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When my child was young, wanting to instill a reading habit in him, I bought many classic children's books and read them to him before bedtime. These included *The Noble Hearts* by the Italian writer Edmondo De Amicis, first published in 1886; * Without a Family * and * Within a Family* by the French writer Hector Malot, published in 1878; and * Robinson Crusoe * by the English writer Daniel Defoe, first published in 1719… I chose these books because, in my time, books and newspapers were scarce, making these titles highly coveted. These works were mostly only heard through children's story programs on the radio. Those who lived in North Vietnam in the 1970s surely won't forget the voice of artist Tuệ Minh reading *The Noble Hearts *. The life lessons, the concepts of honor, friendship, compassion, social responsibility… were expressed in a simple, clear, and moving way through the innocent perspective of the boys and the humane behavior of the adults, which will forever remain with me.
When my child started school, every summer they would ask their parents for money to buy books they liked at the bookstore. The first books they bought themselves now sit quietly on the shelf: "Southern Forest Land" by Doan Gioi, "Treasure Island" by L. Stevenson, "Uncle Tom's Cabin " by Harriet Stowe, and science fiction novels by J. Verne: "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea," "Around the World in Eighty Days," "From Earth to the Moon "... Looking at the books they chose, I feel reassured knowing I've guided them in the right way to read.
Then, in the mid-1990s, the publishing industry boomed with Japanese manga. The intelligent robot cat Doraemon and his goofy friend Nobita created a wave that captivated all children, and my child was no exception. Later, my child bought every manga series imaginable, such as Detective Conan, The Alchemist, Dragon Ball , etc. At that time, I was really worried about my child's language skills if they continued to indulge in this genre. The plots were captivating, the illustrations were unique and beautiful, but the language was poor, mostly just illustrating action words like "BAM!", "Ouch!", and "GRRR!". If this continued, reading too much might backfire, because these manga only pleased the eyes and entertained with their engaging and funny storylines, but their language skills were practically nonexistent.
Luckily, as I grew older, publishers began to focus on translating classic children's books from around the world. "Pippi Longstocking" and "Another Little Boy Emil " by the Swedish classic A. Lindgren; "White Bim with Black Ears" by the Russian writer G. Troyepolsky; "The Strange Adventures of Carik and Valia" by Yan Larri; "The Little Prince" by the French writer Saint-Exupéry... Especially noteworthy was the growing popularity of Nguyen Nhat Anh's books among teenagers, along with the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. It was gratifying to see so many beneficial choices for school-aged children.
It's true that nowadays, when you go to bookstores, you see a scarcity of children's books. The shelves are filled with rows and rows of detective stories, Chinese romance novels, self-help books, feng shui books… Writing stories for children is not easy; it requires a soul that resonates with children, and a childhood that doesn't find itself reflected in the pages of literature. The innocent souls of children are like blank canvases, always needing their first brushstrokes to shape them. Perhaps we should just keep hoping for classic, old-fashioned books.
MERCURY
Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/202505/qua-gia-sach-nho-cua-con-b864cbe/
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