I never intended to make the point that only books giving the Israeli side should be there at the expense of others. It seems clear from Ann Dubin's review that there are some ambiguous aspects of this book. She indicates that she has placed in the book a recommendation that a child discuss the content with a teacher or parent. She also indicated that one should not look for historical objectivity. What happens if the child reading the book opts not to discuss or clarify the book? Young children are forming opinions and it is important to help them do so with an even balanced approach. If the book was supposed to give a picture of the pain and difficulties that Israeli and Palestinian children have as a result of the conflict why is it necessary to give the impression that a Palestinian child finds nothing wrong in suicide bombing. Is such an opinion valid considering the age of the child or is it an attempt to create an aura with influencing people to sympathize for the reasons behind suicide bombings. If a child in the ghetto made a statement that policeman and whites should all be killed would that be acceptable? We have seen how children are used for bombing missions and when they grow up feel it is an honor to be a suicide bomber. I think when interviewing people we need to look at the bigger picture.
I think a children's book that needs discussion and explanation in order to read it doesn't fulfill its job as children's literature. Can you tell the families that have been victimized by terror that these children and their thoughts need to be understood? I am not advocating massive censorship only the practicing of common sense. Why is no mention made of the fact that a Palestinian state was available in 1948, the leadership chose to drive all the Jews out. The festering of hatred for Israelis came long before the perceived Israeli "occupiers." Eliezer M. Wise Director of Library Services Gratz College 7605 Old York Road Melrose Park, PA 19027 215-635-7300 ext. 159 [EMAIL PROTECTED] <http://www.gratz.edu/>http://www.gratz.edu Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) =========================================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: Hasafran @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu SUBscribing, SIGNOFF commands send to: Listproc @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu Questions, problems, complaints, compliments;-) send to: galron.1 @ osu.edu Ha-Safran Archives: Current: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html History: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/history.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
