--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even the classics that we read to our…" description: "\"Even the classics that we read to our young children are full of wolves' fangs and burning ovens and bloody feet and ice shards piercing hearts. Even t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/geraldine-brooks-1324_amnesty_even-the-classics-that-we-read-to-our-yo_294898.jpg" --- # Even the classics that we read to our young children are… ![“Even the classics that we read to our young children are full of wolves' fangs and burning ovens and bloody feet and ice shards piercing hearts. Even the New Testament climaxes with an act of unspeakable torture. Might as well just read to our kids from the Amnesty Annual Report and be done with it.” quote by Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/geraldine-brooks-1324_amnesty_even-the-classics-that-we-read-to-our-yo_294898.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/geraldine-brooks-1324_amnesty_even-the-classics-that-we-read-to-our-yo_294898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/geraldine-brooks-1324_amnesty_even-the-classics-that-we-read-to-our-yo_294898.jpg) > “Even the classics that we read to our young children are full of wolves' fangs and burning ovens and bloody feet and ice shards piercing hearts. Even the New Testament climaxes with an act of unspeakable torture. Might as well just read to our kids from the Amnesty Annual Report and be done with it.” [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Classic children’s stories often contain graphic violence, suggesting that exposure to harsh realities may be unsettling for young minds. **In simple terms:** Kids’ books can be very violent. Key Takeaway Consider age‑appropriate content. Themes childhood violence media literacy parenting censorship Mood concerned reflective Type critical analytical When to use this quote - reading aloud - selecting books - discussing themes with children Key Concepts psychology cultural norms storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance truth and protection? - What stories teach empathy without trauma? A Different Perspective Violence can be contextual and teach resilience when guided. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amnesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amnesty/) [Annual reports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/annual-reports/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Ice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ice/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [New testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-testament/) [Piercings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piercings/) [Testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/testament/) [Torture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torture/) [Unspeakable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unspeakable/) [Wolves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wolves/) [Young children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-children/) ## Related quotes > [“his eyes burning with the unspeakable torture of his impotence. His hands had refused once more to produce anything clear or lifelike (45)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mile-zola/his-eyes-burning-with-the-unspeakable-torture-of-his-impotence-his/) [Émile Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mile-zola/) > [“suffering unspeakable torture at the thought of leaving his picture as it was, disfigured by an ugly, gaping wound. (49)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mile-zola/suffering-unspeakable-torture-at-the-thought-of-leaving-his-picture/) [Émile Zola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mile-zola/) > [“For people never say anything the same way twice; no two of them ever say it the same. The greatest imaginative writer that ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-algren/for-people-never-say-anything-the-same-way-twice-no-two-of-them-ever/) [Nelson Algren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-algren/) > [When I lived in China, there were no libraries. My mother bought books for me, and they were mostly the classics. I read 'Peter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-fritz/when-i-lived-in-china-there-were-no-libraries-my-mother-bought-books/) [Jean Fritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-fritz/) > [Now that my kids are out of the house, I'm finally able to get to the classics I never read: Emily Bronte, Dylan Thomas,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-wright/now-that-my-kids-are-out-of-the-house-i-m-finally-able-to-get-to-the/) [Robin Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-wright/) > [There are, I'm depressed to say, many classics I have not yet read and will probably never get around to, though I will not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/there-are-i-m-depressed-to-say-many-classics-i-have-not-yet-read-and/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [I read some older books when I worked at Barnes And Noble, like some of the American classics. I read a lot of Hemingway.