Over in the Forums we’ve been talking about bad/absentee parents in young adult literature, and yet not all of the characters out there in literature would make terrible parents.
Right?
So. Who in literature would you choose to be your parents?
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Aunt and Uncle Gardiner in Pride and Prejudice.
I'm gonna have to go with Urgl and Engywook from The Neverending Story…they would make the coolest parents ever…and I'd get to ride Falcor everyday!
I would DEFINITELY have to say either Carlisle and Esme Cullen (Twilight) or the Beaumonts (Savvy). The Cullens are nice, sweet, and they're cool, always intelligent, oh and being turned into a vampire would be awesome. The Beaumonts are VERY sweet, they're such a Southern charm kind of family, always wanting to help and they're very creative. AND being one the Beaumonts kids would mean that I would have a savvy, since I'm thirteen! 😀
Buttercup's parents in Goldman's Princess Bride. Ok, they weren't the best parents. And I'm guessing their constant spatting wasn't the best influence on their daughter. But they were compassionate(kind of), supportive (mostly), and hilarious! (Nine to two and pulling away…)
Apparently I can't be original on this one. The Weasleys and Atticus, hand down. (And I even thought of Atticus first, which is HUGE for me since I refused to even read the book at all until last year.)
However, this isn't the question (maybe next week's) but I'm listening to it on CD right now (the only way to do dishes) and I have to say the father I would NOT want is Mr Bagthorpe of the Bagthorpe Saga. He is an utterly dysfunctional train wreck that is a joy to watch from the outside, but I wouldn't want to be his kid. I'm fully aware there are countless truly evil parents out there in fiction, but they're not generally fun to read, so why bother ruining a fun post with them?
Umm. Devil in the White City wasn't Historical Fiction?
I gotta give props to Dave for his Jack Torrence and his explanation!!!
Atticus Finch was the first that came to my mind even before reading how often he was mentioned here. Interesting.
Ishta – the Weasleys are from Harry Potter.
That was a wonderful thread in the forums.
Can we mix and match?
I'd like the Fairy Godmother from Cinderella. Aside from being a rather comforable sort of person, she's got a wand. Maybe she'd let me borrow it.
For my father, Atticus Finch is tempting, but he doesn't have any magic. I'm thinking Dumbledore. He's loveable and wise at the same time.
Besides, Dumbledore and the Fairy Godmother – seems to me they'd make a good couple, and an awesome tag team as parents.
Obviously, Portnoy's mother and Darth Vader.
For a mom, the Oracle from The Matrix: Excellent provider of comfort and wisecracks.
For a dad, Liam Neeson from the movie Taken. If I ever get sold into the sex trade, I'd want him to have my back.
Atticus Finch or The Cullens
beth-project52.blogspot.com
What? No one picked the Dursleys?
Kidding 🙂
Without a doubt, Arthur and Molly Weasley.
Mo and Resa Folchart (Inkheart) would be a close second.
The first that come to mind immediately are the parents and grandparents that Madeline D'Engle wrote.
Thursday Next and Landen Parke-Laine. Hands down.
Midnighter and Apollo from the comic book series The Authority. Firm yet fair, and always caring.
Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Barrett III. No, I'm not kidding. Ollie IV was a whiny brat who didn't appreciate all the advantages he'd been given and never made the slightest attempt to reach out to his parents. I'd be happy to reach out– and to take his trust fund, too.
Honestly, I always loved Mr. & Mrs. Springfield in Frank Peretti's Veritas series.
Susan Sowerby in the Secret Garden would make a great mom (either that, or Marmee in Little Women); in neither case, though, do you know much about dad. So for an actual couple, I'd pick the Weasleys or James and Lily Potter, who, after all died to try and save their son.
Assuming they don't have to come as a set pair then:
1) Father: Danny's Dad in "Danny the Champion of the World" (Dahl).
2) Mother: Mrs. Walker in "Swallows & Amazons"(Ransome).
But if it should be a complete set of parents, then I first thought of Anne of Green Gables, except that Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert were brother and sister, not a married couple. The Von Trapps were a second (and real-life) marriage. Mr. & Mrs. Fox in "Fantastic Mr. Fox" (Dahl) weren't human, so finally I'm going for the parents in Stuart Little (E.B. White).
That was tough!
I think the devotion that Mr. Peggotty shows in David Copperfield is impressive. He just won't give up looking for little Emily. He's not a smart man, but knows his limitations. He makes up for any shortcomings with heart. Throw in the rest of the Peggotty clan – the faithful nurse and Ham – and you can see why David Copperfield made it to the end.
