the language or to ponder universal questions of philosophy, psychology, science, and history that pop up everywhere throughout the telling. It is highly likely that I will reread this book again…in fact, I am already doing so. I originally read a library copy, but I subsequently bought an audio CD version and uploaded it into my iPod so I can listen to it while I walk and garden. I love listening to the exquisite prose!
Importance of Books: A Significant Subtheme
One important subtheme that these two works have in common is worth covering in depth, namely: the importance of increasing our experience of the world through books.
Northanger Abbey is famous for Jane Austen’s personal spirited defense of the novel as a literary form. Early in the book, she cuts away from the development of the story to a rare first person singular “I” and mocks those who say pretentiously, “I am no novel reader—I seldom look into novels.” In novels, Austen argues, “the greatest powers of the mind are displayed, the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language.”
This defense appears again at the end of the novel. The silly young lady we met at the beginning of the book with her ridiculously overblown imagination and love of gothic novels, is gone. We come to understand that Catherine actually benefits in her understanding of the world by having had the experience of reading. Jane Austen as much as taunts: See, even the reading of bad gothic literature is better than no literary experience at all in helping a simple country girl to expand her awareness of the real world outside her direct experience.
So, Catherine Moreland is helped on her way toward adulthood partially through the reading of trashy gothic novels; they expose her to possibilities of human nature, that she may not otherwise have encountered in her sheltered experience. It is through this odd, yet thoroughly brilliant manner, that Austen chooses to defend the novel both in the beginning and in the end.
Octavian Nothing concerns the life of the young slave, Octavian, from his earliest memories until the age of 16. For the first half of his life, the child does not realize that he is the object of a scientific experiment to determine “whether homo africanus is a separate species from homo europaeus.” The child is dressed in fine silks and given a comprehensive and exhaustive classical literary and musical education. He is told that he is an African prince and his mother an African princess. He is raised in virtual isolation by a household of scientists, philosophers, artists, and merchant investors calling themselves The Novanglian College of Lucidity. These men make sure that the child is kept at great emotional distance from his mother. Octavian is given every luxury, except the luxury to behave like a normal human child.
Despite the fact that Octavian is raised as an experiment by rational, and sometimes monstrously nonempathetic scientists, we see him mature into a virtuous, empathetic, whole human being. The transformation is slow and gut-wrenching. Three men unknowingly play significant roles as mentors: the philosopher Dr. Trefusis, the slave Bono, and the soldier Evidence Goring. But there is a one very significant additional source providing him with the raw building blocks necessary to reinvent himself as a fully realized emotional human being, namely the wealth of pseudo-life experience provided to him by his extraordinary classical literature and music education. In great part, this is the story of a child saved by his exposure to Ovid, Homer, Socrates, Aristotle, Shakespeare, Pope, Mozart, Handel, Corelli, and the like.
Popular vs. Classics: The Test of Time
Northanger Abbey is, inarguably, a literary classic that continues to withstand the test of time. Jane Austen’s “legacy is not a piece of reportage from the society of a particular past, but a wise and compelling exploration of human nature. Her men and women speak their needs and define the barriers that separate them from peace and satisfaction. They are as alive today in their longings as they were, two hundred years ago, when she first gave them breath” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 182).
Octavian Nothing is, perhaps, a new classic in development. As we read his manuscript testimony in his own florid, literary, 18th-century words, we see Octavian come to life before us, as real a person as if Anderson had brought him to us through some magical time-machine. Octavian Nothing reads like a classic because of its exquisitely loving and authentic 18th-century prose. But only its popularity over time will tell if it ever advances to the full weight of a classic.
Octavian Nothing won the 2006 National Book Award for young adult fiction. But, here I have a very serious bone to pick with the author, editors, and publisher of this extraordinary work: Octavian Nothing is no more a young-adult book than Billy Budd or Daisy Miller! Naturally, it can be read and appreciated by mature high school students, but there is a much larger market of adults who might overlook this title because is being marketed too narrowly. The wide majority of adult reviewers highly praise this book. Ironically, it has proved somewhat unpopular among its targeted young adult audience. Many young readers appear either to miss or show disinterest in the novel’s many deep thought-provoking subthemes. For young readers, the book moves too slowly, and they are often challenged beyond their ability to understand the rich, lovingly recreated 18th-century language.
