La porta segreta. Perché i libri per bambini sono una cosa serissima

by Mac Barnett, Carson Ellis (Illustrator), Sara Ragusa (Translator)

“I bambini sono il pubblico più intelligente, coraggioso e onesto che uno scrittore possa sperare di avere. Un bambino medio è un lettore di narrativa molto migliore di un adulto medio”.

Il primo libro “per grandi” da uno dei più importanti autori statunitensi per bambini e ragazzi: un viaggio appassionato – serissimo e ironico al tempo stesso – sul perché è fondamentale scrivere oggi per i più giovani e sulla dignità di una letteratura spesso bistrattata.

Genres: Nonfiction, Books About Books, Adult, Parenting, Writing, Essays, Childrens

128 pages, Hardcover

First published May 5, 2026

About the author

Born to non-farmers in a California farming community, Mac Barnett now lives near San Francisco. He's on the board of directors of 826LA, a nonprofit writing center for students in Los Angeles, and he founded the Echo Park Time Travel Mart, a convenience store for time travelers.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's too bad that the people who need to read this book never will, yet those who already know the importance of children's literature will read it. Not that we won't benefit from reading it, because we will, just would be nice if just once, someone would actually come to the realization it is important. Really enjoyed reading this and would recommend it!

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the free Kindle book. My review is voluntarily given, and my opinions are my own.

[Shelby Logan-Reese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow two things:
1. Mac Barnett’s worldview is brilliant
2. He is funny as hell.

This book will vindicate any children’s bookseller or librarian or really any adult who loves young reader books. It gets to the heart of why the books I recommend to children are the books I put in their hands. They’re the ones that aren’t beating them over the head with how to become good adults, they let them lead the experience, while having the time of their life immersed in it.

His overall point that children’s books aren’t a stepping stone to writing “real books” is how every children’s author should approach their work. Kids deserve good books always. And adults should read more good kids books.

And learn a thing or two from kids books.

Quick wonderful read 🤍

A B&N and Edelweiss provided ARC.

[Moonkiszt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every communication, regardless of form is a mighty act of persuasion. Storytelling, whether to children or adults is no different, and here is where the nugget of Mac Barnett's Make Believe lands.

Every story has an agenda - to teach, to inculcate, instill, ingrain concepts, ideas, fables with a moral, myths (same but at a distance) and cautionary tales full of ethical consequences. Barnett considers many of the 'stories for children' that are available (throughout the fairly recent time of written, published, available books) heavy-handed and disrespectful toward their ultimate audience. His tone leans toward contempt and impatience, with a near accusation of breach of truth-telling. When he hits that ball squarely out of the field, he begins with his real message: honor, respect, and an understanding of equality between the teller and hearer, with the story's foundation built upon the understanding that the true nature of children is they are no different than untainted adults - who were also children once upon a time. He reminds readers we all started in that very first unpersuaded perspective, the one without any other but the simplest agenda or POV - to fulfill the most basic of needs, among which are those of play, joy, and pleasure. That's where our purpose in storytelling the very young, very old, and very human should begin, says he.

Make Believe is a wonderful consideration of the most basic reasons to share stories we tell to each other - especially those told to the youngest and most open of us. Here is a plea to dispel doubt and consider the importance of how our stories are told by remembering our very own youngest, newest selves as we open our mouths, lift our pens and offer pages to those with whom we share life's space, time and experience.

*A sincere thank you to Mac Barnett, Little, Brown & Company, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review independently.* #MakeBelieve #NetGalley 26|52:41h

[Colton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think my original critique may have been a little influenced by all of the faceless voices shouting out into the void - something that faceless voices are becoming more and more comfortable doing.

I'll say this about what I thought of this book:
Mac Barnett is right (about some things). The essays are well-written critiques on why children's literature should be taken seriously and his theses are understandable. I think where he went wrong is in the sentences used to back up his theses. And I think, after looking through a lot of the social media discourse, that many people who have big opinions about the book and the author haven't actually READ the book but saw someone post a quote and based their entire opinion of both the work and the writer on that one sentence (a sentence that I think is heinous, by the way).

