London - Two-thirds of parents believe modern children’s books are too sanitised, a study shows.
They say new editions of classics tone down scary elements and add politically correct changes.
Parents are happy for their children to read darker fairy tales such as Hansel and Gretel, Snow White and Little Red Riding Hood, the survey found.
Tuition service Explore Learning polled 2 000 people. Of those who were parents, 67 percent said new stories are “too sanitised” compared with classic fairy tales.
Carey Ann Dodah, of Explore Learning, said parents worry old stories are being “cleaned up” while modern books are “a bit too health and safety conscious”.
She said: “One of the books my daughter recently read was The Tale of Peter Rabbit. One of the elements taken out was Peter Rabbit’s father being put in a pie by Mrs McGregor. That’s not in the new version. It just says he doesn’t come home.”
The poll found the scariest fairy tale character was the evil queen in Snow White, followed by the witch in Hansel and Gretel and the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood. - Daily Mail