as most of you know I have been an avid reader, since I was very little. It was easy for me to get lost in the fantasy worlds created by my favourite authors.
One of the first worlds I discovered from a very young age was the Land of Oz created by L Frank Baum. The Wizard of Oz aired every Easter and maybe Thanksgiving, and was always a must watch in my home, when i was growing up.
When I was old enough to read, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was the second book that I read on my own. I mustve been 7 or 8 yrs old. Not too long after that I would beg my mom to take me to the Library to borrow more books and soon found that the author had written 15 books in total. I read them all within a month.
As I was growing up I was able to find other worlds to visit and lose myself within the pages of books by P.L.Travers, Roald Dahl, Madeleine L'Engle, J.R.R. Tolkien, Frank Herbert, C. S. Lewis, to name a few. They were some of the ones that helped me to escape the ghetto I was growing up in and live in a different place, where no one knew me and I could be anyone I wanted to be.
This morning as I was walking Dusty to his bus, he told me he was happy that he had chosen Boba Fett's costume to dress up in this yr. I asked why he liked the "bad guys" so much, as he isnt a naughty child, and rarely, if ever, misbehaves. He said that no one is good all the time and he believes the opposite is also true. He believes most villains are misunderstood.
Dustin has been reading alot the past two months and has chosen books such as Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, and most recently The Strange Case of Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde. He likes looking at the other side of the coin, because he believes that people are inherently good and the ones that do bad are just retaliating for some wrong done against them.
Not that long ago i was introduced to an author that specializes in telling the other side. His name is Gregory Maguire. The first book that I read by this Devil's advocate, was "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" which portrays Cinderella as a spoiled little rich girl who takes on the role of scullery maid of her own accord.
Most recently I read "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West". It was the most incredible book i'd ever read. I found myself doing something I rarely do....... I identified with the character Elphaba. She is the girl that ultimately becomes the Wicked witch of the West.
Hers is one of the most misunderstood characters of our time. She is essentially a good person who endeavors to do right by her beliefs. Never having really known compassion and caring for most of her life she is unsure how to give it and pushes away any and all people that love her.
I wont spoil it for you. You really should read it.
I suppose my point here is that in reading the book I became disillusioned. It turned beloved characters into fiends and pompous twits. It transformed my childhood fantasy of the land of Oz into a totalitarian society where no one was safe.
I no longer wish to visit the Emerald City, or explore the Deadly Desert, or set foot on the Yellow Brick Road. I refuse to watch that silly movie ever again. I never thought I would feel this way, but perhaps I have lost the very last of my childhood.
Tho I am a bit sad, I am also realising a change in myself. I used to be very cynical, even as a child, tho I loved my fantasy worlds, I knew they werent real and that when I closed the book, I was still going to be the same little girl I always was.
That isnt true anymore.
Elphaba was as real to me as any of you reading this now. She was a sad woman that met a sad end, and from reading her life story I think I know what I have to do to make myself better for me and the ones I love.
If this is what being disenchanted means for me then so be it. I'd rather live in this world than one of make believe. My world is magical enough for me without having to pretend I am someone else.
On the flip side......I HOPE beyond HOPE that Dustin never loses his innocence this way. I hope its a gradual thing that he is comfortable with, and not a blow to his mind like mine was...
One of the first worlds I discovered from a very young age was the Land of Oz created by L Frank Baum. The Wizard of Oz aired every Easter and maybe Thanksgiving, and was always a must watch in my home, when i was growing up.
When I was old enough to read, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was the second book that I read on my own. I mustve been 7 or 8 yrs old. Not too long after that I would beg my mom to take me to the Library to borrow more books and soon found that the author had written 15 books in total. I read them all within a month.
As I was growing up I was able to find other worlds to visit and lose myself within the pages of books by P.L.Travers, Roald Dahl, Madeleine L'Engle, J.R.R. Tolkien, Frank Herbert, C. S. Lewis, to name a few. They were some of the ones that helped me to escape the ghetto I was growing up in and live in a different place, where no one knew me and I could be anyone I wanted to be.
This morning as I was walking Dusty to his bus, he told me he was happy that he had chosen Boba Fett's costume to dress up in this yr. I asked why he liked the "bad guys" so much, as he isnt a naughty child, and rarely, if ever, misbehaves. He said that no one is good all the time and he believes the opposite is also true. He believes most villains are misunderstood.
Dustin has been reading alot the past two months and has chosen books such as Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, and most recently The Strange Case of Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde. He likes looking at the other side of the coin, because he believes that people are inherently good and the ones that do bad are just retaliating for some wrong done against them.
Not that long ago i was introduced to an author that specializes in telling the other side. His name is Gregory Maguire. The first book that I read by this Devil's advocate, was "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister" which portrays Cinderella as a spoiled little rich girl who takes on the role of scullery maid of her own accord.
Most recently I read "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West". It was the most incredible book i'd ever read. I found myself doing something I rarely do....... I identified with the character Elphaba. She is the girl that ultimately becomes the Wicked witch of the West.
Hers is one of the most misunderstood characters of our time. She is essentially a good person who endeavors to do right by her beliefs. Never having really known compassion and caring for most of her life she is unsure how to give it and pushes away any and all people that love her.
I wont spoil it for you. You really should read it.
I suppose my point here is that in reading the book I became disillusioned. It turned beloved characters into fiends and pompous twits. It transformed my childhood fantasy of the land of Oz into a totalitarian society where no one was safe.
I no longer wish to visit the Emerald City, or explore the Deadly Desert, or set foot on the Yellow Brick Road. I refuse to watch that silly movie ever again. I never thought I would feel this way, but perhaps I have lost the very last of my childhood.
Tho I am a bit sad, I am also realising a change in myself. I used to be very cynical, even as a child, tho I loved my fantasy worlds, I knew they werent real and that when I closed the book, I was still going to be the same little girl I always was.
That isnt true anymore.
Elphaba was as real to me as any of you reading this now. She was a sad woman that met a sad end, and from reading her life story I think I know what I have to do to make myself better for me and the ones I love.
If this is what being disenchanted means for me then so be it. I'd rather live in this world than one of make believe. My world is magical enough for me without having to pretend I am someone else.
On the flip side......I HOPE beyond HOPE that Dustin never loses his innocence this way. I hope its a gradual thing that he is comfortable with, and not a blow to his mind like mine was...
Thoughts???
o his mind like mine was...
Thoughts???
Thoughts???
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