So, what is appropriate reading material for a 3 1/2 year old?

When I arrived in St Paul, Seamus was in the process of reading The Wizard of Oz and Peter Pan. By reading, I mean having read to him, of course. He really enjoyed the Wizard, and the color illustrations had a lot to do with that. He and I made our way through it, and as we were reaching the end, I thought it would be nice to have some new books to read to him. So, I looked up the illustrator, and found a book, and immediately ordered it.

And so Beowulf came into our lives. I remember this book being assigned to the other English class in high school. I didn't have to read it, but some of my friends did, and I remembered them being pretty divided about whether or not they liked it. I don't remember ever hearing anything about the story.

As an adult, I've discovered that I really like the classics, and I've gone back to read again books I dragged myself through as a teenager. Beowulf was always on my list to get around to reading eventually. Now was my chance!

The cover was the first clue that maybe I should have researched the story a bit before purchasing. (But aren't the illustrations beautiful?!)

A brief synopsis:

Grendel, the evil ogre, is killing people. Beowulf comes to town and kills Grendel. The people celebrate.

Grendel's mom, the evil sea hag, starts killing people in anger over her son's death. Beowulf goes out to find her, faces the sea serpents, kills them, and ultimately kills the sea hag too. The people celebrate.

A death dragon comes to town and kills people. Beowulf goes out to face it, and kills it, but not before receiving a wound that kills him. The people mourn.

The end

So, what's not appropriate about this story? Its definitely improving his vocabulary. Seamus will be the first kid on his block to know words like 'blood-letting,' slaughter' and 'massacre.'

What has really made this complicated is that this is now his favorite book. I've read it to him twice. I thought about taking a picture with Seamus holding the book, but its in hiding right now.

I'm not sure if he has really forgotten it, though. Even now, as I type this, Seamus is in the other room, having some "private time," if you know what I mean, and I can hear him chanting "beowulf, beowulf" to himself.

This has lead to interesting discussions, however. Below is a picture of Grendel, the evil ogre.

The first discussion was about the fact that Grendel is an evil ogre. Shrek, another Dougherty favorite, is a good ogre. Hmm. There was some brief confusion about this, but its hasn't come up again. We haven't watched Shrek again either, but I'm sure that is a coincedence, and not a sign that this book has ruined the movies for him.

The second discussion started with the question from Seamus: "Did God make Grendel?" As I frantically looked around for his mom or dad to help me with this theological discussion, Seamus let me know that an evil god created Grendel. So, now he understands the concept of polydeism. Isn't that what a god-mother is supposed to teach her god-son?

Anyway, no need to fear. Beowulf is hidden, and with any luck, already fading from his memory. Nevermind the fact that Seamus has taken to stalking me in the backyard like a sea serpent. Or that he keeps pretending that his hands are really claws. I'm sure this will fade in time.

Now, on to Oliver Twist, a wonderful story about an orphan boy sent to work in the factories as a child and beg for more food before being enlisted in a band of kid pickpockets and sent onto into the world of petty larceny. Isn't literature grand?