Behold, a conversation held today between myself and a 13-year-old kid named D. The subject: Pulitzer prize-winning literature.
D: (holding up a copy of Jeffrey Eugenides' Middlesex, pulled from a shelf of my classroom library) Hey. Is this a good book?
Me: Yes. Actually, it's an excellent book. One of my favorites, in fact.
D: (smiling suspiciously) Can I borrow it? I think I want to read it.
Me: (frowning) You do know it's not about sex, right?
D: Yeah, I know. I read the back cover. (giggling) It's about a hermaphrodite.
Me: Well, sort of. The protagonist is a hermaphrodite. But it's not only about hermaphrodites; it's also about the history of Detroit.
(pause)
Me: D, do you know what a hermaphrodite is?
D: (giggling) Yeah. (giggles some more)
Me: (deciding against prompting him for a definition) D, what do you think your parents are going to think about you reading this book?
D: They don't care what I read.
(pause)
D: It's pretty big, though. Do you think it's at my reading level?
Me: Well, you know, it did win a Pulitzer prize.
D: So what's that mean, it's hard?
Me: Let's just say that it's probably meant for adults.
D: (his smile widens, undoubtedly because he assumes that by "adult" I mean "pornographic") Okay. I'm going to sign it out, alright? (giggling fit reaches it's peak)
Me: Okay, D. You let me know how it works out for you.
D: (holding up a copy of Jeffrey Eugenides' Middlesex, pulled from a shelf of my classroom library) Hey. Is this a good book?
Me: Yes. Actually, it's an excellent book. One of my favorites, in fact.
D: (smiling suspiciously) Can I borrow it? I think I want to read it.
Me: (frowning) You do know it's not about sex, right?
D: Yeah, I know. I read the back cover. (giggling) It's about a hermaphrodite.
Me: Well, sort of. The protagonist is a hermaphrodite. But it's not only about hermaphrodites; it's also about the history of Detroit.
(pause)
Me: D, do you know what a hermaphrodite is?
D: (giggling) Yeah. (giggles some more)
Me: (deciding against prompting him for a definition) D, what do you think your parents are going to think about you reading this book?
D: They don't care what I read.
(pause)
D: It's pretty big, though. Do you think it's at my reading level?
Me: Well, you know, it did win a Pulitzer prize.
D: So what's that mean, it's hard?
Me: Let's just say that it's probably meant for adults.
D: (his smile widens, undoubtedly because he assumes that by "adult" I mean "pornographic") Okay. I'm going to sign it out, alright? (giggling fit reaches it's peak)
Me: Okay, D. You let me know how it works out for you.
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