Book blogger since 2011. YA, MG, Classics, Fantasy, Discussions. Account run by Briana.
Pages Unbound
Loading...
Going to start an account where I just post sensationalist things that aren't true at all like, "OMG did you know schools don't even HAVE books at all these days? Kids graduate from eighth grade never having seen a book! Save school libraries!" so I can start racking up followers and likes.
Criticisms that books without sex are clearly books for kids are very interesting intersecting with all the criticism currently lobbed at spicy romantasy. No sex=kid book. Too much sex=trash. I guess people must have a detailed defintion of what the correct amount is for a "serious" adult book.
I lost the post but saw someone talking about how they probably became a reader because their parents barely let them leave the house, and I had the same experience. Home all summer and you don't go anywhere and you aren't in any sports/activities. I read a lot because there was nothing else to do.
open.substack.com/pub/pagesunb...
I saw a bunch of people posting about how The Lord of the Rings is for little kids and not that good, and I had to x out of that fast before I started replying. 🤣
The percentage of kids reading for fun is definitely down, and I agree it's a problem, but there also wasn't this idyllic past where everyone loved to read because there was no Internet.
My dad is clear that as a child before screens he didn't like to read. He just played outside all the time.
I'm not sure I've even seen someone say WHY they are so certain it's "for kids." Mostly they seem to be implying that all fantasy is for kids, or it's not gritty enough to be "for adults," or there's not enough sex. But none of that holds up as a definition of "book for kids."
I'm all for limiting screentime for kids (and adults too), but I'd think the portable, constantly accessible nature of the phone is a particular issue. Doing online math problems at school on a laptop doesn't explain "why kids don't read" because that would always be "math time" not "reading time."
Is it now a thing to say "phones" when you mean generally "screentime on any device?"
I've now been talking with multiple people who have blamed "phones" for something, but if you say first graders mostly don't HAVE phones, they go, "They have Chromebooks at school." Ok but that's not a phone?
Was There a Recent Past Where "Everyone" Read and Loved the Classics? pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2026/06/10/w...
Pages Unbound
Pages Unbound
Pages Unbound
Background A few years ago, it was trendy for people (teachers, librarians, parents, the average reader) to declare that classics are “out.” They’re not relevant, they’re no…
