Shortlist

I have yet to meet Vanessa at Fidra Books but I was delighted to look at her blog this morning and discover that her Children's Bookshop is on the shortlist for a 'best bookshop' award. It is the sort of publicity such places of undoubted excellence need.
Buying a book for children is not a matter of picking up anything that comes to hand in a Target, K-Mart or Big W. Books for children need to be chosen with care. I continue to be concerned at the books for children which sit on the local library shelves. The central committee still has not managed to learn that, like adults, children read fiction for entertainment. They do not want endless stories about social issues lightened with a little Lemony Snickert. ("They're all right but they are all the same" is what I have been told about the latter.) Harry Potter may not be great literature but it is much more the sort of thing children want to read - and they may go on to Diana Wynne Jones and others as a consequence.
This is why Vanessa's venture is so important. It provides at least some of the 'lose yourself in a great adventure' type experiences. The fact that it is not world shattering literature is not important. It is accessible literature and that is important.
And, speaking of access, Julia Gillard is saying we must get more students from lower socio-economic groups into university. It seems that we have to do this regardless of whether they have the capacity or the interest in being there. My view is that we should be getting the best students into university - but only if they want to be there. Motivation is everything at tertiary level.