De Engelse young adult auteur Kevin Brooks heeft de Cilip Carnegie Medal ontvangen voor zijn meest recente roman Bunkerdagboek. Maar niet iedereen was het ermee eens.
Toen eenmaal bekend was dat Bunkerdagboek de Carnegie Medal had gewonnen begonnen de online ‘rellen’.
The Guardian scheef:
Opinions among the book’s target readers appeared to be mixed, with one parent commenting on the Guardian’s news story that The Bunker Diary had “freaked out” her 12-year-old daughter and sickened and disturbed her 15-year-old son.
“This book should have a warning on the cover, and should not be allowed to be read by children under 16 years of age.”
“This book should have a warning on the cover, and should not be allowed to be read by children under 16 years of age.”
Kevin Brooks is het er niet mee eens. Hij vindt dat jongeren niet voorzien moeten worden van artificiële hoop in boeken want niet alles in het leven loopt goed af.
‘There is a school of thought that no matter how dark or difficult a novel is, it should contain at least an element of hope’, zei Brooks tijdens de ceremonie. ‘As readers, children – and teens in particular – don’t need to be cossetted with artificial hope that there will always be a happy ending. They want to be immersed in all aspects of life, not just the easy stuff. They’re not babies, they don’t need to be told not to worry, that everything will be all right in the end, because they’re perfectly aware that in real life things aren’t always all right in the end. To be patronizing, condescending towards the reader is, to me, the worst thing a Young Adult fiction author can do.’
Lees hier ook het interview dat Joukje Akveld maakte voor Vrij Nederland.
