Children's Literature: A Very Short Introduction

Children's Literature: A Very Short Introduction PDF Author: Kimberley Reynolds
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191620122
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Children's literature takes many forms - works adapted for children in antiquity, picture books and pop-ups - and now includes the latest online games and eBooks. This vast and amorphous subject is both intimately related to other areas of literary and cultural investigation but also has its own set of concerns, issues and challenges. From familiar authors including Beatrix Potter and Roald Dahl, classic books such as Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and The Secret Garden, to modern works including Harry Potter and the Twilight series, thisVery Short Introduction provides an overview of the history of children's literature as it has developed in English, whilst at the same time introducing key debates, developments, and figures in the field. Raising questions about what shape the future of literature for children should take, and exploring the crossover with adult fiction, Reynolds shows that writing for children - whether on page or screen - has participated in shaping and directing ideas about culture, society and childhood. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

A Single Shard

A Single Shard PDF Author: Linda Sue Park
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 054735004X
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 165

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Book Description
The Newbery Medal-winning tale of an orphan boy whose dream of becoming a master potter leads to unforeseen adventure in ancient Korea. Tree-ear is an orphan boy in a 12th-century Korean village renowned for its ceramics. When he accidentally breaks a delicate piece of pottery, he volunteers to work to pay for the damage. Putting aside his own dreams, Tree-ear resolves to serve the master potter by embarking on a difficult and dangerous journey, little knowing that it will change his life forever. "Despite the odds against him, Tree-ear becomes courageous, brave and selfless, a hero as enduring as the porcelain Park so lovingly describes." (New York Times) “Intrigues, danger, and a strong focus on doing what is right turn a simple story into a compelling read. A timeless jewel.” (Kirkus starred review) *A broken piece of pottery sets events in motion as an orphan struggles to pay off his debt to a master potter. This finely crafted novel brings 12th-century Korea and these indelible characters to life." (School Library Journal starred review) "Tree-ear's determination and bravery in pursuing his dream of becoming a potter takes readers on a literary journey that demonstrates how courage, honor and perseverance can overcome great odds and bring great happiness. Park effectively conveys 12th century Korea in this masterful piece of historical fiction." (Kathleen Odean, chair of the Newbery Award Selection Committee)

Children's Literature

Children's Literature PDF Author: Seth Lerer
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226473023
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 396

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Book Description
Ever since children have learned to read, there has been children’s literature. Children’s Literature charts the makings of the Western literary imagination from Aesop’s fables to Mother Goose, from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland to Peter Pan, from Where the Wild Things Are to Harry Potter. The only single-volume work to capture the rich and diverse history of children’s literature in its full panorama, this extraordinary book reveals why J. R. R. Tolkien, Dr. Seuss, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Beatrix Potter, and many others, despite their divergent styles and subject matter, have all resonated with generations of readers. Children’s Literature is an exhilarating quest across centuries, continents, and genres to discover how, and why, we first fall in love with the written word. “Lerer has accomplished something magical. Unlike the many handbooks to children’s literature that synopsize, evaluate, or otherwise guide adults in the selection of materials for children, this work presents a true critical history of the genre. . . . Scholarly, erudite, and all but exhaustive, it is also entertaining and accessible. Lerer takes his subject seriously without making it dull.”—Library Journal (starred review) “Lerer’s history reminds us of the wealth of literature written during the past 2,600 years. . . . With his vast and multidimensional knowledge of literature, he underscores the vital role it plays in forming a child’s imagination. We are made, he suggests, by the books we read.”—San Francisco Chronicle “There are dazzling chapters on John Locke and Empire, and nonsense, and Darwin, but Lerer’s most interesting chapter focuses on girls’ fiction. . . . A brilliant series of readings.”—Diane Purkiss, Times Literary Supplement

Treasury of Literature for Children

Treasury of Literature for Children PDF Author: Bookthrift
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9780671070496
Category : Children's literature
Languages : en
Pages : 404

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Book Description
Anthology of over sixty well-loved stories, poems, fairytales and bavles.

Books Children Love (Revised Edition)

Books Children Love (Revised Edition) PDF Author: Elizabeth Laraway Wilson
Publisher: Crossway
ISBN: 1433516349
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 542

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Book Description
A love for reading is one of the most precious gifts that we can give children. It nurtures their imagination and creativity, lets them explore other worlds, and opens their minds to new truths and knowledge in appealing, inspiring ways. But how can we sort through thousands of children's books to discover the really worthwhile ones? Elizabeth Wilson offers us a newly revised, comprehensive guide to the very best in children's literature. Just as in the original volume, she comments on the tone and content of excellently written, captivating books in over two dozen subject areas. Hundreds of new titles have been added while retaining timeless classics and modern favorites-all of which respect traditional values. So that no matter what the children's ages are or whether they love fact or fiction, you can trust these books to share things that you can believe in and kids will delight in.

