Because I meant to be out of bed at 8:30 but was at 7:30

If you look up you'll find the top looks different than it did before.

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Conversation overheard while shelving, between a mom and two boys:

Older boy: "Can I read this?"

Mom: "What is it?"

Boy: "A normal kid book." [both these boys were wearing button-up shirts and the one might have had a tie, incidentally.]

Mom: "I don't let you guys read those. They have witches and witchcraft in them."

They went on. First she didn't want them to read a book about sports because they always read about sports, and from what I could glean she was trying to nudge them toward getting books about babies (thought I didn't think she looked pregnant) until the littler one finally went, "Look! A book about pink dolphins!"

Older boy: "Yeah, I've heard of those."

Much excitement, they exit (pursued by a bear. Except not. It's just that every time I shelve in the Shakespeare section there's a book that's called Exit, Pursued by a Bear) and I am left to that brand of introspection known as Shelving Contemplation.

First off, I've never agreed that kids shouldn't be allowed to read books like Harry Potter because of the witchcraft content. I think kids are a lot better at distinguishing fact from fiction than they are sometimes given credit for. I read the first one when I was nine or ten, and look, I'm a perfectly well-adjusted almost-adult with harmless nerdy tendencies. There are exceptions, and in the case where a parent knows a kid will come out of a Harry Potter book actually believing that witchcraft is possible (oh boy, how harmful, thinking 'lumos' makes a stick light up and discovering it doesn't) they'll be a little more careful. Altogether, though, I don't consider Harry Potter harmful fiction and I feel sorry for the kids who would like to read 'normal kid books' and can't.

On the other hand (Fiddler on the Roof, anyone?), these kids were genuinely excited about learning. That is the most enthused I've ever seen anyone about a pink dolphin, let alone an eight-year-old boy. They probably knew a lot and they probably thought it was fun to learn what they knew, and I do support that. I also admired how they didn't argue when their mom vetoed Harry Potter (I'm extrapolating that that's what it was, by the way) but accepted the verdict and moved on to the next thing.

When I am a parent (and I plan to be a parent. None of this wishy-washy 'maybe when I have a job and a home and I get bored and have nothing better to do with myself.' Your best childbearing years are 18 to 24, I hear. This 17-year-old would prefer not to waste them) I will find a happy medium. I don't want my kids to be reading everything that everyone else is reading because there is twaddle out there, but at the same time, I got a whole lot of pleasure from discussing Harry Potter with my friends. It's rare to meet a kid that is excited about learning (and I blame that on public school) but everyone loves stories.

On that note, reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb while I wait for A Clash of Kings from the library.