Haha, this is a great question!! Either Aunt Jo/Uncle Bhaer or Amy/Laurie from the Little Women/Little Men series. 🙂
~TRA
https://xtheredangelx.blogspot.com
Haha, this is a great question!! Either Aunt Jo/Uncle Bhaer or Amy/Laurie from the Little Women/Little Men series. 🙂
~TRA
https://xtheredangelx.blogspot.com
Ma and Pa Ingalls–although technically, I guess they aren't fictional.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, or Mo and Resa Folchart from the Ink Trilogy by Cornelia Funke. Or Professor Lupin and Tonks from Harry Potter, if they were still alive… 🙁
Hannibal Lecter.
He'd keep me well read and well fed.
For a father, I think Death from Terry Pratchett's Disc World series epitomizes everything a father should be.
Fun post! James Bond. He wouldn't be home much, but he'd be fun! My own father was fun like that.
One parent only: Yoda.
Come to think of it, my grandmother was an awful lot like Yoda…
I want Ma and Pa Ingalls.
Mr. Wemmick from Great Expectations. Remember his crazy house? That's where I would want to live, hanging out with my nutty dad.
I always wanted to grow up in the Moffat family.
I have to second the Murrays from Madeleine L'Engle.
David Malter from The Chosen. Okay, I wouldn't have a mom and I'd probably spend a lot of time worrying about him, but still.
Aravis and Shasta/Cor from The Horse and His Boy. Because not only would they be awesome, but I'd get to live next door to Narnia.
I'm going to give a shoutout to chick-lit and say the Bloomwoods from the Confessions of a Shopaholic series. They're doting, caring, affectionate and think Becky hung the moon.
I'll take Baloo from The Jungle Book.
But who did you pick, Nathan?
Atticus Finch
Charles and Caroline Ingalls
Yep. 🙂
Superman and the Batman
The Hath parents from The Wind Singer by William Nicholson – which is an excellent, original fantasy novel, by the way!
I always thought it would be fun to be a member of the Glass family (and have a name like Boo Boo), but I'm not sure it is/was (er?) a particularly healthy lot, so I'll reconsider.
I can't come up with anyone, but I've written a wanted ad:
Wanted: family that lives in the English Countryside in a beautiful stone cottage. Will consider stateside if close to the ocean and also lives in cottage. Must be financially secure enough to send me to awesome college and abroad at leisure. Must also enjoy cooking vegetarian meals and baked goods. Must also love animals and have dogs. Must not have any personality disorders, but some melancholy ok. Must own espresso machine. Must enjoy adventure, but not be so outdoorsy that you own a tent. Knowing another language would be nice, but not a requirement. Siblings considered as long as they are interesting and don't yell a lot or chew gum all day.
Penelope and Odysseus from Homer's Odyssey. Or Selene and Apollo.
Nancy Drew and Robert Langdon or Luke Skywalker.
Um….Shrek and Fiona! No votes for Shrek and Fiona? They are the coolest!
Evan S. Connell's Mr. and Mrs. Bridge.
Actually … I am kidding. That would be at turns hilarious and horrific.
I'd choose Dave Eggers (A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius). He could raise me solo. Like Toph.
Trixie's parent's. They went to great lengths to find Knuffle Bunny!
Hans Hubermann and his wife Rosa, from The Book Thief. These are the main character Liesel's adoptive German parents who take her in during the rough years of World War II.
Hans is SUCH a sweet father figure, very patient and self-sacrificing. For instance, after working long days, he stays up nights reading with Liesel when she has nightmares. To a slightly lesser extent, his wife Rosa as a mother, because under her blustery ways hides true affection and a heart of gold.
The Weasleys would drive me nuts–too disorganized! ;o)
I spent the last 24 hours reading to my niece–all of the Frances books by Lillian Hoban on a loop. Those parents are wise and hilarious!
Matilda as an adult walking out on Hermes.
Or Dumbo.
Twice.
But not in any doubly hermaphrodite kind of a way.
What about Tiny Tim's parents? They seemed loving and able to enjoy life whatever their situation. Wouldn't want to be Tim though and the era was nasty.
I had a difficult time thinking of a good mum and dad in fiction. I guess a miserable or ignored kid makes for a better story.
My first thought was Meg Murray and Calvin O'Keefe, from Madeline L'Engle's books. But the Austin parents are pretty amazing too.
I'll take Rob and Jules Ray from the Betsy-Tacy books. (They were based of Maud Hart Lovelace's real parents but still technically ficticous.) Betsy hardly did any chores and got to spend Saturday afternoons reading at the library. They also let her drop out of college her last year so they could send her to Europe.
If the Rays weren't available I'd take Marmee as my second choice.
I would choose Mathilda's parents. No surprises, no hidden agenda's, no misunderstandings, they are just what they are: bad and selfish. They compel you to find your inner strength, make you resourceful and prepare you for real life in the best possible way. Yes, I would love to have had them as my parents, so I could have grown up to be a Mathilda.