Lies We Tell Kids 18 years ago
Since we lie to kids maybe we simultaneously tell them to read adult literature so that they'll learn about some of the lies. Since we are uncomfortable with the truth's in adult literature maybe this is why children's literature is now so popular with parents. Annie Dillard (in her autobiography, American Childhood, I think) wrote about this. When she was a kid she remembered wondering "do adults know what's in these books they are telling us to read ?"
It's interesting that parents seem very sensitive to the contradiction of their lies in adult tv shows and movies but oblivious to the same problem in adult literature. (By adult I mean not non-juvenile not explictly sexual material)