Secret Spaces Of Childhood

This eclectic, wide-ranging anthology of essays, art, poetry, fiction, and memoir gathers distinguished contributors, from Wole Soyinka to Joyce Carol Oates

This eclectic, wide-ranging anthology of essays, art, poetry, fiction, and memoir gathers distinguished contributors, from Wole Soyinka to Joyce Carol Oates

An examination of the secret world of children that shows how important special places are to a child's development.

Scholars in the field of children’s literature studies began taking an interest in the concept of “liminal spaces” around the turn of the 21st century. For the first time, Liminal Spaces in Children’s and Young Adult Literature: Stories from the In Between brings together in one volume a collection of original essays on this topic by leading children’s literature scholars. The contributors in this collection take a wide variety of approaches to their explorations of liminal spaces in children’s and young adult literature. Some discuss how children’s books portray the liminal nature of physical spaces, such as the children’s room in a library. Others deal with more abstract portrayals, such as the imaginary space where Max goes to escape the reality of his bedroom in Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are. All of the contributors, however, provide keen insights into how liminal spaces figure in children’s and young adult literature.

People, children especially, have been baffled, bewildered, and even outraged by the fact that Pluto is no longer called a planet. Through whimsical artwork and an entertaining dialogue format, Pluto’s Secret explains the true story of this distant world. Providing a history of the small, icy world from its discovery and naming to its recent reclassification, this book presents a fascinating look at how scientists organize and classify our solar system as they gain new insights into how it works and what types of things exist within it. The book includes a glossary and bibliography. Praise for Pluto's Secret "Pairing a lighthearted narrative in a hand-lettered†“style typeface with informally drawn cartoon illustrations, this lively tale of astronomical revelations begins with the search for Planet X.†? —Kirkus Reviews "This picture book offers a fresh, positive perspective on Pluto, showing that its change of status is not a demotion but a correction." —Booklist "Light-hearted imagining of a gregarious Pluto.†? —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "Fun reading... The book provides a factual history of our faraway 'dwarf,' and on its companion icy worlds, and on the discovery of Kuiper-like bands around other stars." —School Library Journal Award New York Public Library’s annual Children’s Books list: 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing 2013

Many of us grew up exploring fascinating worlds--in books, films, and, most importantly, our imaginations--places filled with mythological characters and magical landscapes where we had stunning experiences punctuated by the harmless pleasures that any child's mind can conjure. These worlds sometimes end up in our childhood fictions, which have in turn shaped countless imaginations and childhood adventures. The essays in this book attempt to comprehend the worlds of children's progressive fiction--from how they are created to how they affect readers. This book explores what happens when speculative genres (fantasy, horror, and science fiction) and imaginative spaces collide headlong with the realities and surrealities of modern childhood. It moves back and forth between Oz, Wonderland, Redwall and Fear Street, and explores series such as Nancy Drew, Inkheart, The Mortal Instruments, the Miss Peregrine series and more. Many of these works feature children who must save the day--to stop the bad guy, kill the monster, complete the quest and rescue adults--leading us to wonder if fantastic spaces in children's progressive fiction are really helping kids prepare to save the world rather than helping them temporarily escape it.