The Eldest is now a delighted reader. Okay, so he got stuck on 'discrimination' last Sunday, but he nailed something equally tricky today. He's just exploding into the world of books. Which is good, because when the teachers warned us parents at the start of the year that not every kid would be reading by the end, we were all sure that OUR kid wasn't going to be the one. I do so love to be right. (Of course, he's three years behind me, so still. I get to be right and have angst. Perfection!)He'll read shorter and longer paper books to the Toddles, to himself, and now...comics. Yep, the Eldest has discovered Calvin and Hobbes, and he's riveted. Delighted as I am to see him reading, I noted that he was also considering the use value of the comics.
I regretted deeply to inform him that, while Calvin can do or say any number of things (such as calling his dinner 'bat barf'), these were unlikely to be well recieved at Chez Imperfect. The Eldest considered, and solemnly agreed.
Still, I suspect it's a matter of time before we are calvined. After all, the other day I came upon the Toddles, and I'm nearly certain that the child was taking notes.
Oh, and what am I reading? Beyond mountains of research for an upcoming article, I'm deep into Taleb's The Black Swan, to the Man's surprise and delight. It's surprisingly fun, mostly because Taleb is cheating wildly - having insisted that we use narrative to create a recognizeable, soothing pattern to our world (thereby allowing us to ignore the chance of the improbable - a.k.a. a black swan - happening), he's using narrative to prove that we shouldn't. Heh.
Besides, as a native (tho' transplanted) Aussie, I always knew that black swans existed, even before the somewhat improbable Eldest turned up to nudge my memory.
2 comments:
i managed to keep boy from reading calvin and hobbes until he was in his teens. one thing that the comics are good for, aside from the very astute, applicable and wonderful humour, is that they're great to colour.
i also colour andy capp and garfield comics :)
I've loved Calvin & Hobbes since my teens (I'm nearly 35), and have a few books I've kept since then. My boys discovered them a few years back. Maybe it was because of the "teen girl" factor, but I had never viewed C&H as a Behavior Manual or Book of Great Ideas. My boys, however, seem delighted to view the books as both entertainment and as an endless source of suggestions for real life. I'd never realized how unapologetically naughty Calvin was until my boys started getting into him. Still, though, I find the comics hilarious, and find it strangely pleasing that my kids love the same things that I do.
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