It depends a good bit on the child. Some 9 year olds are ready for that kind of experience, some aren't. The child needs to be able to figure out what to do when the bus is late or doesn't come or whatever other weird things happen. Some 9 year olds might be ready for that level of critical thinking. Some might not.

But I think that by 11 or 12, most kids would be ready. My older son was barely 11 when he started taking the public bus on his own (we live in a small city). He was totally ready and we did talk about 'what to do if' kinds of things. But still, the other mothers here are shocked when I tell them he rides the bus on his own. Rampant irrational fear. It's a shame, really.

"All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up."

>> and some say mailings could be severely curtailed due to higher postage costs.

They say that like it's a bad thing. I say hurrah!

If you're in the Ann Arbor, Michigan area, you can see this movie in a beautifully restored 1920's era movie palace with live orchestral accompaniment this Friday, October 27.

The Michigan Theater shows Nosferatu