At last week’s family storytime I read stories about monsters. All the best Halloween books were checked out, but there are a ton of monster stories out there.
Some of the stories chosen for storytime were: Monster Goose by Judy Sierra, Leonardo the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems, Harry and the Terrible Whatzit by Dick Gackenbach, Shrek by William Steig, Dexter Bexley and the Big Blue Beastie by Joel Stewart, Dogzilla by Dav Pilkey and There’s a Nightmare in my Closet by Mercer Mayer.
One thing I noticed over and over again in these books, and some others that I didn’t use for storytime was the theme of monsters turning out to be not so bad after all. In story after story a monster, who stands for all those scary things that we are afraid of, turns out to just be lonely and in need of a good friend. The monster is suddenly seen to be something that isn’t scary at all.
I realize that these are picture stories and intended for an audience who needs to be reassured about their fears in a simple and entertaining way. Still, as an adult reader of picture books I am always seeing lessons in them that could be applied to those of us with a little bit more life experience under our belt.
Maybe it’s time we got a little bit better acquainted with our fears and insecurities. Whether it’s a phobia about spiders or the stress and anxiety of keeping current with monthly expenses, it’s possible we might find that our monsters aren’t so terrible after all. If we got to know our monsters a little bit better, could they even turn out to be our friends like so many of the monsters from picture books?
My Books
This is a good lesson for adults, too! Or, for this adult!
While I don’t completely buy into the cliche “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” I do think it’s tougher for adults (or, this adult!) to internalize such lessons. I can hear or read an idea over and over again, but living it — that means being able to slow down and think before I react. Still, it’s amazing how many times in my life I’ve thought, “Wow, I’m acting just like the [insert weak character from a favorite book]!” or “Jane Eyre [or another favorite character] would never have behaved like this!” This recognition has – not always but often – encouraged me to reevaluate my position or actions.
Christina: You could probably make big bucks marketing your own WWJED (What would Jane Eyre Do?) t-shirts. I’ve often found myself yelling at (yes, sometimes aloud) at book characters for doing stupid things, but the truth is I have done some of these same dumb things myself. I suppose there are things that can be learned from unlikable characters as well as likable ones.
I agree that most things, upon closer inspection, aren’t nearly as bad and mean and scary as our imaginations think they are.
But spiders just have so many legs!
Well, by those standards, then centipedes must be absolutely terrifying!