COMPLEX social problems should not be banned or taken away from children’s stories and young adult (YA) literature, international children’s author Sophia Lee said in a lecture.
Among the topics that should be discussed are LGBTQIA (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual) issues, war, and global conflicts.
“There are more books that are being banned [due to] themes that some people deem inappropriate for kids,” Lee told the Varsitarian. “But really, it’s not inappropriate; it’s more that adults are scared to discuss those things with their kids.”
Lee’s lecture, titled “Writing for the Young and Writing for the Heart,” focused on the facets of writing children’s and YA literature.
“These books should exist so that kids can learn from them so that we don’t repeat our history,” Lee said.
Some popular children’s and YA books that she referenced include fan favorites “Harry Potter,” “Goosebumps,” and “Are You Afraid of the Dark?”
Lee cited “Harry Potter” as an example of a book that can help encourage kids to become “more tolerant” as they grow older.
“There’s an old study [that] said the kids who grew up reading ‘Harry Potter’ grew up to be more tolerant as adults. So there should be more books like that. I think we should be writing them,” she urged.
As a children’s author herself, Lee stressed the importance of literature during the developmental phase when children are learning about the world around them.
“It’s very important [that] they’re (children) reading in their formative years when they’re molding the kind of person that they’re going to be. And I think that’s what distinguishes children’s books and young adults from the rest of the books out there,” Lee said.
Apart from sensitive topics, the author also emphasized the need to write about hope.
“I like that books from these genres are written with hope in mind because they know that most of the readers will grow up to be the adults of the future, and they have a hand in building the kind of world that we hope to have,” she said.
Lee has two books in the works: a picture book titled “Nine Mornings” and another untitled project about Kapampangan food.
Her lecture was part of the UST Center for Creative Writing and Literary Studies’ (CCWLS) International Authors and Scholar Series. R.P.P. Salaya