Another thing I think:
We have a literacy problem. And I'm not just saying that because I'm an elementary school teacher who had an entire class of kids who read well-below their grade level this year or because I see students in upper elementary struggling to read decodable texts written for first graders. But we, as adults, have a literacy problem. And social media is the gasoline constantly poured on that fire. We have to do better about forming solid opinions based on criticism of the work, not the weak and lazy modern day "art" of forming a shaky opinion off of 10 words from a ~100 page book.

A final thought:
Mac Barnett is a bit of a snob when it comes to his tastes in children's literature and what he believes to be the gold standard of a well-written children's book. His sentiments are just rewrapped versions of sentiments made by elitists and academics who desire to make the art of writing (no matter for what age group or within what genre) an exclusive club where the inclusion criteria markers are forever pushed out of reach for groups who already know decentering. His waxing poetic about a golden age of children's literature (the mid-twentieth century) is without the critique of the period in its entirety. This would have offered the reader a checkpoint for their understanding that, yes, Goodnight Moon was a children's book that has done well and it was written at a time when a lot of really great children's books were being written, but decentered groups were also decentered from the publishing sphere and weren't having their stories published. So his golden age wasn't golden for many people outside of those within the demographics he finds himself in.

He had the opportunity here to make many great points to adults who are interested in the argument surrounding taking children's literature seriously. He could have talked about book banning or the ever-declining literacy rate or the capitalistic takeover of the publishing realm, but he didn't. He didn't really ask a single question and I think that's the hallmark of a good leader. Ask more questions, Mr. Barnett. Be like the child with wonder and curiosity and exploration. For every statement you make, you should ask two questions. Be more curious than you are sure.

[Manybooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only became aware of Mac Barnett's May 2026 essay compilation Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children due to the recent controversy and where Barnett (especially regarding his role and in his capacity as the national ambassador for young people’s literature in the USA) is coming under increasing both official and unofficial fire for some of the remarks he makes in Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children and in particular for a line in which he seems to declare and to claim that the vast majority of children’s books are so-called crud, are basically pretty much useless, badly written, worthless etc. (basically stating that more than ninety-four percent of children's books supposedly are the latter).

And after having now thoroughly perused and analysed Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children, having both enjoyed as well as generally speaking being in intellectual agreement with the vast majority of Mac Barnett's included essays, with his musings and attitudes about children's literature in and of itself (that Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children is both nicely readable and also contains a lot of intellectual as well as literary merit), I equally and indeed most definitely am kind of shaking my head more than a bit (not so much at the controversy itself regarding Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children but more that Barnett did not manage to consider before publishing Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children how he making use of a "charged" word like crud regarding much of children's literature would or at least could cause uproars and especially in today's USA with its book banning happy tendencies in far too many states, and that even federally, King Donald the Orange obviously wants to pass bills to ban and censor especially children's books throughout the USA unilaterally and this even in and for those states where book banning is totally and utterly frowned upon).

For albeit I definitely do tend to think that Mac Barnett is probably being rather tongue in cheek regarding his "crud" reference in Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children (since the author from whom he gleaned this statement, since science fiction author Theodore Sturgeon in the 1950s claimed that ninety percent of science fiction is crappy, because according to him, pretty much everything is that way), well, there are two quite problematic potential issues which cannot and also should not be ignored (neither by the public nor indeed equally so by Barnett himself). For one, Mac Barnett's tone in Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children regarding the quality of children's literature in general tends to be rather arrogant, is rather dismissive (or at least it sounds this way to and for me even if this might well not be Barnett's intention). And for two, Mac Barnett is in my not all that humble opinion being rather wilfully naive regarding the actual dangers this particular line of Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children (regarding children's literature being crud) might in fact pose and might engender. Because yes and for me, when a famous and respected children's author such as Barnett (and one who is also inhabiting such an important government funded position) makes this type of universal claim (and indeed even if a bit tongue firmly in cheek), this could (and probably even would) easily be used as an "intellectual" tool and as a weapon by politicians, special interest groups, parents, librarians etc. to justify mass book banning and censorship, in particular to get rid of problematic and "controversial" topics/themes, authors etc. (and that this would of course also suddenly be deemed as totally fine and even something inherently necessary since MOST children's literature according to Mac Barnett is supposedly crappy and useless anyhow, and that it will also most likely not matter at all in this case that Barnett does not really mean this all that strongly and that his words are equally so being massively taken out of context).

