The Cambridge Companion to Children's Literature

Description

Some of the most innovative and spell-binding literature has been written for young people, but only recently has academic study embraced its range and complexity. This Companion offers a state-of-the-subject survey of English-language children's literature from the seventeenth century to the present. With discussions ranging from eighteenth-century moral tales to modern fantasies by J. K. Rowling and Philip Pullman, the Companion illuminates acknowledged classics and many more neglected works. Its unique structure means that equal consideration can be given to both texts and contexts. Some chapters analyse key themes and major genres, including humour, poetry, school stories, and picture books. Others explore the sociological dimensions of children's literature and the impact of publishing practices. Written by leading scholars from around the world, this Companion will be essential reading for all students and scholars of children's literature, offering original readings and new research that reflects the latest developments in the field.

M. O. Grenby is Reader in Children's Literature at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Andrea Immel is Curator of the Cotsen Children's Library at Princeton University, New Jersey.

'... concise, stimulating comments on other school stories from the late 20th century, such as Diana Wynne Jones's Witch Week, help cast the conventions and conventionality of the Harry Potter books into relief and draw attention to the numerous alternative school stories out there.' www.parentcentral.ca 'The Cambridge Companion, lucid, entertaining, and with hardly a word wasted, locates itself in an accessible, mainstream position, and generally does an outstanding job of playing critical and historical catch-up on its more established literary fellow disciplines ... beautiful to behold - books to cheer the bookperson's heart, and the inclusion in the series of a volume on Children's Literature, especially one as good as this, should be the cause of unalloyed delight.' Modern Language Review ' ... excellent, straightforward collection that covers the fundamentals. It is also a collection that inspires readers to delve deeper ... provides a perfect sampling of scholarship for undergraduate and graduate students, but this collection should also appeal to established scholars and experts in the field.' Muse