Oh, what a delightful little thing this brain is. It forgets the details, but remembers the sentiments, so that when you re-read some of the books you had read and loved years back, it is like re-uniting with old friends after a long time. You know they are the same people deep inside, but lot of things have changed as well and you end up appreciating them in a new light all over again!
Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of re-reading some books that I had read years back, one during my early childhood and another in my early twenties.
The first one I read was the continuation of my beloved Harry Potter series that I am re-reading this year – The Order of the Phoenix. I don’t need to write a review on this, I know I love it and I am biased. With each book that I’ve read so far from the series, with each movie that I’ve watched again after reading the book, I’ve just fallen more in love with the story, the characters and JK Rowling’s creative genius! The story is getting darker now, and every book has a death, the death of a loved character at that. I know what is to come and I can’t even bear thinking about it, but I still want to finish the series and go through the heartbreak all over again.
But when I read the second book from my childhood, Little Women, I realised, that although some themes remain the same in children’s books – themes on friendship, the value of love, family, values of kindness and honour, of bravery and the fun in mischief, I felt that children’s books these days have a much darker and mature tone/plot than children’s books written centuries ago.
This creates the perfect segue for the next book I re-read as part of the BookFairies Classics Readathon – Little Women. My gosh, it felt like candy floss, and cup cakes and unicorns and rainbows and all things sweet, and positive and fresh and hopeful and magical at the same time, reading this book again!
I had read Little Women when I was probably a teenager myself and I remember immediately relating to the bookish and tomboyish Jo, from the gang of sisters then. Now, after so many years, in my late 30s, I still relate somewhat to Jo, but I wish I could be more like the kind and shy Beth š
There are so many brilliant lessons to be found in this book, their mother Mrs March seems like the best mom ever! I hope I have half her wisdom and patience while raising my own daughter. The siblings go through the usual turmoils of going from childhood to adulthood and being girls, they have other worries too. But with each challenge that each daughter faces, they learn how to deal with it. The story is filled with acts of kindness and love and even the most despicable character in the story isn’t despicable enough! There are no villains in this story, who need to be defeated, other than the girl’s own personal challenges. I hope they introduce books like these as part of every child’s growing up syllabus in literature.
I would want my daughter to read and love both Harry Potter and Little Women, as she grows up, but then, who knows. Maybe she will find her own love and lessons from life and find her own demons to slay. Maybe I will be there beside her all along the way, and if not, maybe she will find my blogs and get some inspiration from here š
Questions to you guys š
What is a classic or a favorite book that you really want your child or children to read growing up?
Who was your favorite character from Little Women?
Starry Eyed Enigma 