Fifty Books a Child Should Read
Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, has said that every child should read fifty books a year. I read a great deal more myself as a child but how is number crunching to help reluctant readers? It seems a goal without a point; surely books should be read for pleasure and to expand the mind rather than to meet some literacy criterion? A list compiled by various interested parties can be found here from The Independent. It’s notable that apart from Michael Rosen’s choices, almost all the picks are of older, classic books. I like everything on Philip Pullman’s list and I love his comparison of Ransome with Mozart but then I adore both.