PS
For no other reason, except happenstance, I read the three books discussed or quoted in this comparison review in the following order over the course of two weeks: 1) Carol Shield’s “Jane Austen,” 2) Jane Austen’s “Northanger Abbey,” and 3) M. T. Anderson’s “Octavian Nothing.” I would never have known about “Octavian Nothing” if it had not been for a favorite, book-loving friend of mine with a highly intelligent high school daughter. Both she and her daughter loved this book so much that after hearing about it from them, I knew I had to read it.
FYI: You can read my reviews on LibraryThing for Jane Austen by Carol Shield and "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I, The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson. Although I try to write a review for everything I read since I joined LibraryThing, I did not write a review for “Northanger Abbey.” Forgive me; in my opinion, there are just too many reviews for that title already…and I needed a break from my promise to review everything!
compared with
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
with assistance from
Jane Austen by Carol Shields
Time Period
Both of these books are set in approximately the same time period: Northanger Abbey is set in rural and small-town (Bath) England in the late 1790s; Octavian Nothing is set in rural and small-town (Boston) North America from 1760 to 1775.
Genre
Both are coming-of-age sagas; however, whereas Northanger Abbey is light-hearted, silly, and humorous; Octavian Nothing is gothic, horrifying, and abundantly rich with weighty subtexts. Northanger Abbey is a coming-of-age saga told in the usual fashion: an emotional, immature youth has experiences over the course of the novel which help the child to develop, by the end of the novel, into a mature, appropriately rational adult. Octavian Nothing is a most unusual, backwards coming-of-age saga: a child raised as a scientific experiment by purely rational philosophers and scientists has experiences over the course of the novel which help the child to develop, by the end of the novel, into a mature, appropriately emotional adult.
Language
Both novels are written in exquisite 18th century language: Northanger Abbey, because it was the language of the day, and Austen one of its preeminent masters; and Octavian Nothing, because the author chose to narrate this novel completely from period documents. The novel is told entirely through fictional primary resources—Octavian’s own manuscript testimony, newspaper clippings, letters, scientific papers, and the like.
Personally, I was positively dazzled by the authenticity of the period language. How Anderson was able to accomplish this feat, and maintain it through countless different narrative voices is astounding—in my opinion, an unparalleled modern literary tour de force. In an interview with the author on the publisher’s website, Anderson admits: “This book was difficult to write, technically. Every time I started a stint of work on it, it took me days to get back into the language. Sometimes I felt exhausted. I’ve had to keep my reading ‘diet’ incredibly pure over the last four years—the time it took me to write the novel—confining myself usually to books from or about the eighteenth century or things that would have been read then (such as Livy or Ovid).”
Subthemes
Northanger Abbey is the first novel that Jane Austen wrote. It is considered to be her most light-hearted, often downright burlesque. Austen’s novels are never weighted down by historical, political, or scientific subthemes. Major events and issues of the day appear in her novels only indirectly through implication (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 2-3). Jane Austen is often criticized by scholars as a “countrified person in intellectual drag, imprervious to the noises of the historical universe in which she was placed” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 3). This is a point which Shields disputes. In 1996, Shields and her daughter, Anne, presented a joint paper at the Jane Austen Society of North America called “The Politics of a Glance.” The Paper reinterpreted Austen’s novels “as wide-ranging glances…across the material of the world she inhabited, and that material includes an implied commentary of the political, economic, and social forces of her day. These glances, like ubiquitous sunlight, sweep and suggest, excoriate and question…By indirection, by assumption, by reading what is implicit, we can find behind Austen’s novels a steady, intelligent witness to a world that was rapidly reinventing itself. Every Austen conversation, every chance encounter on a muddy road, every evening of cards before the fire, every bold, disruptive militiaman is backed by historical implications” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 3-4).
