A child who can love the oddities of a fantasy book cannot possibly be xenophobic as an adult. What is a different color, a different culture, a different tongue for a child who has already mastered Elvish, respected Puddleglums, or fallen under the spell of dark-skinned Ged?

Touch Magic: Fantasy, Faerie and Folklore in the Literature of Childhood (ed. Philomel, 1981)