Reading Jumanji

Chris Van Allsburg's Jumanji is one of those wonderful children's books which sparks the imagination when read aloud and which was ruined by being made into a major motion picture. 

It's one thing to imagine a lion in one's house or the gang of monkeys in one's kitchen--in fact any child who's seen a nature documentary can fill in the blanks wonderfully well!--but the fun and adventure are sadly missing when one actually sees the ferocious lion or the evil-looking monkeys.

Is the lion that ferocious in a child's mind?  Or is the lion more lost and confused?  Are the monkeys evil?  Or are they more rambunctous and child-like in their curiousity as they encounter the pots and pans?

The beauty of reading is that the reader and the listeners can make up their own minds.  No one is dictating
to them, so the boundaries of the story are endless.  By adding the moving pictures--as opposed to Van Allsburg's stark black and white drawings--the story wears a straight jacket that reaches out and binds its listeners.

Some of my fondest memories of reading to children at story hour include Van Allsburg's Jumanji.  I wonder if the story would have the impact today that it did when it was first published.