I question whether HF should be read in high school -- given some of the quality of teaching -- much less by a 7 year old. However, if I were to read it out loud to a 7 year old, I would read it the way it is, word for word, and describe the fact that the word is ugly, and why, explain slavery and that the book is filled with dark and scary things, and we would talk about each episode at length. How do you explain the Grangerfords and Sheperdsons? How do you explain the murder of Buck? How do you explain the brutality of Pap? So, if a kid can handle it, and if you as a parent can truly deal with the implications, go ahead. The best children's books have a great deal of darkness to them -- try reading the original Pinocchio out loud, for example. But reading to a child is the beginning of literary criticism -- and the parent should actively promote discussion. Hilton Obenzinger Stanford University