14 yo downloaded Tessa Bailey book on Libby

[Anonymous]

Hi all - need some advice. Just noticed my 14 yo downloaded Tessa Bailey’s Hook, Line and Sinker on Libby. All I know about her books is that they tend to be sexually explicit but I don’t know if all of them are like that. I am not a romance reader and have not read her books. I tend to be a bit more conservative with this kind of stuff and my kids.

Has anyone read the book? Thoughts on how to handle this?

[Anonymous]

This would not bother me.

[Anonymous]

Wouldn't bother me.

[Anonymous]

Y'all remember clan of the cave bear?

[Anonymous]

You have a 14 year old who reads books as a hobby.

Think about this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You have a 14 year old who reads books as a hobby.

Think about this.

original poster here - This made me laugh. Thanks all for a reality check!

[Anonymous]

Better a reader of smut than a watcher of porn. Seriously.

[Anonymous]

My teen son got into my book bags twice.

Once he got Helen Hoang's "The Bride Test". Which is a pretty good story but it has a very gratuitous oral scene. I'd not really wanted my kid to know I could read straight-faced through that kind of scene. He asked me about it...and I just said the characters were good but certain scenes were a bit much.

Another time he read "Art of Racing in the Rain". Which I thought was just a heartwarming dog POV story. And it was - with a false pedophilic/SA accusation betwen in-laws subplot close to the end. Yikes.

Oh well. I sneaked worse, younger. In 6th grade, I read "The World According to Garp" which starts with a nurse SA'ing a dying WW2 soldier...precisely because my dad tried to keep it away from me. Read Judy Bloom's Forever at the library so I didn't have to check it out. Still can't forget what the male lead did with aftershave. Skimmed Clan of the Cave Bear at a church booksale, lol.

Tell your daughter what you want her to hear directly from you. The Internet is vast and full of literary smut.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, look when I was 14 I was reading smutty fan fiction. It's normal.

[Anonymous]

If your kid was like 8-10 years old, I’d wonder more what they’d understand or if it was too adult for them.

But a 14 year old? They hear worse stuff at school— believe me.

[Anonymous]

I mean this is fine. It's better for her to read some spicy than act out the spicy.

[Anonymous]

Maybe it's time she gets her own library card and account that is not linked through your account.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe it's time she gets her own library card and account that is not linked through your account.

Agree with this. Don't even mention to her that you saw she checked out a romance book.

Also, way better to read female-centric romance than to watch trashy porn. At least there are positive messages about quality relationships, consent, communication etc in the romance books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe it's time she gets her own library card and account that is not linked through your account.

Agree with this. Don't even mention to her that you saw she checked out a romance book.

Also, way better to read female-centric romance than to watch trashy porn. At least there are positive messages about quality relationships, consent, communication etc in the romance books.

+1 Especially to the bolded.

[Anonymous]

I read this book. There are sex scenes, but they aren't anything close to the VC Andrews I read in 7th grade.

Still, you might help them find some great YA Romances. There are still romantic relationships and people may have sex, but it won't be as explicit as in adult books.