Guideto

_ children’s books

Those who care deeply what and how much their
children read will seize on “Michele Landsberg’s
Guide to Children’s Books” (Penguin: $12.95) with
relish.

By Andrea Deakin
' Terrace Book Reviewer

She brings fresh air, wisdom and plain common

sense to the discussion of how to encourage children
to read, and how to appreciate what is available for
them, ; :
‘ As we all should, Landsberg ranges the field of
children’s literature available in English, giving ex-
amples of choices from the literature of Great Bri-
tain, the United States, Australia and New Zealand
as well as the growing choice of Canadian books.

As she points out, ‘‘But to choose books on a
strictly nationalistic basis is abhorrent to any book
lover; only a barbarian would propose that Cana-
dians must read only Atwood and Richler and forget
all about Shakespeare and the Bible.”

Choice of books

Just as firmly as she attacks the choice of books on
nationalistic grounds, she attacks choosing books on
the grounds of gender bias, or any other social
reason. “Well read youngsters, who are sensitive in
their family lives to questions of fairness and equali-
ty, will soon be alerted to biases in books, and
perhaps there is something salutary in having to come
to grips with recognizable prejudice in the writings of
those who give us pleasure.”’ The secret lies in giving
our children excellence with well-written, well-
researched books sensitive and deep in their depiction
of character, Landsberg notes.

No punches pulled

Landsberg pulls no punches when it comes to some
writers stripping the mystique and showing clearly, in
her view, the weaknesses which make certain writers
questionable as good reading for children and bring-
ing more sharply into focus fine writers like Diana
Wynne Jones and Jill Paton Walsh.

Books from babyhood

Many people are very concerned with the problem
of illiteracy, a problem whose roots go back to the in-
fancy of children. Writers like Dorothy Butler,
Elaine Moss and Michele Landsberg stress the impor-
tance of introducing children to books from
babyhood.

Landsberg writes at length about the problems of
weaning children from inadequate television, stating
that those who are print-literate will become an in-
creasingly privileged and rare elite. ‘‘They will be the
ones with the power to think, analyze, connect and
create new meaning.”

Elaine Moss quotes the results of research done in
Bradfort, Yorkshire, that reading children were ac-
tive and motivated youngsters. Reading is not only
the way children find out about the world around
them, but also how they begin to understand and ap-
preciate their own and other’s emotional worlds.

Book sources

The main sources from which children draw their
books are the school, the library and the home.
Perhaps of all of these, the home is the most vital, for
it is the attitude of the home to reading that rein-
forces the young child’s attitude to books,

Parents play a vital role in helping a child to be a
reader and Landsberg has fulfilled an important role
in assisting all those connected with children to
understand the importance of books and appreciate
what to look for in choosing books for their children.

Vitality and wisdom

This is an important book, and one that is filled
with vitality and wisdom. ‘I’m convinced that if
adults could overcome their prejudice against child-
like joys, they could gain a great deal of pleasure
from children’s novels and open the door for their
own children’s lifelong reading,” Landsberg said.

” McHappy Day

Malcolm Hilcove, owner/operator of McDonald’s In Ter-
race, along with coordinator Barb Ziraldo, wear the
McHappy Days aprons and badges. McHappy Day is tak-
ing place In the community today, April 2.

Sherry Halfyard photo

Locals benefit

from McHappy Day

TERRACE ~— On
Thursday, March 27 at 1
p.m,, McDonald’s Res-
taurant held a press con-
ference regarding
McHappy Day.
McHappy Day is tak-
ing place Wednesday,
April 2, One dollar from
every Big Mac purchased
on McHappy Day will be
donated to Ronald
McDonald House in
Vancouver and local
children’s charities.
‘“‘Last year eight
families from Kitimat,
six from Terrace, two
from Smithers, four
from Prince Rupert and
one from Burns Lake,
stayed at Ronald
McDonald House in
Vancouver,’ said Mal-
colm Hilcove, owner/
operator of the Terrace
McDonald’s.

Child Sexual Abuse

Sexually abused female chil-
dren who confide in and subse-
quently receive support from their
parents develop more positive
attitudes toward men in their
adult male-female relationships
than victims who do not confide

in parents or another authority -

figure, according to Gail E. Wy-
att, of the UCLA Neuropsychi-
atric Institute and Hospital.

“We found this to be the case
regardless of the severity of the
abuse,"' she said. ‘Parental
support contributed to better
adjustment toward males in
adulthood."’

“Big Bang’ Theory

Scientists using helium bal-
loons to study microwave radia-
tion in space have uncovered the
most convincing evidence yet that
the universe began with a pri-
mordiat fireball known as the
"big bang. 7)

Using measurements taken 24
miles above earth, the researchers
found that relatively short wave-
lengths of the cosmic background
radiation closely fit thespectrum
of light thet would remain from
an exposive creation some 20

, billton years ago.