Bernard Pepperlin

Bernard Pepperlin PDF Author: Cara Hoffman
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0062865463
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description
“Bernard and his newfound friends—revolutionary rats, wise-cracking cats, and coffee-chugging squirrels, to name a few—will delight and inspire readers of all ages!” —Erin Entrada Kelly, Newbery Medal-winning author of Hello, Universe The drowsy Dormouse from Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is transported to modern-day New York City for the adventure of a lifetime in this middle grade novel that’s perfect for fans of Stuart Little and written by critically acclaimed author Cara Hoffman. When a girl in a blue dress crashes the Mad Hatter’s eternal tea party, the sleepy Dormouse feels more awake than he has in a long time. He wishes he could follow her and be a part of her adventure. And as luck would have it, a surprising twist of fate sends the Dormouse on an adventure of his own, where he must not fall asleep. For he is destined to save a magical world outside Wonderland, and it will take all his courage—and a few new friends—to do it.

How I Met My Monster

How I Met My Monster PDF Author: Amanda Noll
Publisher: Flashlight Press
ISBN: 1947277111
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 32

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Book Description
One night, when Ethan reaches under his bed for a toy truck, he finds this note instead: "Monsters! Meet here for final test." Ethan is sure his parents are trying to trick him into staying under the covers, until he sees five colorful sets of eyes blinking at him from beneath the bed. Soon, a colorful parade of quirky, squeaky little monsters compete to become Ethan's monster. But only the little green monster, Gabe, has the perfect blend of stomach-rumbling and snorting needed to get Ethan into bed and keep him there so he falls asleep—which as everyone knows, is the real reason for monsters under beds. With its perfect balance of giggles and shivers, this silly-spooky prequel to the award-winning I Need My Monster and Hey, That's MY Monster! will keep young readers entertained.

Poetics of Children's Literature

Poetics of Children's Literature PDF Author: Zohar Shavit
Publisher: University of Georgia Press
ISBN: 0820334812
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
Since its emergence in the seventeenth century as a distinctive cultural system, children's literature has had a culturally inferior status resulting from its existence in a netherworld between the literary system and the educational system. In addition to its official readership—children—it has to be approved of by adults. Writers for children, explains Zohar Shavit, are constrained to respond to these multiple systems of often mutually contradictory demands. Most writers do not try to bypass these constraints, but accept them as a framework for their work. In the most extreme cases an author may ignore one segment of the readership. If the adult reader is ignored, the writer risks rejection, as is the case of popular literature. If the writer utilizes the child as a pseudo addressee in order to appeal to an adult audience, the result can be what Shavit terms an ambivalent work. Shavit analyzes the conventions and the moral aims that have structured children's literature, from the fairy tales collected and reworked by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm—in particular, “Little Red Riding Hood”—through the complex manipulations of Lewis Carroll in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, to the subversion of the genre's canonical requirements in the chapbooks of the eighteenth century, and in the formulaic Nancy Drew books of the twentieth century. Throughout her study Shavit, explores not only how society has shaped children's literature, but also how society has been reflected in the literary works it produces for its children.

Feeling Like a Kid

Feeling Like a Kid PDF Author: Jerome Griswold
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 9780801885174
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
A lively and illustrated inquiry of how children's literature reflects the curious mind of a child—now available in paperback. Outstanding Academic Title for 2007, Choice Magazine In this engaging book, Jerry Griswold examines the unique qualities of childhood experience and their reappearance as frequent themes in children's literature. Surveying dozens of classic and popular works for the young—from Heidi and The Wizard of Oz to Beatrix Potter and Harry Potter—Griswold demonstrates how great children's writers succeed because of their uncanny ability to remember what it feels like to be a kid: playing under tables, shivering in bed on a scary night, arranging miniature worlds with toys, zooming around as caped superheroes, and listening to dolls talk. Feeling Like a Kid boldly and honestly identifies the ways in which the young think and see the world in a manner different from that of adults. Written by a leading scholar, prize-winning author, and frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times, this extensively illustrated book will fascinate general readers as well as all those who study childhood and children's literature.

Considering Children's Literature

Considering Children's Literature PDF Author: Andrea Schwenke Wyile
Publisher: Broadview Press
ISBN: 1551116049
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 392

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Book Description
“The study of children’s literature is not just about children and the books said to be for them; it is also about the societies and cultures from which the literature comes, and it is about the assumptions and ideas we hold about children and childhood. For adults, reading children’s literature is ultimately both an act of nostalgia and of self-examination. When we consider children’s literature, we must include ourselves in the equation: What kinds of readers are we? How do we relate to books and stories? To what degree should we impose our experience upon others? Reading children’s literature actively can lead to all kinds of remarkable (and sometimes unsettling) revelations about ourselves and our society.” — from the Introduction Considering Children’s Literature is a collection of previously published essays on a variety of topics that inform the study of children’s literature. Exploring issues such as censorship, the canon, the meanings of fairy tales, and the adaptation of children’s literature into film, the essays in this anthology are as diverse as they are illuminating. Along with authors like Natalie Babbitt and Margaret Mahy, teachers, scholars, and publishers of children’s books are also contributors. Accessible and comprehensive, this book will appeal to anyone interested in children’s literature.