On the other hand, Octavian Nothing is a novel composed almost entirely of direct, in-your-face weighty subthemes. Well-known events in the American Revolution form the historical framework and provide the story with many of its most thought-provoking themes. The book deals with an extremely wide complexity of controversial issues, including: racism; slavery; hypocrisy; the ethics of scientific inquiry funded by commercial interests; the importance of virtue; the nature of altruism; the meaning of freedom; the meaning of being human; the ethics of human and animal experimentation; the ethics of ends justifying means; whether civilization is predicated upon commerce; the importance of forgiveness—to name but a few.
Reading Northanger Abbey for the first time a few weeks ago provided me an absolutely lovely day of literary pleasure; however, it is unlikely that I will read the book again in my lifetime. On the other hand, Octavian Nothing gets better with every rereading. It was one of those rare books that, upon finishing for the first time, I turned around immediately and reread the novel for the second time. The second reading took longer than the first because I found myself pausing repeatedly either to savor the beauty of the language or to ponder universal questions of philosophy, psychology, science, and history that pop up everywhere throughout the telling. It is highly likely that I will reread this book again…in fact, I am already doing so. I originally read a library copy, but I subsequently bought an audio CD version and uploaded it into my iPod so I can listen to it while I walk and garden. I love listening to the exquisite prose!
Importance of Books: A Significant Subtheme
One important subtheme that these two works have in common is worth covering in depth, namely: the importance of increasing our experience of the world through books.
Northanger Abbey is famous for Jane Austen’s personal spirited defense of the novel as a literary form. Early in the book, she cuts away from the development of the story to a rare first person singular “I” and mocks those who say pretentiously, “I am no novel reader—I seldom look into novels.” In novels, Austen argues, “the greatest powers of the mind are displayed, the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language.”
This defense appears again at the end of the novel. The silly young lady we met at the beginning of the book with her ridiculously overblown imagination and love of gothic novels, is gone. We come to understand that Catherine actually benefits in her understanding of the world by having had the experience of reading. Jane Austen as much as taunts: See, even the reading of bad gothic literature is better than no literary experience at all in helping a simple country girl to expand her awareness of the real world outside her direct experience.
So, Catherine Moreland is helped on her way toward adulthood partially through the reading of trashy gothic novels; they expose her to possibilities of human nature, that she may not otherwise have encountered in her sheltered experience. It is through this odd, yet thoroughly brilliant manner, that Austen chooses to defend the novel both in the beginning and in the end.
Octavian Nothing concerns the life of the young slave, Octavian, from his earliest memories until the age of 16. For the first half of his life, the child does not realize that he is the object of a scientific experiment to determine “whether homo africanus is a separate species from homo europaeus.” The child is dressed in fine silks and given a comprehensive and exhaustive classical literary and musical education. He is told that he is an African prince and his mother an African princess. He is raised in virtual isolation by a household of scientists, philosophers, artists, and merchant investors calling themselves The Novanglian College of Lucidity. These men make sure that the child is kept at great emotional distance from his mother. Octavian is given every luxury, except the luxury to behave like a normal human child.
Despite the fact that Octavian is raised as an experiment by rational, and sometimes monstrously nonempathetic scientists, we see him mature into a virtuous, empathetic, whole human being. The transformation is slow and gut-wrenching. Three men unknowingly play significant roles as mentors: the philosopher Dr. Trefusis, the slave Bono, and the soldier Evidence Goring. But there is a one very significant additional source providing him with the raw building blocks necessary to reinvent himself as a fully realized emotional human being, namely the wealth of pseudo-life experience provided to him by his extraordinary classical literature and music education. In great part, this is the story of a child saved by his exposure to Ovid, Homer, Socrates, Aristotle, Shakespeare, Pope, Mozart, Handel, Corelli, and the like.
Popular vs. Classics: The Test of Time
Northanger Abbey is, inarguably, a literary classic that continues to withstand the test of time. Jane Austen’s “legacy is not a piece of reportage from the society of a particular past, but a wise and compelling exploration of human nature. Her men and women speak their needs and define the barriers that separate them from peace and satisfaction. They are as alive today in their longings as they were, two hundred years ago, when she first gave them breath” (Jane Austen by Carol Shields p. 182).
