Chapter 5 Children’s Literature Briefly

Tunnel/Jacobs

Chapter 5 Children’s Books: History and Trends

Children’s Literature, Briefly

John Locke, an English philosopher had a great influence on the attitudes we have towards

children. His book Some Thoughts Concerning Education, published in 1693, suggested

gentler ways of raising children. He felt children’s books should be available and that they

should be easy and pleasant to read. At that time in history children were treated as small

adults and child labor laws were non existent.

As far back as the Middle Ages, books intended for youngsters existed in limited numbers

in the form of handwritten texts for extremely wealthy. The stories worth reading were

available not in books, but from storytellers-fairy tales, myths, ballads, epics and other

stories from oral tradition.

In 1657, Johann Amos Comenius, a Moravian teacher and bishop, wrote Orbis Pictus (The

World in Pictures), which is often called the first children’s picture book.

In 1697, Charles Perrault, who had set about collecting the French fairy tales, published his

enduring collection, Tales of Mother Goose, which included such old favorites as The

Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella.

In the 16th

century, a form of underground reading became popular. Chapbooks were

crudely printed booklets that were sold by peddlers for pennies. The books became very

popular and may have been indirectly responsible for the development of John Newberry’s

children’s book publishing house. Newberry began to publish exclusively for young

readers. His contributions are recognized in the prize awarded that bears his name,

America’s John Newberry Medal.

In the 19th

century additional influential, honest, and lasting stories went to print. Stories

by Grimm and Andersen became popular and accessible.

Children’s book illustration also came of age in the 19th

century. Illustrators gained status

as printing techniques improved and color illustrations became more common.

Two major awards are. given for children’s book illustrations. The Randolph Caldecott

Medal is awarded in the U.S. and The Kate Greenaway Medal is given in the United

Kingdom.

In the 20th

century the birth of the modern picture book occurred. Books like the The Tale

of Peter Rabbit and The Wonderful Wizard of Oz were written. The Wonderful Wizard of

is considered the first classic modern fantasy written by an American.

The Age of New Realism and Beyond

The 1960’s brought in a revolution in writing and illustrating: the age of realism. Topics

like death, divorce, alcoholism, and child abuse were written about. Books like Where the

Wild Things Are (1963) by Sendak were considered controversial.

Chapter books became popular in the 1970’s because they were easily affordable not only

to make but to purchase.

Also in the 1970’s African Americans won the Newberry and Caldecott Awards for the

first time.

Authors and illustrators of children’s books continue to experiment with form and content.

The rewards or this experimentation outweigh the risks; and many fine books are being

published as a result. Children’s literature watchdogs-of which there are many, are

scrutinizing books for their contents.