When Madeline Was Young

You know what is a liberating feeling? Putting a book down and saying, "I don't think I'll finish reading that." For so many years of our lives we are required to finish books, no matter how much we don't want to. Sometimes that can be a good thing, how many high school kids would read Crime and Punishment willingly? And sometimes it can ruin the reading experience (I can't help but think of being forced to read the Chronicles of Prydain in the 6th grade, and hating it, only to re-read the books about 5 years later and discover that they are wonderful). But once you are an adult, you can read whatever you want. And you can read as little or as much of it as you want. But here's the catch: it's not guaranteed that the book you want to read will be censored.

I have been reading When Madeline Was Young by Jane Hamilton. It's a book with an interesting concept: it's about a boy who grows up in a house with his mom, his dad, his sister, and Madeline. Madeline is his dad's first wife. She was in a bicycling accident soon after they were married, and left with the mental capacity of a 7 year old. I mean, really, doesn't that peak your interest a little bit? Anyway, it was a good concept, and the writing wasn't bad (at least the part that I read). But I'm afraid I'm somewhat of a "prude" and I take issue with the use of the F bomb. Especially more than once. And most especially more than once on the same page. Basically we met some punk kid who kept swearing, and I just shut the book and said, "No, I don't need to read that." And I wasn't so involved in the book that I couldn't put it down. So I returned it to the library. Maybe I'm missing out on some good literature by choosing not to read books with foul language. But I really think I'll be just fine.