Now I am glad that Mac Barnett has responded to the controversy regarding Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children and has acknowledged that his wording, that he choosing to use the insulting moniker crud, and to label (even if not being all that serious) over ninety percent of children's books as being crud is and reads as weirdly snarky and potentially hurtful (but I also still do not really think that Barnet has any idea regarding just how potentially dangerous his little bit of pointed irony and sarcasm might well be for authors, publishers, librarians and also for children, for young readers themselves). Therefore, while I would generally be rating Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children with solidly four stars, the controversy (and that Mac Barnett has albeit kind of playfully but also rather entitledly labelled over ninety percent of children's literature as lesser, as basically being cruddy), this does pretty much rub me the wrong proverbial way and also for this reason makes my rating for Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children only three stars (and that I equally so think that this is pretty generous on my part as well).

[Allie Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Puts into words why I really enjoy working in children’s books!!

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful book. I urge all readers to pick this up. I will include a section that I found to be superb.

“The distinction between literary and commercial fiction – so rigorously policed in the adult marketplace – is much weaker in kids’ books, where the most ambitious and significant artworks can also expect to be widely read. Today in the United States, two of the bestselling picture books each week are Where the Wild Things Are, published in 1963, and Goodnight Moon, published in 1947. Both are strange and experimental literary works. This is sort of the equivalent of Ulysses and The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson being among the books most widely read by American adults, which, sadly, they are not. Where the Wild Things Are and Goodnight Moon certainly benefit from their reputation as classics. But I think it helps that they’re usually not shelved in a section labeled “Classics.” You’ll often find them face out next to picture books written by internet celebrities or starring the snowman from Disney’s Frozen. This makes Goodnight Moon not just easier to find, but also easier to approach – the label “Literature” attracts some readers but intimidates many too.”

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I libri per bambini hanno tanta dignità e importanza tanto quanto quelli per adulti.
I bambini sono persone, come gli adulti, e i libri creati per loro meritano la stessa qualità e dedizione dell' editoria per grandi.
Che bel libro, mi ha dato un nuovo punto di vista su questo tema.

[Amy Dickinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This articulated so many of my thoughts about the importance of books for children, and it did so in a way that is both funny and well informed. This is a treasure and so many of the words he shares here validated me and empowered me in how I will relate to and read with children. Loved it so much.

Thanks to Hachette and Edelweiss for the ARC!

[Marta Cava]

Aquest és un llibre que hauria de llegir tothom que menysprea la literatura infantil o els qui creuen que els llibres per als menuts han de ser eines didàctiques per ensenyar. Malauradament, només el llegirem les persones que valorem i sabem què ha de ser la literatura infantil

[Katy O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a longtime school librarian, I loved every word of this book. And the detailed analysis of Goodnight Moon? YES PLEASE!

[Bart Moeyaert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ruim een meter van mijn boekenkast is voorbehouden aan ideeën van schrijvers. Ik tik mezelf graag op de vingers en stuur mijn visie dan bij.
Naar dit boek keek ik al een tijdje uit. Teleurgesteld was ik niet, want Mac Barnett gaf me een paar inzichten, maar hij wist me ook te schokken.
Hij schrijft dat 94,7% van de kinderliteratuur ‘crud’ is. Rommel, dus. Barnett kadert het binnen zijn exposé, maar het cijfer is extreem, en hij doet er de kinderliteratuur mee tekort. Ik denk: auw.

[Pari · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Since the invention of the printing press, children's books have been a battleground between those who want to tell kids what to do and those who want to tell them stories.”

The children want to be entertained and to be treated with respect, they don’t want to be pandered to and have lessons shoved down their throats! They deserve to experience real art, to play, to be treated with dignity, and to arrive at meaning on their own terms:)

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this! I listened to the audiobook version and was barely halfway through when I ordered myself a physical copy because I knew I’d want to spend more time with it. Such a beautiful, thoughtful, and funny book about what makes great children’s books and why adults should put more effort and care into creating truly wonderful ones for kids.

There is SO much didactic stuff in children’s books these days. My son never gravitates towards books with a message, he just loves books about things he loves, like trains and trucks, or good stories that are fun to read. I sometimes get annoyed by really preachy kids’ books that are forcing a message on you, so I definitely agreed with Mac Barnett’s take on kids’ books needing to be more experimental, flexible, and weird and focus less on teaching children. Some of our favorites have no message at all! Like Atticus Catticus by Sarah Maizes, or Oh No, George! by Chris Haughton. They’re just really fun to read, and funny too!