Octavian Nothing is, perhaps, a new classic in development. As we read his manuscript testimony in his own florid, literary, 18th-century words, we see Octavian come to life before us, as real a person as if Anderson had brought him to us through some magical time-machine. Octavian Nothing reads like a classic because of its exquisitely loving and authentic 18th-century prose. But only its popularity over time will tell if it ever advances to the full weight of a classic.
Octavian Nothing won the 2006 National Book Award for young adult fiction. But, here I have a very serious bone to pick with the author, editors, and publisher of this extraordinary work: Octavian Nothing is no more a young-adult book than Billy Budd or Daisy Miller! Naturally, it can be read and appreciated by mature high school students, but there is a much larger market of adults who might overlook this title because is being marketed too narrowly. The wide majority of adult reviewers highly praise this book. Ironically, it has proved somewhat unpopular among its targeted young adult audience. Many young readers appear either to miss or show disinterest in the novel’s many deep thought-provoking subthemes. For young readers, the book moves too slowly, and they are often challenged beyond their ability to understand the rich, lovingly recreated 18th-century language.
PS
For no other reason, except happenstance, I read the three books discussed or quoted in this comparison review in the following order over the course of two weeks: 1) Carol Shield’s “Jane Austen,” 2) Jane Austen’s “Northanger Abbey,” and 3) M. T. Anderson’s “Octavian Nothing.” I would never have known about “Octavian Nothing” if it had not been for a favorite, book-loving friend of mine with a highly intelligent high school daughter. Both she and her daughter loved this book so much that after hearing about it from them, I knew I had to read it.
FYI: You can read my reviews on LibraryThing for Jane Austen by Carol Shield and "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I, The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson. Although I try to write a review for everything I read since I joined LibraryThing, I did not write a review for “Northanger Abbey.” Forgive me; in my opinion, there are just too many reviews for that title already…and I needed a break from my promise to review everything!
2aluvalibri
Thank you VERY much for this wonderful excursus. Now I just have to go get a copy of Jane Austen and Octavian Nothing.
3msbaba
Paola (aluvalibri), thank you for taking the time to read such a long comparison!
I must say that I was surprised how much joy it gave me to write this piece for this LibraryThing group. I haven’t done anything like this in more than 35 years. I found it gave me considerably more joy than watching a four star independent film. Perhaps it provided me with a similar type of joy that I see my husband experiencing when he is deeply involved in working through a difficult NYT crossword puzzle. It was definitely a flow experience (see Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi). Before writing this comparison, I did not realize that writing about the books that I love could provide me with so much pleasure. When I did similar writing back in graduate school, it was always under so much dreadful stress and pressure that there was little pleasure, only relief. Now that the academic stress is gone, now that the fear of being graded is gone—only now can I really enjoy this type of activity. The joy, of course, is in the exercise for the mind, and for the possibility that the effort may be of use to another book lover.
Your catalog shows you to be an avid reader of 18th-century literature. If after you buy and read "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I, The Pox Party," I would be very interested in your assessment.
I must say that I was surprised how much joy it gave me to write this piece for this LibraryThing group. I haven’t done anything like this in more than 35 years. I found it gave me considerably more joy than watching a four star independent film. Perhaps it provided me with a similar type of joy that I see my husband experiencing when he is deeply involved in working through a difficult NYT crossword puzzle. It was definitely a flow experience (see Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi). Before writing this comparison, I did not realize that writing about the books that I love could provide me with so much pleasure. When I did similar writing back in graduate school, it was always under so much dreadful stress and pressure that there was little pleasure, only relief. Now that the academic stress is gone, now that the fear of being graded is gone—only now can I really enjoy this type of activity. The joy, of course, is in the exercise for the mind, and for the possibility that the effort may be of use to another book lover.
Your catalog shows you to be an avid reader of 18th-century literature. If after you buy and read "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I, The Pox Party," I would be very interested in your assessment.
