ugh i hate that this guy is so self-congratulatory and smug that he'll probably just write off any negative feedback he gets for this as the immature tantrum of somebody whose brain was addled by too much kidlit.

mostly i just feel sorry for people like this, who are so quick to miss something that could be wonderful for them. but i am also incredibly mad at this idea of shaming anybody who finds worthy connections in media marketed at younger people. there is something so important about remembering and recognizing those connections, to universal situations and our past selves and realizing that in many ways we are not as Grown Up as we might think.

i was rereading the graveyard book. (have you read it?) and there's this scene with an older character explaining suicide to the protagonist and it was like a punch to the gut, because it was so much more succinct than the weary, long explanations i've found in adult literature.

there's another c.s. lewis quote for this:
"a children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest."