China Bans Horror Books

I think for once, China is finally doing something right.

BEIJING (Reuters Life) - China's capital is seizing ghost and horror books from shops to protect the "physical and mental health" of its youngsters, local media said on Tuesday.

Authorities have been scouring bookstores, newsstands and shops near schools, known for their orthodox and conformist teaching but where youth subcultures have flourished with an increasingly diverse society, the Beijing News said.

I've always wondered about those "Goosebumps" books. Why on earth would any responsible parent want to scare their children? I was reading by the age of five, and I remember many of the books I found in my grandma's attic to this day. They scared the bejeebers out of me. Horror material affects kids FAR differently and more deeply than it does adults.

I remember once my mom took my brother and me to see Rodan, the Japanese movie about giant pterodactyls that destroy Tokyo. The movie came out in 1958, so I must have been nine and my brother eight years old. We were so scared that Mom gave us each half a sleeping pill just to calm us down. The next day, my brother stayed home, but I went to school and was walking into walls all morning.

I have seen that movie as an adult and it looks like two flying rubber chickens are attacking Tokyo. Some of the worst special effects ever. And BORING. But it sure affected me as a kid.