children's literature — Bunk History

Tourists on a ferry sailing along the coast of Maine.

A Picture-Book Guide to Maine

Children’s stories set on the coast suggest a wilder way of life.

by Anna E. Holmes via The New Yorker on September 8, 2024

A young girl in black and white look at her reflection, in color, in a mirror.

How Judy Blume’s "Deenie" Helped Destigmatize Masturbation

On self-pleasure and sex education in children's literature.

by Rachelle Bergstein via Literary Hub on July 16, 2024

Television with LeVar Burton holding book and surrounded by rainbows.

How An Untested, Cash-Strapped TV Show About Books Became An American Classic

Despite facing political headwinds and raising 'suspicion' among publishers, 'Reading Rainbow' introduced generations of American kids to books.

by Jonathan Taylor via Los Angeles Times on July 11, 2023

Illustration of Harold drawing the moon, from "Harold and the Purple Crayon"

On "Harold of the Purple Crayon" and the Value of an Imaginative Journey

Considering the lessons and history of Crockett Johnson’s classic.

by Ross Ellenhorn via Literary Hub on November 8, 2022

Illustration of fantasy elements including a maze and a crystal ball from a "choose-your-own-adventure" scene from a book.

The Enduring Allure of Choose Your Own Adventure Books

How a best-selling series gave young readers a new sense of agency.

by Leslie Jamison via The New Yorker on September 12, 2022

Drawing of a group of young boys around a table, entitled "Mischievous Matt," from a story paper.

Dime Novels and Story Papers for Kids

The rise of popular literature for children put a story, a role model, and a set of values in a young boy’s pocket.

by Michael Denning, Betsy Golden Kellem, Sara Lindey, Margaret Cassidy via JSTOR Daily on June 23, 2022

The Radical Woman Behind “Goodnight Moon”

Margaret Wise Brown constantly pushed boundaries—in her life and in her art.

by Anna E. Holmes via The New Yorker on January 27, 2022

A couple of "Dear America" books laid out

How The Dear America Series Taught Young Girls They Had A Place In History

History classes made it seem like young girls wouldn't ever change the course of the world. These books taught them that they could.

by Angela Lashbrook via Refinery29 on July 19, 2021

black and white photos of children

The Magazine That Helped 1920s Kids Navigate Racism

Mainstream culture denied Black children their humanity—so W. E. B. Du Bois created The Brownies’ Book to assert it.

by Anna E. Holmes via The Atlantic on February 12, 2021

Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl's Anti-Black Racism

The first edition of the beloved novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory featured "pygmy" characters taken from Africa.

by Livia Gershon via JSTOR Daily on December 10, 2020

Harriet the Spy.

Why Harriet the Spy Had to Lie

An elaborate secret life was a necessity for children’s author Louise Fitzhugh.

by Jennifer Wilson via The New Republic on December 8, 2020

Choose your own adventure book covers with arrows pointing in opposite directions.

“Oh My God, It’s Milton Friedman for Kids”

How "Choose Your Own Adventure" books indoctrinated ‘80s children with the idea that success is simply the result of individual “good choices.”

by Eli Cook, Rebecca Onion via Slate on February 27, 2020

How One Librarian Tried to Squash Goodnight Moon

This footnote in New York Public Library history hints at a rich story of power, taste, and the crumbling of traditional gatekeepers.

by Dan Kois via Slate on January 13, 2020

The Parents of Curious George

Margret and Hans A. Rey, the reluctant parents of a cartoon ape-child, always yearned to leave children’s literature behind.

by Yuliya Komska via Los Angeles Review of Books on July 29, 2019

Rereading Childhood Books Teaches Adults About Themselves

Whether they delight or disappoint, old books provide touchstones for tracking personal growth.

by Emma Court via The Atlantic on July 27, 2018

Illustrated children reaching for books by statue of Anne Carroll Moore

The Librarian Who Changed Children’s Literature Forever

They called her ACM, but never, ever, to her face.

by Laura J. Miller via Slate on August 5, 2016

A frog and a toad together on a tandem bicycle

“Frog and Toad”: An Amphibious Celebration of Same-Sex Love

A series of illustrated children’s books endures as a classic. Was it also the author’s attempt to come out?

by Colin Stokes via The New Yorker on May 31, 2016

What Happens When Children's Books Fail to Confront the Complexity of Slavery

We need literature that wrestles with the evils of slavery while confronting its complexity – especially when it’s written for children

by Michael W. Twitty via The Guardian on January 19, 2016

How Did YA Become YA?

Why is it called YA anyway? And who decided what was YA and what wasn’t?

by Anne Rouyer via New York Public Library on April 20, 2015

When the Wild Imagination of Dr. Seuss Fueled Big Oil

Geisel did not begin his career writing children stories, but selling products.

by Lisa Hix via Collectors Weekly on August 17, 2012

Illustrated cover of the "Secret Garden"

100 Years of The Secret Garden

Frances Hodgson Burnett's biographer considers her life and how personal tragedy underpinned the creation of her most famous work.

by Gretchen Holbrook Gerzina via The Public Domain Review on March 8, 2011

The original cover sketch of "Cars and Trucks and Things That Go," by Richard Scarry, with cartoon animals in vehicles.

On Richard Scarry and the Art of Children's Literature

Scarry’s guides to life both reflected and bolstered kids’ lived experience, and in some cases even provided the template for it.

by Chris Ware via The Yale Review on September 9, 2024

Basketball players resting on court

Game Changer

On the mismatched sporting advice of Clair Bee and John R. Tunis.

by Dan McQuade via Lapham’s Quarterly on July 10, 2023

Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

A Child's Primer for Liberty

Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House" series is the best introduction for a child to virtues indispensable to liberty.

by John O. McGinnis via Law & Liberty on April 20, 2023

Dorothy and the Wicked Witch of the West in "The Wizard of Oz."

The Feminist of Oz

Learn more about the story of Matilda Gage, whose writings inspired the witches in "The Wizard of Oz."

by Anna K. Danziger Halperin via New-York Historical Society on March 1, 2023

Uncle Tom’s Cabin jigsaw puzzle.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, The Jigsaw Puzzle: Jumbling the Pieces of Stowe’s Story

Understanding puzzles as agents of disorder runs counter to a common interpretation that associates puzzles with the quest for order.

by Patricia Jane Roylance via Commonplace on January 31, 2023

A photo of three young girls smiling seated around a table with dolls next to them.

Reading Disability History Back into American Girl

The author's personal history with the dolls, and an argument for American Girl to make a new doll with a disability.

by Marissa Spear via Nursing Clio on November 1, 2022

Display of banned books in a bookstore.

Today’s Book Bans Echo a Panic Against Comic Books in the 1950s

When a climate of fear exists, people don’t scrutinize the evidence behind claims about children’s reading material.

by Jeremy C. Young via Made By History on October 17, 2022

Painting of events and characters in the book Bambi, with a scared deer surrounded by violent acts of a person and dog hunting and predators capturing and eating prey.

“Bambi” Is Even Bleaker Than You Thought

The original book is far more grisly than the beloved Disney classic—and has an unsettling message about humanity.

by Kathryn Schulz via The New Yorker on January 17, 2022

Illustration of Louise Fitzhugh smiling and holding journal.

The Tragic Misfit Behind “Harriet the Spy”

The girl sleuth, now the star of a TV show, has been eased into the canon. In the process, she’s shed the politics that motivated her creation.

by Rebecca Panovka via The New Yorker on December 9, 2021

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