I was frustrated and annoyed by the discourse that sprang up online this week surrounding his “94% crud” comment in the book. It seems like people took it VERY personally and are projecting their own issues onto it. When you read it in context he’s clearly 1) being funny and doesn’t mean it literally and 2) pushing the genre, and adults, to do better for kids who deserve stories that delight and move them. He’s not saying we don’t need diverse books or that only white dudes should be published. Plus there’s so much terrible AI-generated slop going into self-published children’s books now, it’s genuinely upsetting 😩

Anyways! This was a lovely, thought provoking book. Read it for yourself and see what you think. He definitely made me see Goodnight Moon differently. I may never look at a children’s book the same way again.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

[John Caleb Grenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, the criticism out there of this book is kind of embarrassingly unfounded? Even more than I expected. This book is timely, pertinent, and I’d say even 75-80% of the jokes land 😂. Packs a lot into a long-essay-length book, a strong manifesto of sorts for how we as adults should be invested in children’s literature, somehow, by not really even being all that preachy or didactic about it. He just presents information and speaks his mind, and I truly hate to see the adulthood-crushed whimsykillers out there trying to make anything wrong with this book. It’s lovely and important.

[Patrizia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un saggio che parla di libri per ragazzi (è giusto classificarli così?) dedicato agli adulti che hanno dimenticato com'è essere bambini. Personalmente, per professione e per passione, leggo molti libri per bambini e spesso sono molto più interessanti e coinvolgenti rispetto a quelli scritti per un pubblico adulto. Ho anche letto libri di autori conosciuti che hanno tentato di scrivere per i bimbi con risultati non sempre eccellenti (sottovalutano la "categoria"?? Può darsi).
I ragazzi danno molto e si aspettano altrettando. Ascoltano, pongono domande, fanno riflessioni, provano emozioni che, se ci soffermiamo ad ascoltarli, stupiscono e meravigliano: è un periodo della vita indimenticabile, da proteggere.
Dopo la Rundell anche Barnett cerca di far aprire gli occhi sulla letteratura dedicata all'infanzia e tenta con questo saggio di smuovere i pregiudizi e aprire le menti. Lettura consigliata.

[Mike S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mac Barnett writes really cool books for kids. Smart, funny, silly, and often paired with the illustrations of Jon Klassen. I saw this on the pre-pub list and got really excited. I'm sure I read a LOT more "picture books" than the typical 46-year-old dude who doesn't have kids of his own...it goes with my profession, but also? I absolutely LOVE a good, clever, silly, fun, whimsical, or beautifully-illustrated book for kids.

It takes all of a couple hours at most to read the three essays that constitute the chapters and bulk of the book. It's about kids books, but it's also about how we constantly underestimate kids' abilities and needs and wants. It's about how kids books don't need to have some high-minded concept or moral or educational component. It's about how so often kids are more observant than adults, don't have a lifetime of biases and pretensions, and can truly see and understand great art just as much as an adult or whoever thinks appreciating art takes "training." It's about how kids deserve great books and how we as a society kind of ghettoize writers who write for them.

I think this is an IMPORTANT little book for educators, for children's librarians, for administrators, for parents, for readers who love great books and think that kids deserve and have a right to cool shit just as much as "grown ups" do.

[Ceanray · Rating 4 out of 5]

“children’s books are books that are for children”

seems obvious, and yet I didn’t realize how many children’s books (mainly in picture books, imo) are weirdly didactic, preachy, or just straight up bad until I started interacting with them on a regular basis as an adult.

I adored this book, and largely agreed with it except Barnett’s romanticism about the ‘40s-70s era of children’s publishing. While there are indeed many classics from that era, kids of all races and backgrounds deserve to see themselves represented in truly excellent stories.

The controversy over the 94.7% comment was stupid and ironically taken out of context. Perhaps reinforcing the point that adult literacy matters too!

[Maureen Grigsby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book about children’s books, and the author believes that there are entirely too many bad children’s books published. Although in my opinion he came across as a bit pompous, I did enjoy his knowledge of children and their ability to suspend belief in order to accept the most absurd storylines.

[Rachael Marsceau · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Mr. Barnett's brain and his books so much.