4aluvalibri
Well, Barbara, reading your post was an utter delight! I love reading well written book reviews and learn about books that, perhaps, would be overlooked. Yes, I am an avid reader of lit and fiction from all the English speaking countries, and I am still learning a lot about contemporary authors, and have learnt quite a bit, especially since I joined LT. You might have noticed my interest in Australian fiction and literature. I find it fascinating, especially books written by women. I am currently reading The secret river by Kate Grenville, which I warmly recommend, if you have not read it yet.
Octavian Nothing is in my list of books I have to buy, and I will definitely let you know what I think of it once I have read it. It might take a while, though, as I have a lot of books I want to read and, alas, not time enough.....
:-))
Octavian Nothing is in my list of books I have to buy, and I will definitely let you know what I think of it once I have read it. It might take a while, though, as I have a lot of books I want to read and, alas, not time enough.....
:-))
5kiwidoc
Thank you for a lovely review/comparison msbaba, which has bought up the interesting idea of book classification and target audiences for books.
I have a teenage daughter (now 15 years) who has read many different genres over the last 10 years, with a mother who attempted to locate books with 'appropriate content' etc. Many books fell into my hands and I was amazed at the beauty of the writing - Isabel Allende, Phillip Pullman Michael Morpurgo, etc. Others, which I thought I could spot and avoid as trashy teen lit with little merit, I walked past.
In general, I think it probably does the author a disservice to classify a novel as Young Adult, as it narrows the audience. I say this because I have never heard of Octavian Nothing - my days in the teen section of the library and bookshop have passed as my daughter has moved to more 'adult fiction'. I therefore wonder about all the great reads the adult public is missing.
I used to think that the juvenile fiction 'title' was aimed at 'censorship' as well as 'age-appropriate themes surrounding relationships, fantasies and experience, or more simplistic characterizations. My daughter now tells me that some of the books I bought for her in the past 2-3 years have been more explicit in sexual and moral themes than anything she has read on my adult shelves. She bemoaned the fact the teen lit is aimed at narrow themes of school popularity, boyfriend betrayals etc etc., and almost had a re-inforcing effect that these issues were all important. She wished she could have been credited with a broader perspective - and this precipitated her move to 'adult books' rather earlier than I expected.
Thanks for bringing up this bug bear of mine - I guess the moral of the story is that great literature is to be found across the classification borders. As I walk past the ghastly A-list series in the teen section to find this wonderful sounding book, I will remember your words of advice.
I have a teenage daughter (now 15 years) who has read many different genres over the last 10 years, with a mother who attempted to locate books with 'appropriate content' etc. Many books fell into my hands and I was amazed at the beauty of the writing - Isabel Allende, Phillip Pullman Michael Morpurgo, etc. Others, which I thought I could spot and avoid as trashy teen lit with little merit, I walked past.
In general, I think it probably does the author a disservice to classify a novel as Young Adult, as it narrows the audience. I say this because I have never heard of Octavian Nothing - my days in the teen section of the library and bookshop have passed as my daughter has moved to more 'adult fiction'. I therefore wonder about all the great reads the adult public is missing.
I used to think that the juvenile fiction 'title' was aimed at 'censorship' as well as 'age-appropriate themes surrounding relationships, fantasies and experience, or more simplistic characterizations. My daughter now tells me that some of the books I bought for her in the past 2-3 years have been more explicit in sexual and moral themes than anything she has read on my adult shelves. She bemoaned the fact the teen lit is aimed at narrow themes of school popularity, boyfriend betrayals etc etc., and almost had a re-inforcing effect that these issues were all important. She wished she could have been credited with a broader perspective - and this precipitated her move to 'adult books' rather earlier than I expected.
Thanks for bringing up this bug bear of mine - I guess the moral of the story is that great literature is to be found across the classification borders. As I walk past the ghastly A-list series in the teen section to find this wonderful sounding book, I will remember your words of advice.
