Hello

Welcome to Kids Kritiques, a blog by Laney (the daughter) and Meg (the mother). Laney and Meg like to read books, watch television and go to movies and often find that their opinions of the books, movies and TV shows are somewhat divergent. For example: The Smurfs. Meg was surprised that its sheer terribleness was unmitigated by the presence of Neil Patrick Harris (whom she adores). Laney, on the other hand, thought it was OK.

Laney is eight years old, and a third grader at Suder Montessori School. Her favorite TV show is iCarly. She enjoys chapter books (Meg has urged Laney to discuss which chapter books she particularly enjoys, but Laney doesn't want to get pigeon-holed). Her favorite movie is Harry Potter: The Chamber of Secrets.

Meg is not eight years old and has not been a third grader for many years. Her favorite TV show is Community... or Parks and Recreation. Meg also enjoys chapter books, and is less loathe to be pigeonholed so she'll call out Lonesome Dove, Middlemarch and Charlotte's Web among her favorites. Meg thinks Hop is the worst movie ever made with the possible exception of Swept Away. She also likes the Harry Potter movies almost as much as the books.

In this blog, Laney and Meg will discuss various bits and pieces of kid-oriented pop culture and our often disparate takes on them. Tomorrow we shall tackle iCarly. Laney says "BOOM". Meg says, "oh, for crying out loud."