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-kreischer/i-read-some-older-books-when-i-worked-at-barnes-and-noble-like-some/) [Bert Kreischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-kreischer/) > [“I read a sentence or two, wait for him to come up with his usual barrage of questions, answer them, then read another sentence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/i-read-a-sentence-or-two-wait-for-him-to-come-up-with-his-usual/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [When asked how he became so successful in investing, Buffett answered: 'we read hundreds and hundreds of annual reports every year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/when-asked-how-he-became-so-successful-in-investing-buffett-answered/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [My first job at Graham-Newman was to prepare the annual report for that 10th year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-schloss/my-first-job-at-graham-newman-was-to-prepare-the-annual-report-for/) [Walter Schloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-schloss/) > [For corporations to be bedfellows with the arts is good business for both. The architecture that houses a company is a more visible statement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/for-corporations-to-be-bedfellows-with-the-arts-is-good-business-for/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [I've already written a section in the annual report for next year explaining why I think in one case that the figures on our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-ve-already-written-a-section-in-the-annual-report-for-next-year/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [Even in writing an annual report, the unconscious plays a role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-in-writing-an-annual-report-the-unconscious-plays-a-role/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [I read annual reports of the company I'm looking at and I read the annual reports of the competitors - that is the main…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/i-read-annual-reports-of-the-company-i-m-looking-at-and-i-read-the/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [A ten per cent reduction in military expenditures per year would be reasonable, coupled with a programme of retraining the workforce and redirecting the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-maurice-de-zayas/a-ten-per-cent-reduction-in-military-expenditures-per-year-would-be/) [Alfred-Maurice de Zayas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-maurice-de-zayas/) ## More by Geraldine Brooks > [“The word for mother, umm, is the root of the words for “source, nation, mercy, first principle, rich harvest; stupid, illiterate, parasite, weak of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/the-word-for-mother-umm-is-the-root-of-the-words-for-source-nation/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“The lieutenant colonel wondered if the high scores reflected a defect in the newly built shooting range at the women’s academy. To find out,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/the-lieutenant-colonel-wondered-if-the-high-scores-reflected-a-defect/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“No wonder simple men have always had their gods dwell in the high places. For as soon as a man lets his eye drop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/no-wonder-simple-men-have-always-had-their-gods-dwell-in-the-high/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [I was really interested in how marriages work, how you can, you know, be in love with somebody and spend many years with your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/i-was-really-interested-in-how-marriages-work-how-you-can-you-know-be/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [Writing is like bricklaying; you put down one word after another. Sometimes the wall goes up straight and true and sometimes it doesn't and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/writing-is-like-bricklaying-you-put-down-one-word-after-another/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“... So this was how it was to be, now: I would do my best to live in the quick world, but the ghosts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/so-this-was-how-it-was-to-be-now-i-would-do-my-best-to-live-in-the/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“They threw rotten fruit at me and told me next time it would be acid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/they-threw-rotten-fruit-at-me-and-told-me-next-time-it-would-be-acid/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“You," he continued, grabbing my wrist. "All of you, from the safe world, with your air bags and your tamper-proof packaging and your fat-free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/you-he-continued-grabbing-my-wrist-all-of-you-from-the-safe-world/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“This is how an owl must look to a mouse in that last second before the talons sink into the flesh.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/this-is-how-an-owl-must-look-to-a-mouse-in-that-last-second-before/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [And so, as generally happens, those who have most give least, and those with less somehow make shrift to share.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/and-so-as-generally-happens-those-who-have-most-give-least-and-those/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“The author of this text did not write to provoke, but merely to express a truth as he conceives it. Your own theologians have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/the-author-of-this-text-did-not-write-to-provoke-but-merely-to/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“So, you are happy to be a pigeon?” “Maybe so. But at least a pigeon does no harm. The hawk lives at the expense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/so-you-are-happy-to-be-a-pigeon-maybe-so-but-at-least-a-pigeon-does/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“Many men believe in the saying that educating women is like allowing the nose of the camel into the tent: eventually the beast will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/many-men-believe-in-the-saying-that-educating-women-is-like-allowing/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [“No, no,” he