Children's author: Let kids choose what they want to read
By Yao Minji |
August 26, 2012, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
"MO'S Mischief" follows the family and school life of naughty boy Ma Xiaotiao in a curious and hilarious style. It has become one of the best-selling children's book series since the first was published in 2003.
The series contains 20 books, written by former primary school teacher and children's journal editor Yang Hongying from Sichuan Province. It has been adapted into stage dramas and a popular TV serial drama.
It is also one of the first Chinese children's books to be widely translated into English, French and German.
Ma Xiaotiao, whose name means hopping around, is a naughty and lovable student. Ma is based on one of Yang's former students. Ma's grandfather was going to name him something else, but when he was born, baby Ma just kept hopping around and it was difficult for nurses to get him fixed and weighed. It implied the naughty boy's personality in the future.
"Ma Xiaotiao is not the typical perfect model kid that Chinese parents want to see in children's books. He is like every naught boy in the elementary school and that's why children love reading about him," Yang said.
"In today's modern world, many people feel very lonely and children feel so remote from real life because they get so much information from the Internet. They are losing curiosity, inquiry for knowledge and imagination. And they take everything for granted. I don't want to educate children through my books, but I hope the books can help them in some ways."
In the books, Ma's test scores are only average, and his mischief often gives parents and teachers a headache. Meanwhile, he loves his parents and sister, cares for friends and classmates and is curious about everyone and everything around him. He loves asking why and is persistent in finding the answers.
"I have tried my best to write from a child's perspective. I write about their daily lives through their eyes, and that's probably why they love Ma Xiaotiao, in whom they see their own inquiries and lives," Yang said.
As a best-selling children's writer, she often is asked to recommend books for children, but Yang is reluctant to do so.
"Parents will buy books based on experts' recommendations, which means they will buy a lot of classics or 'good books.' But I think it's more important to respect children's own choices, because it is crucial they love reading from a very young age. You can't make them love books if you force them to read what they don't like," the author said.
The 50-year-old author started writing when she was 19 years old and she started gaining fame with "A Girl's Diary," a series based on the happenings of her own daughter. It was her first attempt to write from a child's perspective.
"When I write for children, I want to offer them a happy childhood and rescue them from study pressure," she said.
The series contains 20 books, written by former primary school teacher and children's journal editor Yang Hongying from Sichuan Province. It has been adapted into stage dramas and a popular TV serial drama.
It is also one of the first Chinese children's books to be widely translated into English, French and German.
Ma Xiaotiao, whose name means hopping around, is a naughty and lovable student. Ma is based on one of Yang's former students. Ma's grandfather was going to name him something else, but when he was born, baby Ma just kept hopping around and it was difficult for nurses to get him fixed and weighed. It implied the naughty boy's personality in the future.
"Ma Xiaotiao is not the typical perfect model kid that Chinese parents want to see in children's books. He is like every naught boy in the elementary school and that's why children love reading about him," Yang said.
"In today's modern world, many people feel very lonely and children feel so remote from real life because they get so much information from the Internet. They are losing curiosity, inquiry for knowledge and imagination. And they take everything for granted. I don't want to educate children through my books, but I hope the books can help them in some ways."
In the books, Ma's test scores are only average, and his mischief often gives parents and teachers a headache. Meanwhile, he loves his parents and sister, cares for friends and classmates and is curious about everyone and everything around him. He loves asking why and is persistent in finding the answers.
"I have tried my best to write from a child's perspective. I write about their daily lives through their eyes, and that's probably why they love Ma Xiaotiao, in whom they see their own inquiries and lives," Yang said.
As a best-selling children's writer, she often is asked to recommend books for children, but Yang is reluctant to do so.
"Parents will buy books based on experts' recommendations, which means they will buy a lot of classics or 'good books.' But I think it's more important to respect children's own choices, because it is crucial they love reading from a very young age. You can't make them love books if you force them to read what they don't like," the author said.
The 50-year-old author started writing when she was 19 years old and she started gaining fame with "A Girl's Diary," a series based on the happenings of her own daughter. It was her first attempt to write from a child's perspective.
"When I write for children, I want to offer them a happy childhood and rescue them from study pressure," she said.
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