EDITORIAL
Read our lips, kids: Get lost in a book

As millions of children and teenagers today scramble to get their hot little hands on "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," a new national report tells us that Hawai'i public school students continue to score below average in reading.

Yes, the numbers are up from the last time this test — the National Assessment of Educational Progress — was taken in 1998. But they are not good enough. We still lag national norms, although the trend lines suggest we may be catching up, a hopeful trend.

It is simple common sense that one gets better at reading by, well, reading. And despite the "Harry Potter" hype, Island kids are obviously not reading enough.

Or they're just not being exposed to mind-blowing fiction.

We do know they spend hours glued to video games and the TV. But wouldn't they rather lose themselves in the adventures of students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?

And if "Harry Potter" doesn't do it for them, try "The View from Saturday," by E.L. Konigsburg; "Holes" by Louis Sacharor; and "Elsie Piddock Skips in her Sleep" by Eleanor Fargeon.

Countless novels provide a magical escape from the stresses of daily life.

So how about it, kids? Unplug yourselves from the passive world of TV and the manic world of computer games, and go to the beach or the park and read a good book. Trust us, the world will take on a whole new dimension.