On the Classification of Age Ranges in Literature

[christi0469]

No: HPFGUIDX 32565

 To me the classifiaction of books by genre and age range serves 
mainly to enable librarians and book seller to place the books on 
the currect shelves. As to books being appropriate to one age group 
or another, this is highly subjective. Parents should determine what 
is or is not appropriate for their children, based upon their own 
value structure. I also believe that parents should read books 
before making that determination, instead of relying upon 
classification or media hype(book burnings, 
inflamatory "literature", etc.). As a child I read many books that 
were classified as adult literature, and as an adult I enjoy many 
books that are classified as children's literature. I find that a 
lot of the children's classics are much more appealing to me as an 
adult than they were as a child, especially the older classics. I 
find it unfortunate that marketing often determines how a book will 
be classified, based on maximizing sales.

Christi