Ronald McDonald
House has a total of 15
rooms, allotting one
room per family. There
is a minimal charge of $7
per day.. The families
provide their own food
and do their own laundry
while staying in the
facility.

“They found it very»

beneficial to have other
families around. There is
a lot of light at Ronald
McDonald House, it’s a
bright cheerful place,’’
said Hilcove.

The house is located
only 15 minutes from the
children’s hospital in
Vancouver.

The Child Develop-
ment Centres in Terrace
and Kitimat will receive a

split of half the money |

made during McHappy
Day.

Most McDonald's li-
cencees have elected to
send all their money to
Ronald McDonald
House. Hilcove, how-
ever, will leave half the
money raised in the com-
munity,

Among those working
at McHappy Day will be
doctors, nurses, service
club members, Miss Ter-
race, Miss Kitimat, and
the Kitimat Town Crier
announcing the hourly
progress.

Last McHappy Day,
Terrace’s McDonald’s
raised the largest amount
($4,000) for any
McDonald's in B.C. This
year our goal is $6,000,
and we hope to be the
top money-raiser in B.C.
again, said Hilcove.

““‘Where we hope to
get some of the extra
funds his year is through
donations,’” he said,

Terrace Review — Wesineeday, April, 1986 19
Options make
a difference

TERRACE — The book
“A Good Birth — A
Safe Birth’ reflects my
belief that what women
equate with a ‘“‘good’’
birth is also in most
cases, a safe one. I would
urge pregnant parents to
obtain a copy of the
book by Diana Korte
and Roberta Scaer. In
fact, if you only read one
book about birth, this is
the one to get!

by Marianne
Brorup-Weston

Parents must work to
get conditions they desire
surrounding the birth of
their newborn. That
means education. “If
you don’t know your op-
tions, you don’t have
any,’” say Korte and
Scaer in their book.

The following points
have been shown to im-
prove a woman’s sense
of satisfaction as well as
support safety of mother
and baby during bith.
Not everything applies to
everybody all the time. It
is vital that expectant
parents decide what role
you want to play in the
celebration and drama of
their baby’s birth. Once
parents have a solid idea
of what is available to
them, they can design a
birth plan or a hospital
request list which will aid
them in communicating
with their caregiver and
the staff.

Find out as much as
you can about drugs dur-
ing childbirth. All drugs
will cross the placenta to
the baby and involve
some risk. If you want to
avoid the routine use of
analgesia (pain relievers)
or anesthesia (pain
blockers), you must ex-
plore your beliefs and at-
titudes about pain.

Trust

Simple things such as
remaining mobile and
upright, having another
woman you know and
trust with you (‘‘labor
companion’’, ‘‘coach’’)
and feeling safe and sup-
ported increase your
tolerance of pain. So
does the ability to relax.
Giving birth is a very in-
timate and primitive ex-
perience and if we feel at
all vulnerable or
threatened we will react
like all other mammals
— our labour will slow
down. Breathing techni-
ques, formerly thought
to be a wonderful way of
dissociating from pain,
have now been shown to
be of little value as a pain
killer. Whatever works
for you is right.

Getting to know your
doctor’s personal
philosophy about birth
(this is the same if you
are in the care of a mid-

wife) is paramount to
your success. Make a list
of concerns and discuss
them one by one. Don’t
dump 10 questions at
one visit either.
Sometimes, you may
wish to change care-
givers. That is okay. A

sense of deep trust and a

sharing of philosophy is
important,

Support

You may want to ask a
friend, a sister or a train-
ed labor support person
to accompany you and
your partner through the
birth experience. A nurse
often fills this need, but
for many women, a per-
son they know well, who
has worked with them
throughout the preg-
nancy, brings a sense of
comfort and love that a
casual acquaintance or a
stranger cannot. Please
don’t forget that fathers
need nurturing too and a
support person can pro-
vide extra help in this
area,

The last point I want
to make is about inform-
ed consent. What does
that mean, you might
say? Informed consent
means that it is your
right as a patient and
parent to have presented
to you all the risks and
benefits of each pro-
cedure suggested to you
in labor.

For example, if you
are discussing epidural
anesthesia, someone in a
position of authority
must explain to you ex-
actly how it can help
you, and also, just as im-
portantly, how the
epidural can adversely
affect you, the baby
and/or the labor. No
procedure is without a
set of risks. It
demonstrates your sense
of responsibility as a
parent to question
everything. After all,
you are the one who lives
with the end result, not
the hospital and not the
doctor. When pro-
cedures have been used
along with true informed
consent, parental
satisfaction has increas-
ed and the problem of
law suits, reduced,

Discovery

In closing, I would like
to say this: remember
that when it comes down
to the crunch, you are
the only one who knows
what is right for you. In
nine out of 10 cases, no
labor problems will
arise. If you believe in
your ability to give birth,
if you surround yourself
with people who make
you feel strong and
capable and if you in-
form yourself of

modern-day manage-
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