Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children

[Liberal_in_LA]

Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children

By JULIE BOSMAN
Published: October 7, 2010
Picture books are so unpopular these days at the Children’s Book Shop in Brookline, Mass., that employees there are used to placing new copies on the shelves, watching them languish and then returning them to the publisher.

“So many of them just die a sad little death, and we never see them again,” said Terri Schmitz, the owner.

The shop has plenty of company. The picture book, a mainstay of children’s literature with its lavish illustrations, cheerful colors and large print wrapped in a glossy jacket, has been fading. It is not going away — perennials like the Sendaks and Seusses still sell well — but publishers have scaled back the number of titles they have released in the last several years, and booksellers across the country say sales have been suffering.

The economic downturn is certainly a major factor, but many in the industry see an additional reason for the slump. Parents have begun pressing their kindergartners and first graders to leave the picture book behind and move on to more text-heavy chapter books. Publishers cite pressures from parents who are mindful of increasingly rigorous standardized testing in schools.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/08/us/08picture.html

[BurtWorm]

1. I find this so hard to believe.

I hope it's an exaggeration.

[Pithlet]

3. I hope so, too. n/t

[jmm]

9. I doubt the Brookline bookstore employee was exaggerating.

I use to live there and babysat there quite a bit while I was in high school. I've known way too many parents there like the ones interviewed in the article who thought picture books weren't challenging enough for their six year old.

[Pithlet]

2. That's so sad :(

I loved buying picture books for my kids. I think they're vital in getting them interested in reading.

[BurtWorm]

5. And your kids probably loved them, just as every kid has loved them.

If anyone's killing them, it's stupid fucking parents who'd sign up for extra-early admission to Harvard when their kids were still in the womb if they could. But it's so dumb to deprive kids of the sensual pleasure of picture books just because you think chapter books improve SAT scores. Assholes!

[uncommon]

4. I buy almost exclusively used for my daughter - retail prices for books are just too much.

And we're not poor. We just like books, and I would rather buy 10 used books than 1 new one.

[BurtWorm]

7. Ah! That explains better what's going on here.

They're not being lost as a staple. People are just finding ways to afford them better.

[intheflow]

19. I work in two different public library systems.

Picture books are what circulate most of all our collections. I think it really is partially because the publishers have priced themselves out of their own market.

[HuckleB]

13. Yes, they are VERY expensive!

[Liberal_in_LA]

18. they sure are!

[FedUpWithIt All]

16. I agree that this, not reading interests of little ones, is to blame.

Library, half priced or used. We cannot afford to pay upwards of $18-25 for picture books that the kids will rapidly move on from.

[callous taoboy]

6. All kid's books should just go ahead and have a standardized test at the end.

After all, this is the new literacy.

[jmm]

10. I could joke about making SAT flash cards for infants but...

I probably could get rich doing it.

[Arkansas Granny]

8. That's too bad. Picture books are so much fun.

I have several that I saved when my daughter's children were small that they always thought were special. Now my son's little boys are just about old enough to enjoy Granny's picture books and I can hardly wait to enjoy them again, too.

[left is right]

11. The first book that I bought for my toddler grandson

Was “God’s Dream” by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Beautiful little picture book written in rhyme. I hope he doesn’t outgrow picture books for a long time

[lunatica]

12. I think this is a load of bull

[logosoco]

14. Well, I am really hoping that the case is that people are

just buying used books. I just took a bunch of my kids old picture books over to my daughter's house for my grandsons (ages 2 and 1). It is fun (all over again) to sit there and say "Where is the this or that?".
I would say a majority of those books were purchased used. It's hard to sink a lot of money into something that you know will get bent up and banged around. I have memories of sitting for hours and looking at books. Maybe it was because we didn't have video games?

BTW, my kids(who are really young adults but I still call them my kids!) are all good readers and avid readers. I never had to push them, just started them early and made it fun. And I read, which I think is key to having readers.

[NCarolinawoman]

15. Picture books are a wonderful means for adults to bond with children.

I still remember snuggling up to my grandfather or grandmother (they had more time than my parents, LOL) while they read and I got lost in the illustrations. Sometimes they would pause because I would point to something I saw in the pictures which would prompt me to ask a question.

After the story was over, I would take the book away to some private place and mull it over and "read" it again. I surely learned to love books this way; and, of course. this was most likely a gratifying experience for my grandparents. ;) They sure kept a lot of books on hand!

This is a tradition repeated throughout our modern times; Whether it's grandparents/child, teacher/child. older sibling/child parent/child, etc. It's all for the good.

[cleanhippie]

17. My 14 month old cannot get ENOUGH of picture books!

She will sit and go through book after book after book, for an HOUR or more, alone! She likes it even more when I read with her!

[Luciferous]

20. That's really sad because kids love picture books.

We buy some books that I know my son will enjoy over and over again (Thomas the Tank Engine and Curious George mostly), but most of the time we just get books from the library.

I can't imagine pushing a kindergartner into chapter books, but I'm not obsessed with pushing my kids academically. My kids actually enjoy reading and I know they will benefit from that for a lifetime.

[felix_numinous]

21. Many right brained kids learn best with visual aids!

I bought an illustrated version of a storybook for my nephew to help him with reading, encouraged by a bookstore employee. He loved it.

[DireStrike]

22. I hope it's not some misguided attempt to increase reading of all-text books

I stuck with my picture books for as long as I wanted. Loved 'em. That's why I love reading today.