My children don't read
BarcelonaMy children don't read, and I've tried not to get upset with them. I always believe there will be a day or a book that will change their mindset, and suddenly, they'll want to read. Maria Pomb is right.Or when he told us that we should assume that there are people who don't like to read. But foolish me, I had swallowed that "if you read, they read" myth, and unfortunately, in our house, this mantra doesn't work. If I have clothes on, no one goes out to the patio, if someone sets the table, they stop it alone, and if I'm reading a novel, my children watch a series.
My children don't read (for now, eh? I haven't lost hope), but my students do. For years, we've blamed screens and labeled young people as being poor readers, as if in our time we were all sitting around during recess reading theAeneidYou have to accept that reading is a fairly minority hobby, whether you're a "boomer" or "generation Z," and reading in Catalan is almost a feat. Besides, I'll tell you something: there are days when I see more books among my students than among the faculty. It's true that we have little time, that at night our eyelids droop, and sometimes there are books that don't engage us and we leave them gathering dust for months in the pile on the nightstand. We're short on time, yes, but also on calm. And without calm, it's impossible to get into a good story.
Many young people do read, and we make it difficult for them. Few school libraries, few advocates among their peers, and messages like "if you read, you'll make fewer mistakes." This is unnerving for anyone. Those of us who are readers, families, and educators must reconsider the marketing we're doing for reading and make it more appealing. And yet, when our children are young, we start off highly motivated and read a story almost every night. But as the years go by, we put it aside and lose sight of the magic of reading aloud.
Bookstagrammers
And despite this situation, young people do read, and we are also very fortunate that many of them share it. I would like to take this opportunity to highlight all the literary critics who are not only great readers but also tell us about it on their social media. They write reviews, make videos, and recommend reading material to help us get through a reading slump or on rainy days. They dedicate hours to recording, editing, and adding voiceovers. off, creating thumbnails and a thousand effects to create the most engaging piece possible and inspire us to read. They don't earn anything because it's very difficult or even impossible to monetize a video about books, especially if it's in Catalan. But they don't care. They continue to publish generously, and all they need is a small acknowledgment in the form of a comment when someone says, "Thanks to you, I started reading again," or "Thank you so much, I loved it."
It's clear that those who talk about books do so out of literary and linguistic activism, without any aspirations of becoming famous or making the leap into a media outlet. And it pains me to see how this pick-and-shovel work done on "bookstagram" is often belittled or undervalued. It's clear that when it comes to working on "ours," they look for familiar faces with a huge following, and therefore, this is incompatible with the creators who have prioritized our language. I only hope this harsh outlook doesn't deter them and that all the young people who fill our screens with books continue to be inspired by the desire to run to our trusted bookstore.
Maria Pombo also said that reading doesn't make you a better person, and she's absolutely right. I wish it weren't so, huh? Can you imagine? Read this trilogy and we'll validate your Nobel Peace Prize. It doesn't make you a better person, but it does make you more empathetic, more open, more tolerant, more critical, more creative, and above all, happier. My children don't read, but I'll keep working hard so that one day they will.