Seeing Past Z [Hardcover]

Give kids the freedom to be kids, says Kephart, in this delightful book that, like her A Slant of Sun, centers on, in vibrant, loving detail, her 14-year-old son, Jeremy. Let children discover their own passions and interests; guide, but don't force; prod, but don't push; and, most important, let their imaginations flourish. Kephart and her husband have resisted the pressure from today's society to get kids involved in heavy competition and early preparation for college, sports or music. Freed from self-consciousness and with his parents' gentle encouragement, Jeremy has dared to dream that he could be a mystery writer, a poet, a comedian, a filmmaker. Understandably, Kephart's approach has made her an outsider among many parents who believe she's hurting Jeremy and his future prospects. "In the scheme of some things, these parents are right," she concedes. "It's Darwin's world, after all...." But, she says, "I do believe that the push to win is threatening—even already eroding—this generation's happiness." To resist this "erosion," she began a reading and writing group for her son and his friends. These kids' bursting creativity astounded and vindicated her. In serene and sage prose, she concludes that unleashing youths' imagination can create well-rounded, stable, happier people, both in their generation and the one guiding them.
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Kephart's son, Jeremy, started out as a reluctant reader, completely uncharmed by the children's books that usually set off young imaginations. Slowly, gradually, Kephart captivates him with the Harry Potter series and Roald Dahl's Danny the Champion of the World until he takes off into full-blown love of stories and storytelling and eventually leads a neighborhood book-club/writing group. Kephart, author of Slant of Sun (1998), which also featured Jeremy, chronicles the journey of mother and son to pique a child's imagination in a culture where television and video games dominate children's time. Kephart laments the disregard for imagination as children are pressured to conform and compete. Her love of reading and writing is obvious and enthusiastic in this eloquent and lyrical appeal to parents to treasure and nurture children's imagination. She includes suggestions for how to inspire children to read and write and explore their imaginations. More than a how-to book to get children interested in reading, this is a glorious celebration of imagination. Vanessa Bush
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As good parents we tend to think exhaustively about our children, even when we know that thinking is not enough. Beth Kephart illuminates how the stories we tell one another enable us to feel with-and for-our kids. We've been entrusted with the bright fires of imagination; words are our fuel. Thanks to Beth and her son Jeremy for making the soul sparks fly in my household once again. --Alyson Hagy, author of "Keeneland" and "Graveyard of the Atlantic"

Kids today seem to be under more competitive pressure than ever, while studies show that reading, writing, and the arts in schools are suffering. Is there any place for imagination in kids' lives anymore? In a dog-eat-dog world, why dream things that aren't there?In gorgeous prose and through personal stories, Beth Kephart resoundingly affirms the imagination as the heart of our ability to empathize with others, to appreciate the world, and to envision possibilities for the future. The star of her story is once again her son, Jeremy (as in her National Book Award-nominated A Slant of Sun), now fourteen years old a child who at first resists storytelling, preferring more objective and orderly pursuits, but later leads a neighborhood book club/writing group and aspires to follow Steven Spielberg into moviemaking.Embedded in the text and appendices are examples of how to inspire children to read, write, and dream.