[Jordan Steyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

“when we read, we make believe” !!!

i think you should read this if you work around books, even if you don’t spend a lot of time with children’s books

[Georgia Earley · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a former Children’s Librarian and former child, this book hit home. Children’s books are some of my favorite, and the role that they play in our lives cannot be ignored. I have read some truly horrible picture books and have read some that make an entire room of 3 year olds giggle. This book reminds us that writing, especially for children, is a special kind of magic. I have had the pleasure of enjoying such classics as Sam and Dave Dig a Hole and How Does Santa Go Down the Chimney? by Mac Barnett and I can’t wait to read more of his work. This was a gem.

[Cathy Cole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do I like Mac Barnett's children's books - 100%
Am I upset about the 94% crud remark - no, I read it for what it's worth and agree a LOT of what you'll find at the big box book stores is crud. We read a lot of books, we buy a lot of books, I've noticed a big increase in what is available at our big box store and I've walked out often without purchasing anything.
Now, if I go to our small, local book store they are much better at bringing quality books into the hands of readers.
I still found this book to be very pretentious and somewhat off putting.

[Deedi Brown (DeediReads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m relatively new to the world of children’s books (at least, as an adult). My daughter will be 2 on the 4th of July, so she’s only just become interested in books with a) paper pages and b) actual stories. And yet I already know how hard it is to sift through the sheer volume of kids’ books to find the gems that she’ll actually enjoy, not just teach her whatever adults want her to know.

This is essentially the thesis of Mac Barnett’s “first book for adults,” Make Believe. For the uninitiated, Mac Barnett is one of our greatest living children’s book writers. I hadn’t heard of him before I had a child, but it didn’t take long for me to find him and fall in love with his books. (He also writes an excellent Substack newsletter with Jon Klassen, Looking at Picture Books, in which the two co-authors dissect what makes classic children’s books really work.) In Make Believe, Mac gives us a sort of manifesto on the state of children’s publishing today, making the case in just three essays that kids’ books should be written for kids, not for adults. The whole book is very short — about two hours on audio — and well worth a quick read or listen. He knows what he’s talking about (obviously, as a widely beloved and bestselling children’s book author), and he makes his case clearly, warmly, and with both humor and obvious love for both children and his craft. The effect is that as a parent, I felt seen and also like I had new tools with which to evaluate kids’ books and talk about them in an informed way.

Now, the elephant in the room: Around the time of this book’s publication, others in the children’s book industry heard a quote from this book out of context, and it sparked a lot of outrage. The quote was Mac saying that “94.7%” of children’s books are bad, and the outrage, beyond simply offending some, raised a whole conversation about whether it’s okay for him to condemn so many kids’ books during an age of book banning and when it’s so hard for people who write books with important representation to actually make it onto the shelves. I don’t want to get into it too much because I’m not an expert, but this feels deeply overblown to me. For one, that quote made a lot more sense in context (he’s referencing a common adage called Sturgeon’s Law which says that “90% of everything is crap,” and cheekily says if we take that to be true, the percentage of kids’ books might be more like 94.7% — in other words, a more than average amount). For two, I believe that those diverse, important books that deserve more publishing deals and shelf space are probably mostly among that cheeky 5.3%, becuase they are written with love and care for actual children. And for three, I can tell you as a parent that he’s right! I walk into our public library and feel deeply overwhelmed by the number of picture books I could borrow and have absolutely no confidence that if I pluck one off the shelf, my daughter will like it. I have come to rely deeply on recommendations from librarians, booksellers, and fellow parents.

I do wish he had presented a few practical thoughts on how we, societally, can make the leap from our current state of too many kids’ books written for adults to most published kids’ books being written more for kids, but perhaps that will be his next book for adults!

[Chelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another complicated explanation for ratings, here we go!
The first two essays were smart and a bit biting but I LOVED the last essay. Many years ago, I read about a study commissioned by NASA on “imaginative divergent thinking”. It found that 98% of kids involved tested at the level of “creative genius”. The percentages diminished as the kids grew older. (I’m sure I have some details wrong but the essence is there!)
That third essay made me think of said study. Mac Barnett clearly understands, appreciates, celebrates and defends the brilliance of children and I loved each word. I think all adults could stand to follow in his footsteps a little more in that regard. Sometimes my kids say things that just make me pause. The wonder in their worlds is incredible and we, as adults, could stand to hold on tighter to that wonder. To join them in the magic of childhood instead of the way society seems to rush them into adulthood.
“”Grown,” past participle: We have grown up. We are finished growing. But kids are proudly unfinished.”
So for allllll of that, 5 stars!

