Much to our luck, we have a full series of "Little Golden Books" from my mom - yes HER collection from when she was a child. This one in particular was pubished in 1954. So....let's first put in perspective in 1954:
- polio vaccine firs administered to kids
- Vietnam split into two north/south entities
- Eisenhower is President
- racial segregation is officially banned in pubic schools
- US national debt is only a quarter of a billion dollars
- World Series first broadcast in color on TV
OK....we have the image of the era officially in our minds. So - any guess to the actual context of this book?
HELLO!!!! I can not believe I actually read this to my kids....the violence and language was so terse....I found myself reading the page very quickly to myself to "modify" the story as needed for '2011 appropriateness'. Wow...the question becomes - why did I feel the need to do that? I know Hansel and Gretel is not a pleasant story....but somehow was shocked the way it was written. I was read this book when I was younger - and I turned out ok. Do I shield my kids too much?...Should I read it as is? Wow....I feel like I have fallen into the current society trap of overprotecting my children - at the basic level of bedtime stories.
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