Stories can empower teenage readers and challenge their parents and teachers, says Melvin Burgess.
Melvin Burgess in
Paris Photo:
Getty
Books fulfil many roles – they can be comforting, they can be distracting,
they can take us places we’d never normally go. But my favourite books,
generally speaking, are empowering books – books that give us a little bit more
understanding about the world, and ourselves in particular. Such books for
children are not always comfortable for adults. Bringing up kids is a long
process of letting go, and it’s easier to keep them on the rails, by and large,
where we know what’s going on.
Not Now, Bernard, by David
McKee, may seem an odd place to start. What’s empowering about a child whose
parents utterly ignore him from beginning to end, even when he turns into a
monster? But showing young children that their parents can be idiots too is
empowering, in the way that any new handle on those close to us is. This book
does it humorously and fondly, and gives grown-ups a chance to laugh at
themselves.
Roald Dahl never won a prize in his life, and the reason adults found him
hard to take was because his humour is so merciless – but never at a cost to a
child. Being naughty, downtrodden or poor is no impediment here. Surely no child
can read one of his books without coming out rejoicing in the feeling that
they’re capable of kicking a little more adult ass than before they began.
As young people get older, we become increasingly worried about empowerment.
The ground they are claiming is more adult, more active and involves far less
parental guidance. Robert Cormier, who was writing stuff for teens before anyone
else even thought of it, produced some very challenging books. My favourite is
Heroes. A young war vet returns
with his face burned off, to take revenge on a former role model who abused the
girl he loved. Cormier was an expert in showing us that the people we admire
most can actually be bad for us – not always an easy thing for parents or
teachers to accept, but an important part of growing up.
Once you get deeper into the teen years many young people are forced outside
the teen genre to find books that really blow their minds. I could mention some
of the safe options: Kurt Vonnegut, who makes you love human beings for their
weaknesses rather than their strengths; George Orwell, for showing that honesty
is not achieved simply by telling the truth, but is a difficult, dynamic
process.
But I’d like to end by nominating A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony
Burgess. A child’s book, I hear you say? A book many teenagers love, I answer.
It’s about power, the abuse of power, the attraction of violence. It offers no
answers at all, and notions we are all uncomfortable with. Like many of the best
books, it’s difficult to say what parts of the mind it challenges. I’m certain
it does, though.
The Hit by Melvin Burgess is published by Chicken House (£7.99). He is appearing at the Telegraph Hay Festival on May 30 (hayfestival.org)
The Hit by Melvin Burgess is published by Chicken House (£7.99). He is appearing at the Telegraph Hay Festival on May 30 (hayfestival.org)
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