Recent Children's Lit Books of the Critical Nature

Given The Unjournal of Children's Literature's soon-to-grow book review section, my recent project has been to keep up with new scholarly books in the field of children's literature. Finding some intriguing titles, I'd like to share some of my discoveries. In our burgeoning field there are several amazing new books to discuss, so I first have to apologize for only highlighting a few this time around:

Second-Generation Memory and Contemporary Children's Literature: Ghost Images by Anastasia Ulanowicz published by Routledge in March, 2013. This book, declaring that second-generation memory "is characterized by vicarious, rather than direct, experience of the past," caught my eye because of my curiosities about the impact of memory on children's literature at large. Usually stuck on notions about how an author is in touch with their own childhood memories and how this may impact their writing, Ulanowicz's book promises to challenge my own assumptions about memory itself by claiming that memories can be adopted instead of formed from personal experience. Dedicated to examining how child protagonists adopt the memories of their elders, "this study shows how novels such as Lois Lowry’s The Giver (1993) and Judy Blume’s Starring Sally J Freedman as Herself (1977) — both of which feature protagonists who adapt their elders’ memories into their own mnemonic repertoires — implicitly reject Cartesian notions of the unified subject in favor of a view of identity as always-already social, relational, and dynamic in character." Ulanowicz is an Assistant Professor at the University of Florida.

The Children's Table: Childhood Studies and the Humanities edited by Anna Mae Duane, published by The University of Georgia Press in June, 2013. Always a fan of interdisciplinary work, The Children's Table had immediate appeal for me. Referencing the image of children relegated to a separate table at holidays and other adult-run events, this book's organizing principle embraces this image and claims a space for scholars to discuss childhood and its place in various adultcentric fields and at the same time challenges this "seating arrangement." Essays feature scholars from fields such as architecture and law as well as children's literature and cultural studies. Well-known in the field of children's literature is Robin Bernstein, who wrote an essay for this collection titled "Childhood as Performance." Duane is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Connecticut.

Bloody Murder: The Homicide Tradition in Children's Literature by Michelle Ann Abate, published by The John Hopkins University Press in February, 2013. As a passionate advocate that children's literature is no genre of mere sugar-coated fantasies, it's exhilarating to see a new book that not only blasts this misconception, but also promises to examine and tease out meanings of the killing trope in children's lit. Abate's book was released in a climate of Hunger Games hysteria, including protests about the trilogy's violence. Using this hysteria as an introduction, this article in the Boston Globe interviews Abate about her book. Abate is an Associate Professor at Hollins University.

Links for a Thursday

To liven up your Thursday, here are some curious reads, activities, and discoveries going on around the Web these days:

1. Actor Jim Carrey joins the growing troupe of celebrities extending their reach into children's books. On September 24, his picture book, How Roland Rolls, will be released and will address the more existential crises of early life -- notably that sudden awareness of life and loss.


2. Read a cultural examination on why Sci Fi and paranormal YA matters at McGill Daily. A simple look perhaps, but it ultimately focuses on the importance of sci fi to allow readers to think outside the normal conventions and to address social and political issues in exciting new ways, as well as inviting social change. It also tries to justify all the romance. That's a lot of romance to justify.


3. Evidently one of my favorite current middle grade novels, Reif Larson’s The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, is being converted to the big screen. Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amelie) is bringing his whimsical, enchanting style to a book that explores the meaning of childhood through an exhibition of love of country and humanity (the amazing conceptual maps that situate the young boy clearly in his regional space, demonstrate his ability to broaden that awareness, and expose his acute sense of what humanness is). I am somewhat obsessed with maps and all that they signify and influence, so anything to do with this story excites me. Until I saw the trailer, and began to fear the changes they would feel obliged to make to a remarkable story about a young cartographer and the transformation of the hold his family has on him. Another time I'll discuss this in detail. For now, take a look at the trailers, and if you have read the novel, let me know your first thoughts!


4.  Disney is re-imagining what it means to watch a movie in the 21st century with 2nd Screen Live. I'll withhold my comments on this except to say that here is cultural disparity at its best -- enlisting young children to bring an iPad to the movie theatre because of course all children have them, and they should of course be consumed by constant interaction on numerous interfaces at all times. 


5. Wrapping up on a lighter note, authors around southern California are invited to a book event at the Norman F. Feldheym Central Library, Saturday, Sept. 14, from 1 to 5 p.m. to discuss their books and old book signings. This celebration of authors will involve all kinds, from children's book writers to mystery, sci fi and local history writers.


6. And lastly, a bit of book fun: Better book titles for children's books!