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I pity the child who doesn't get to experience the Asterix the Gaul or Tintin graphic novels. It would be almost as bad as a childhood devoid of Lego in my opinion. In all seriousness though I do believe that Tintin is the perfect example of a book all children should have the opportunity to read. I know that at the school libraries I've visited that children love them still here in Australia. I read many books in my childhood (many of them trashy unforgettable child stories that I look back and laugh at) and there are too many to properly get nostalgic (there are many books I still forget I've read until I stumble over them. Biggles for example... or the The Velvet Room for another instance). Well either way I had what seemed like a large bookshelf full of old children's books when I was young. But what I loved and remember reading was books like Tintin. Books that had memorable characters.

And to this day this particular story remains my favourite. Perhaps it was the touch of science fiction or fantasy. How Johnson and Johnson grow that long green hair and how the astronauts find frozen water on the moon. I guess it was the touch of whimsy that added to the magical, childish charm in the Tintin stories.

Speaking of Tintin the film that came out recently is a fine example of how motion capture can be used to create a stunningly visual film. It looks really, really fine. Of course the plot is merely a rehash of another Tintin story (making it a pretty decent adaptation therefore) but that said it is a very well made animated film I think and reminded me all the more of these books. Some books may pass from your memory but others remain in your heart and the characters grow on with you throughout the years and that is what the Tintin books remain for me.