Why kids should read beyond their years and grade level

Reading books meant for adults can expand their understanding of the complexity of the world.

  • By John Warner Chicago Tribune
  • Sunday, August 26, 2018 1:30am
  • Life

By John Warner / Chicago Tribune

I was lucky to grow up in a house full of books, and most of the books, as befits a house where the adults were in charge, were books for adults. There were books in every room, really, but a set of built-ins in the living room had the bulk of the titles. For years and years, I ignored them.

Until I didn’t.

Right around the transition to junior high, I sensed a void in my reading. I was moving past the books that had sustained me as a kid, things like the Matt Christopher sports novels, or “The Chronicles of Narnia” and “The Dark Is Rising” series. Judy Blume’s books filled some of the void, and I made my way through probably 80 percent of the Newbery medalists, but I finished five books a week, and I’d outstripped the supply, even with rereading.

This was the 1980s, before the young-adult literature boom. There were books for children and books for adults, but not much — or at least not enough — for those of us in between.

So I started sneaking books from the living room shelves. I’m not certain my parents would have objected had I asked, but in my mind, there was something vaguely forbidden about them. The shelves were crowded enough that I could snag one without notice.

I started with war books: Herman Wouk (“The Winds of War,” “War and Remembrance”) and “The Longest Day” by Cornelius Ryan, an exhaustive telling of the gliderborne soldiers who preceded the assault on Normandy.

I moved on to “Exodus” by Leon Uris, intrigued and intimidated by its heft. I’d never read a book that long, and tackling something that big felt like the act of a grown-up. I cannot say that I fully grasped the full import of the epic about the Jewish diaspora at the founding of Israel, but I read every page.

In hindsight, I can see how I benefited from reading these books that were arguably beyond me — not in terms of vocabulary, but in the way they expanded my understanding of the complexity of the world. I realized there were so many things I simply did not know, that there truly was a life on Earth much richer and confounding than what I’d experienced up to that point as a contended, largely sheltered young suburban white boy.

Once or twice, I may have tapped into something that was arguably inappropriate — “The Clan of the Cave Bear,” when I was 12 or 13, for example. But even when my reach exceeded my grasp, as with my experience of Tom Wolfe’s “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” my confusion was always outstripped by my excitement to learn new things.

My view of the adult world was confined to those living room bookshelves, and even that world was far more vast than I could’ve ever hoped to fully understand.

But it’s different today, with vast amounts of information literally at our fingertips, as children as young as 2 or 3 tap at screens, accessing Lord only knows what.

One enduring lesson I learned that I believe transcends generations is that it’s a good thing to wade into the deep every so often to see if you can safely swim to shore. In graduate school, I quickly learned “I like to read books” wasn’t going to be sufficient to engage with what was being put in front of me.

I survived it by remembering what it felt like to lie in my bed, a big adult book heavy on my chest, each page turned making me into someone new.

John Warner is the author of “The Funny Man” and “Tough Day for the Army.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

What’s Up columnist Andrea Brown with a selection of black and white glossy promotional photos on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Free celeb photos! Dig into The Herald’s Hollywood time capsule

John Wayne, Travolta, Golden Girls and hundreds more B&W glossies are up for grabs at August pop-up.

Rodney Ho / Atlanta Journal-Constitution / Tribune News Service
The Barenaked Ladies play Chateau Ste. Michelle in Woodinville on Friday.
Coming events in Snohomish County

Send calendar submissions for print and online to features@heraldnet.com. To ensure your… Continue reading

Edmonds announces summer concert lineup

The Edmonds Arts Commission is hosting 20 shows from July 8 to Aug. 24, featuring a range of music styles from across the Puget Sound region.

Big Bend Photo Provided By Ford Media
2025 Ford Bronco Sport Big Bend Increases Off-Road Capability

Mountain Loop Highway Was No Match For Bronco

Cascadia College Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Midori Sakura looks in the surrounding trees for wildlife at the North Creek Wetlands on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Cascadia College ecology students teach about the importance of wetlands

To wrap up the term, students took family and friends on a guided tour of the North Creek wetlands.

Mustang Convertible Photo Provided By Ford Media Center
Ford’s 2024 Ford Mustang Convertible Revives The Past

Iconic Sports Car Re-Introduced To Wow Masses

Kim Crane talks about a handful of origami items on display inside her showroom on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Crease is the word: Origami fans flock to online paper store

Kim’s Crane in Snohomish has been supplying paper crafters with paper, books and kits since 1995.

The 2025 Nissan Murano midsize SUV has two rows of seats and a five-passenger capacity. (Photo provided by Nissan)
2025 Nissan Murano is a whole new machine

A total redesign introduces the fourth generation of this elegant midsize SUV.

A woman flips through a book at the Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Pop some tags at Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley

$20 buys an outfit, a unicycle — or a little Macklemore magic. Sales support the food bank.

The Mukilteo Boulevard Homer on Monday, May 12, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Homer Hedge’: A Simpsons meme takes root in Everett — D’oh!

Homer has been lurking in the bushes on West Mukilteo Boulevard since 2023. Stop by for a selfie.

Sarah and Cole Rinehardt, owners of In The Shadow Brewing, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Arlington, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In The Shadow Brewing: From backyard brews to downtown cheers

Everything seems to have fallen into place at the new taproom location in downtown Arlington

Bar manager Faith Britton pours a beer for a customer at the Madison Avenue Pub in Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Burgers, brews and blues: Madison Avenue Pub has it all

Enjoy half-price burgers on Tuesday, prime rib specials and live music at the Everett mainstay.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.