According to the writers, it is a challenge to compete with TikTok. “It must be explained why it is important to read,” says Verkuil.
According to Verkuil, it is good for the child’s creative process. “You can create your own images in your head. And there is an element of knowledge acquisition and the technical reading level improves.” In addition, it is also nice to relax for a while. “That can be very nice,” says Verkuil. “It gives your brain the peace and space to do other things afterwards.”
Despite the great importance of reading for children, the writers still see some difficulties. “People read less. The books are becoming too expensive. They are now at 18 or 19 euros,” says Verschraagen. “In the long run, it will become a barrier for some people to buy a book, so the library has an important role to play in keeping children reading.”
And Verschraagen recently experienced that the choice was made to leave that book behind in a bookstore. “I heard someone say, ‘We’re not taking that book with us, we already have so much junk at home.’ They also walked out with nothing.”
Verkuil is more positive about this: as long as the writer remains creative, he expects children’s books to continue to be sold. He does hope that one thing will change: “The top 10 lists in the newspaper. The children’s books are always at the bottom. If we want to get everyone to read, it could really be a bit higher.”
