The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-14
On Writing Juveniles
By FANNIE FERBsTEIN.

Of control parents exercise over their
children to-day. ] am astourded at
the way oil young people do exactly
what they please without even hint
ing to their parents how their lives
are lived, What can you expect but
unbridled lawlessnes in an age when
the young are responsible to no one?
1t IL very shocking and far more
serious than we dream. Certainly
believe In indlvidualism of the chill
dren, but not anarchy. In spite Of
this sad inadequacy of modern par
ents / find the children remarkably
sweet and refreshing, though this is
due entirely. ] believe. to The mod
ern community agencies Will II have
stepped in and saved the child in spite
Of It's weak or Indifferent parents.
That is why I enjoy writing books
on all these Scout and other crsaniza-
ton movements"
The better books for children" idea
is in actual force every day at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, accord
ing to the programmes of the story
telling hours given by Miss Anna
Curtis Chandler. During the October
Sundays Miss Chandler told before
audiences averaging nine hundred peo-
pie, which included children an3 their
parents mostly from the East Side,
tales of THE French Maid OF DOM
remy," when an Assyrian Prince
Went Lion Hunting" Beautiful Queen
Thy of Egypt" "At the English Court
With Baby Stuart" 1.-The Adventures
of a shipwrecked Sailor" which last
is merely a sugar coating for the
"Odysseus." On week days these
stories are retold in detail 20 those
children unable to attend the Sunday
hour and these smaller classes often
act out the tales.
II arrange the stories around the
objects of art in the museum, and then
we have all sorts of guessing games,
describing OF. taking the pose of OBJ
jects in the galleries, putting puzzles
together of paintings, tapestries, furni-
ture drawing in crayons from objects
having to do with the story they heard
the previous week, taking turns lead
| ing to the galleries, for, of course,
the children are very proud of all
these privileges. All this stimulates
their desire to read further about the
subjects touched upon here and the
lives of future American citizens are
enriched by their ability to enjoy
beauty. We reached forty-flve thou
sand children last year who learned
to enjoy not only beauty of workman
ship but line, color and form, apd
they will enjoy these things in their
homes, lin school. in dress, out of
doors. They learn to CONNECT art with
the lives of people of long ogo and
the now, and thus their ambitions are
stirred, for the study of art and lives
of different peoples creates. ideals"
Sometimes we are really puzzled"
said Miss Moore, who is in Charge Of
the Juvenile reading department of
the New York Public Library, when
the girls of twelve to sixteen who
have read most of our good fiction
come to us with What should I read
now? I am looking hopefully for more
books from writer's like Cornelia Meigs,
who created a real boy and girl in her
Pool of Stars and whose Master
Simons Garden a story of Pilgrim
days, has a historical background; or
another Understood Betsy by Dor
othy Garfield.
Real children's lives are so much
more interesting than the tales con-
cocted about vapid boarding school
girls, or impossible boys who were
miraculously present at every great
battle of the great war. or who dash
about from one improbable adventure
to another. The rich field of Ameri-
can childhood life to-day is practically
untapped as yet. Children. being
plastic unprecedented, deserve TO have
their minds filled with the Test in
stead Of the worst OF course there
will always be a large class Of chill
dren who will never get beyond just
the popular fiction stage, just because
there are so many parents Who are
nothing but light magazine leaders.
But for those who come to us. eager,
hungry for the best. we beg the best
from the best authors"