6aluvalibri
Karen,
kudos to you for having inspired your 15 year old to read, and to read such a variety of genres. Being a mother of a 19, 17, and 13 year old myself, I know how important it is to teach our children the importance of books from a very early age. I have done it, and can say that I am satisfied with the results. Two of my children are LT members, and avid readers, the other one (the 17 yo) loves to read, but not as much as his siblings. The greatest booklover among the three is the 13 yo, with interests far advanced in comparison with many of same age children's. His passion for theatre keeps increasing, as well as his collection of plays by a variety of authors, from Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams. Needless to say that iy makes me very happy.
:-))
kudos to you for having inspired your 15 year old to read, and to read such a variety of genres. Being a mother of a 19, 17, and 13 year old myself, I know how important it is to teach our children the importance of books from a very early age. I have done it, and can say that I am satisfied with the results. Two of my children are LT members, and avid readers, the other one (the 17 yo) loves to read, but not as much as his siblings. The greatest booklover among the three is the 13 yo, with interests far advanced in comparison with many of same age children's. His passion for theatre keeps increasing, as well as his collection of plays by a variety of authors, from Shakespeare to Tennessee Williams. Needless to say that iy makes me very happy.
:-))
7kiwidoc
Aluvalibri
Well done with your kids.
My kids are avid readers - I have a 13yo boy and a nearly 16 year old girl. We have many nights where we have to forceably shut off lights and some bleary eyed mornings when the reading has continued under the sheets.
Both my kids started to read at three - and haven't stopped. They also both like Shakespeare and we are very lucky to have a 'Bard on the Beach' Shakespeare production here in Vancouver, which allows us to go to at least two outdoor productions in the summer. We started gently with Shakespeare with some adapted books when younger, which has made all the difference as they now know the storylines by heart and can appreciate the full versions more easily.
My son is swallowing up Hammett and Chandler and Stevenson and "Archie' comics and 'Scientific American' and my daughter just about anything, but especially save the planet books, which she is tormenting me with in her version of teen rebellion (which is OK with me!).
I cannot imagine how distressed I would be if my kids did not read for fun.
Anyway - all the best to you , well done on your parenting acheivements and happy reading.
Well done with your kids.
My kids are avid readers - I have a 13yo boy and a nearly 16 year old girl. We have many nights where we have to forceably shut off lights and some bleary eyed mornings when the reading has continued under the sheets.
Both my kids started to read at three - and haven't stopped. They also both like Shakespeare and we are very lucky to have a 'Bard on the Beach' Shakespeare production here in Vancouver, which allows us to go to at least two outdoor productions in the summer. We started gently with Shakespeare with some adapted books when younger, which has made all the difference as they now know the storylines by heart and can appreciate the full versions more easily.
My son is swallowing up Hammett and Chandler and Stevenson and "Archie' comics and 'Scientific American' and my daughter just about anything, but especially save the planet books, which she is tormenting me with in her version of teen rebellion (which is OK with me!).
I cannot imagine how distressed I would be if my kids did not read for fun.
Anyway - all the best to you , well done on your parenting acheivements and happy reading.
8margad
What a wonderful comparison, msbaba! Both of these books are now on my to-be-read list. I love Jane Austin, but Northanger Abbey somehow escaped me. The premise is delightful. And Octavian Nothing sounds fascinating. I had never heard of it until I read your comparison, so I am in your debt.
I do feel I have learned an enormous amount about life from reading novels. I was a very shy kid and a shy young adult, becoming more outgoing relatively late in life. I doubt I would have developed the social skills I have today without the benefit of the many insights into human nature and the variety of human experience I found in novels.
Karenwaradill--oh how vividly I remember my own childhood nights of reading under the sheets by flashlight! My parents were terrified I would wreck my eyes.
I do feel I have learned an enormous amount about life from reading novels. I was a very shy kid and a shy young adult, becoming more outgoing relatively late in life. I doubt I would have developed the social skills I have today without the benefit of the many insights into human nature and the variety of human experience I found in novels.
Karenwaradill--oh how vividly I remember my own childhood nights of reading under the sheets by flashlight! My parents were terrified I would wreck my eyes.
