Children's Literature and Social Change by Dennis Butts

Children's Literature and Social Change by Dennis Butts

While there are many books about children's literature, few discuss it within its social context or investigate the ways writers reflect or react to change in society. Dennis Butts explores how shifting attitudes and historical upheavals from the 1840s onwards affected and continue to affect books written for younger audiences. Spanning from the industrial revolution to the sexual revolution, this title tells about the impact these external events have had on writers as diverse as moral storyteller Barbara Hofland and the controversial Melvin Burgess. G.A. Henty, Robert Louis Stevenson and even Philip Pullman are included in the discussion, as Butts identifies commonalities between books of the past and present, arguing that trends shown in most of the early children's literature are being displayed again now, albeit in a more subtle manner. This book will appeal to undergraduate students attending complementary courses in children's literature during their degree in English Literature or Cultural Studies. It will also be of use to postgraduate research students working in the field of Children's Literature.

'Butts is surely one of the pioneers of the discipline, helping to establish its academic credibility in the UK, at least, and involved in establishing the first MA in the subject at the University of ReadingThis particular volume draws on his strengths as a critic and gives his individual voice room to shine through. [...] this is a fine collection of interconnected essays. Butts's range of reference is truly astounding - not only his first-hand knowledge of children's book (including obscure works) and the associated secondary criticism, but also of social and cultural theory, and of history. As ever, Butts wears his knowledge lightly, leavening his criticism with delightful asides and unexpected links.' David Rudd, Children's Literature Association Quarterly, Vol. 38, No. 4, Winter 2013 "The writing is clear and jargon-free...and there are fresh insights into familiar texts such as Robert Louis Stevenson's Kidnapped and E. Nesbit's The Railway Children, while lesser-known writers like Amy Le Feuvre also got attention." Norma Clarke, The Times Literary Supplement, (September, 2010)

Dennis Butts, a former Chairman of The Children's Books History Society, taught children's literature at Reading University. He has a lifelong interest in the relationship between politics, society and literature, and has written on many aspects of children's books and nineteenth-century literature. He co-edited From the Dairyman's Daughter to Worrals of the WAAF, also published by The Lutterworth Press.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780718892081
ISBN 10	0718892089
Title	Children's Literature and Social Change
Author	Dennis Butts
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	James Clarke & Co Ltd
Year published	2010-05-27
Number of pages	208
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.