[Bailey L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you read to kids, then read this book.

[Hernovelidea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book spoke to my librarian soul. Also "Every aunt thinks she is the cool aunt".

Update: In the first two days of publication this book has raised a lot of hackles. I reread and still stick by my 5 stars. I do agree Mac was a bit haughty but I also agree that most children's books are not good and everything we give to children to read does not have to be a lesson. Reading for the sake of reading is a joy and one we should give to children more often.

"Every day we make more children. Let us also make new children's books!"

[Lindsey (endless_tbr_list) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a new and burning need for every adult - all of them - to read this book. Witty, humorous, well-written, and chock-full of important information, this truly changed my way of viewing children’s books.

Despite absolutely devouring books these days, and even once being a child(!), I had, without realizing it, fallen into the dangerous and embarrassing belief that children’s literature is not real literature, and by default, as Barnett points out, that children are not real people. Adults simply cannot continue with this way of thinking, particularly when we alone are the ones deciding what gets published for the children of the world, and this book is a wonderful way to start combating those thoughts.

Whether you have kids or not, whether you regularly read to kids or not, please take the time to read this work. It’s charming and thoughtful and will remind you that the board books and early readers filling bookstores and bookshelves should not just be seen as tools, but rather as the doorways through which storytelling and the joy of reading enter our lives. Children are people and their books are just as real and as valuable as ours.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the digital ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[tabitha · Rating 4 out of 5]

brilliant as always. as an avid subscriber to barnett’s substack with jon klassen, looking at picture books, i was over the moon to learn this book was going to exist and it exceeded my expectations wonderfully. he has such a great way of seeing the complex, realized reality of children and children’s books that i really believe if anyone took the time to read this, they’d probably walk away a bit changed.

also, i wonder if the person who made the summary on the back knew they were quoting rachel sennott from bodies bodies bodies’ fake podcast.

[Paula]

Let me start by acknowledging that this book was not written for me. I am a children's literature professional - a buyer, a librarian, a reviewer, a bookseller, and an author. This book was written for the lay reader, and apparently, according to the author's note, the lay reader in Italy. Ok. So it is natural that the author would cultivate a tone of authority. If I were reading a book about real estate law (and I would likely only ever read one and only one), I would want the author to be the biggest expert on real estate law ever. And also to write in a lively, conversational tone, which Mac masters and which would be an unexpected delight in any book about real estate law.

However - and obviously there's a however here - you can do that while acknowledging other viewpoints. Acknowledging your personal position as a successful, white, young, celebrated, cisgendered dude and admitting that your point of view has been shaped by that - doesn't surrender your authorial authority.

Because that's my beef here. Everyone I know has beef with this book, mostly because Mac, who I've known for almost his whole book-writin career, makes a glib, over-clever statement about his suspicion that an overwhelming percentage of children's literature is "crud." Honestly, that statement should have been challenged by an editor. Any editor. Or one of the fellow white creators whom he thanks in the author's note and who presumably read at least pieces of the manuscript.

But my irritation with Make Believe is that, despite having a near-encyclopedic knowledge of children's literature and its history, Mac wrote this book as more show-off than show. Mentions of other authors who have thought deeply about the role of children's literature are thin on the ground. E.B. White and his fight with NYPL librarian Anne Carroll Moore gets a mention, but although there's a lot about what a drag stories with morals are, I didn't see any mention of Maurice Sendak, who was marvelously cranky on that subject.

And while searching for "good" beginning readers, Mac dismisses alllll contemporary offerings and reaches for Frog & Toad. Work a little harder, man. Maybe at the time he was working as a tutor, beginning readers were mostly formulaic and boring, but what's it hurt to mention that since that time, there's been an absolute explosion of wit, representation, and fun in those early series books. Kelly Starling Lyons! Pam Munoz Ryan! Saadia Faruqi! A few name checks would have gone far.

Disappointed is what I am. Disappointed because I know he knows better. Because he didn't make the effort to lift all boats. Because he thoughtlessly gave fodder to those who don't care about kids and only care about control.

Write a sequel, my friend. Write "Make Sense: On Giving Children the Stories They Want."