Age changes things. Mom called one Saturday morning and said that she has noticed in her book choices from the Manhattan Public Library, her gravitation towards books in which the theme and characters are familiar.
Gone for now, are the stories of adventure and intrigue. She is now comfortable with farm, war, church related novels. Biographies are still a favorite, but these include the people from her era. Age changes things.
Being a Reading Specialist/Reading Recovery teacher for early readers, books should be given to children to which they have “prior knowledge” or familiarity with the topic to be read. They will bring their own experience to the text and spend less effort trying to figure out ones they have no idea. For example, youngsters from this area cannot relate to the beach, oceans, mountains, or deserts. Young children do not know the thrills of some carnival or theme park rides due to height, weight, or age restrictions. Age changes things.
This is not to say that the patron that comes in and checks out murder or conspiracy thrillers have prior knowledge of killers or traitors. One’s taste in books to read changes over time. Younger readers soon develop a taste for more adventure, love, and romance as they grow.
It is interesting to watch authors slow down their writing with more calm storylines, even writing children’s books with memories of their past sneaking into their stories.
Purchasing books for the library is difficult due to these age variances and tastes, although best seller lists comprised of all of these differences helps tremendously.
A new list of best sellers have been purchased being the first of the month. Come on in and check ’em out!
Age changes things. Today’s mighty oak is just yesterday’s nut that held its ground. And, an older teacher gave a child a book and said, “It’s how people used to install new software into their brains.”
Happy Reading… whatever the age!