Drama for Children

What a refreshing leave from the high-fantasy books. Dicey's Song reminds me of reality TV. I'm grateful for a book for children that presents real life situations that real people have to deal with. Similar to Dahl, I belive fantasy is important to children, something that can inspire them to be creative and dream of things outside the bounds of real life, however, I feel that real-life stories teach children about their real life surroundnds and show different perspective of life.

The children in Dicey's Song all have real life qualities, things children may or may not relate to. Either way, children are introduced to people who have different dilemas and introduces children to different issues their peers may be having. It gives children a more well rounded world view and allows for them to be better understanding citizens.

Although Dicey's Song is far from the high-fantasy books we've read, the book still has similar themes, the most apparent is the lost parent theme. Dicey acts as a hero by taking care of her younger siblings and shouldering (along with her grandmother) the responsibilites her sick mother has left behind, something that makes this theme unique.Furthermore, each child within the family is dealing with their own individual problems. Voight gives the children various solutions and provides hope for any child who might identify with the various characters.

The book seems like an important read for children, especially after a high-fantasy binge.