said. “She can’t raise it at all. She may only clap. Women must be very careful of their voices. If”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/no-no-he-said-she-can-t-raise-it-at-all-she-may-only-clap-women-must/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) > [If a man is to lose his fortune, it is a good thing if he were poor before he acquired it, for poverty requires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldine-brooks/if-a-man-is-to-lose-his-fortune-it-is-a-good-thing-if-he-were-poor/) [Geraldine Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) [Explore all 256 Geraldine Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldine-brooks/) ## More Amnesty quotes > [I am strongly opposed to any form of amnesty, including, especially, executive amnesty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-scalise/i-am-strongly-opposed-to-any-form-of-amnesty-including-especially/) [Steve Scalise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-scalise/) > [How arrogant - how very far from humility - would be the self-satisfied, smug assurance that God, a tidy-up-after-us God will come and clean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/how-arrogant-how-very-far-from-humility-would-be-the-self-satisfied/) [Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/) > [Hillary Clinton has pledged to keep both of these illegal amnesty programs, including the 2014 amnesty which has been blocked by the United States…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/hillary-clinton-has-pledged-to-keep-both-of-these-illegal-amnesty/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [3 "amnesty" didn't mean rewarding illegal behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/3-amnesty-didn-t-mean-rewarding-illegal-behavior/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [Why don't Republicans spend all their airtime attacking the media for lying about what Obama's amnesty does and what the Democrats are doing? It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/why-don-t-republicans-spend-all-their-airtime-attacking-the-media-for/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [...we will not grant amnesty to illegal aliens in this Congress or, hopefully ever again. We did that once. Everybody said it was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-gramm/we-will-not-grant-amnesty-to-illegal-aliens-in-this-congress-or/) [Phil Gramm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-gramm/) > [ I take the Constitution very seriously. The biggest problems that we're facing right now have to do with \[the president\] trying to bring more… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-take-the-constitution-very-seriously-the-biggest-problems-that-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I worked 30 years to try to restore respect for the rule of law because of Ronald Reagan's amnesty in 1986. And I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-king/i-worked-30-years-to-try-to-restore-respect-for-the-rule-of-law/) [Steve King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-king/) > [You are going to hear many things from Mr. Trump today in his speech on immigration. One, no amnesty. He is absolutely going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellyanne-conway/you-are-going-to-hear-many-things-from-mr-trump-today-in-his-speech/) [Kellyanne Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellyanne-conway/) > [I supported this bill. I believe in the idea of amnesty for those who have put down roots and who have lived here even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-supported-this-bill-i-believe-in-the-idea-of-amnesty-for-those-who/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Amnesty is a disaster, we need strong borders. We have no country if we have no border. In New Hampshire, the biggest complaint is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/amnesty-is-a-disaster-we-need-strong-borders-we-have-no-country-if-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [no study has brought out any solid evidence that the death penalty deters crime. In fact, Amnesty reports that 'the murder rate in states…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoinette-bosco/no-study-has-brought-out-any-solid-evidence-that-the-death-penalty/) [Antoinette Bosco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoinette-bosco/) > [We try it practically every time it comes up, be it amnesty, be it any other issue they want. We try and it gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/we-try-it-practically-every-time-it-comes-up-be-it-amnesty-be-it-any/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [ This bill \[Immigration Reform and Control act of 1986\] is a gamble, a riverboat gamble. There is no guarantee that employer sanctions will work… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-schumer/this-bill-immigration-reform-and-control-act-of-1986-is-a-gamble-a/) [Charles Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-schumer/) > [ No one believed \[the 1986 amnesty for illegal aliens\] was tough enough on illegal immigration, and it didn't give enough flexibility on future legal immigration. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-schumer/no-one-believed-the-1986-amnesty-for-illegal-aliens-was-tough-enough/) [Charles Schumer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-schumer/) [Browse all 195 Amnesty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amnesty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even the classics that we read to our young children are full of wolves' fangs and burning ovens and bloody feet and ice shards piercing hearts. Even the New Testament climaxes with an act of unspeakable torture. 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