Written for Children: An Outline of English-Language Children's Literature

by John Rowe Townsend

Overview

This revised and updated edition provides children's and young adult librarians, teachers, literature classes, and library school classes with an authoritative history and analysis of the best British and American children's literature through 1994, with a new 2003 postscript including such recent phenomenons as J.K.Rowling and Philip Pullman. Written for Children traces the development of children's literature from its origins through the beginnings of the multimedia revolution. In effortless and entertaining style, Townsend, a world-renowned authority in the field, examines the changing attitudes toward children and their literature and analyzes the various strands that make up this important field. While examining many well-known American classics, Townsend also looks at British works that American audiences may have overlooked. With illustrations and bibliography.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781461731047
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/1996
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	399
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

John Rowe Townsend has published more than twenty books for children and young people and has lectured extensively on children's literature in the United States, Britain, Australia, and Japan.

Editorial Reviews

[Townsend's]... critical voice is unpretentious and down-to-earth, insightful and often witty. The result is a user-friendly and straightforward guide to significant authors, illustrators and titles from medieval England to the present day..

Emergency Librarian

Offers a history and analysis of children's literature, examining its development and the various strands that comprise it. Contains four chronological sections, discussing aspects such as domestic dramas, fantasy between the wars, modern fantasy, realism, and picture books, with synopses of representative works. Includes b&w illustrations from books. This sixth edition includes British and American children's books through 1994. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

Booknews

...examines the changing attitudes of children toward literature and also discusses the classics. The history of children's literature is traced from its origins to the multimedia era.

School Library Media Quarterly

[Townsend's]... critical voice is unpretentious and down-to-earth, insightful and often witty. The result is a user-friendly and straightforward guide to significant authors, illustrators and titles from medieval England to the present day.

Teacher Librarian

...an impressive and comprehensive overview of literature for children and YAs.

VOYA

...an impressive and comprehensive overview of literature for children and YAs.--VOYA

[Townsend's]... critical voice is unpretentious and down-to-earth, insightful and often witty. The result is a user-friendly and straightforward guide to significant authors, illustrators and titles from medieval England to the present day.--Teacher Librarian

...examines the changing attitudes of children toward literature and also discusses the classics. The history of children's literature is traced from its origins to the multimedia era.--School Library Media Quarterly

From the Publisher