Goodbye to Childish Things..

Quite an interesting read [listen], the article did not really go in the direction I expected. But the question I was left with, before I thought about the content of the article was, can you really say Lord of the Rings is a 'childish thing'?.

"Let me say, from the experience of years, that I'm not sure this is good for us. Real people — maybe you've heard this — are slightly more difficult to handle than imaginary people. Even more than Balrogs; and Balrogs, as everybody knows, are a pain. I'm raising children now — a challenge, by the way, on which J.R.R. Tolkien sheds no light at all — and I see them drawn to the flickering, dimly lit holes leading from our house to the other worlds — the TVs and movies and computer games — and I can understand the almost overwhelming urge to crawl through. But I also wonder if, like me, when they grow up and have to say farewell to childish things, they'll have nothing real to let go of."

He makes an interesting point about real people (and by extension issues) are harder to deal with in real life, than the online-game prepares you for. Maybe there is scope for research into the skills people learn from an online-community - because in some ways games like these are akin to team sports.

I also wonder if the new generation of books made for the e-readers will be enabled with multiple tangents defined by the interests of, or interaction with the reader. Maybe they will be harder to write, but possible rewarding in a different way.

As for me, and my reading habits though, I have to admit, I'm old fashioned and definitely prefer the paperback.