SENTINEL WATCH January 2, 2006 Issue

HARRY POTTER AND THE QUESTION OF GOOD AND EVIL

JIM BENCIVENGA

J. K. ROWLING, author of the phenomenally successful Harry Potter books, touches a chord in the hearts and minds of young readers. Millions of children gobble up her works as soon as a new one (six so far) is published.

Parents want their children to read good books—literature, history, biography, and science. It is natural for a parent to suggest stories that stimulate a healthy and robust imagination, that point a child toward the infinite horizon to be had by reading. Indeed, instilling the habit of daily reading for a young one is one of the joys of parenthood. And doing so can't start too early.

But whether it be bedtime tales for a toddler, story time at the public library, or Bible lessons in Sunday School, reading is such a critical thought adventure for children that parents have the crucial role of monitoring the content carefully.