| Book | Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literature |
| By | |
| ISBN | 0763651508 |
| ISBN-13 | 9780763651503 |
| Publication | 09 July 2025 |
| Number of Pages | 288 |
| Format Type | Hardcover |
Childrens wild things acts of mischief in children's literature summary
Not the entire book deals with sex by any means but the entire book is a fascinating read I suppose it ll never get used in an introduction to Children s Literature class because it is too much fun to qualify as a textbook Too bad There is story after fascinating story about the well known authors and illustrators of kids lit in this book You won t look at many of these books in the same light again Their focus was to thoroughly remove the notion that kids lit is full of sweet little bunnies and whatnot and I would say they completely succeeded in their aim I highly recommend this to Youth Services Librarians and I hope someone does manage to get this book into an introduction to Children s Literature class in Library School Anyone who thinks they can manage that act of mischief see subtitle will make many future library students much happier while studying Much thanks to Ms Hancock of Candlewick for awarding me this marvelous book Hey.
Wild things acts of mischief in children's literatureville
I m still not sure how I feel about this book On the one hand it contained some dishy gossipy stories that I never knew and I enjoyed that It also discussed several issues about children s publishing that I think are important like the influx of celebrity authors and the impact of the Harry Potter series and these issues are discussed in an intelligent and balanced manner On the other hand I felt throughout my reading experience like I was missing something Often when that happens it s a failure of expectation which is entirely my fault and that s why I haven t given this book a star rating because I feel it would be unfair to blame the authors for failing to live up to my expectations or to do with their book what I would have done with it But I think I expected wild things discussion of the impact of reading on children especially the psychological impact For example there s an entire chapter on the conflict in the adult world between good fiction for children and bad fiction the wholesome quality books that critics and parents love versus the pulpy adventure stories that children devour whole heartedly hello Nancy Drew Yet there was no exploration of WHY this dichotomy might exist no delving into the psychological needs these books fulfilled for the child Granted these authors are not psychologists and clearly this was beyond the scope of the book but didn t these things occur to them as they did to me Especially when their title conjured images of Max as King of the Land of Wild Things Betsy Bird Wild things is a book for Bibliophiles It s an ode to children s literature a romp through the ins and outs and behind the scenes adventures of the authors publishers editors and yes readers of literature for the young In a conversational and familiar tone this book assumes the reader knows a little about books and wants to know MORE about how this book world works and about how it came to be the way it is. Wild things acts of mischief in children's literature I found it to be really engaging I particularly loved the anecdotes and background information about books I m already familiar with Did I wish I could UNlearn a few things Maybe I ll never think about Shel Silverstein the same way again But truth is good and several times I found myself sharing stories I d read with my reader sister I was so intrigued A good sized portion of this book is dedicated to the sexual orientation of various authors and the emergence of books about homosexuals since this part didn t interest me as much as the rest it felt a little long but I know other readers would feel differently so there you go. What effect did the success of where the wild things are have on children's publishing As a girl who grew up reading Where the Sidewalk Ends and Dr Seuss Little House on the Prairie and Are You There God It s Me Margaret I was always happy to pick this up and learn about my favorite thing books Betsy Bird I was so excited to read this book which promises to tell the stories behind favorite children s lit authors and illustrators Instead it s a book whose main message seems to be that the authors and illustrators who are progressive thinkers read sex drugs anti the man literally said so many times and anti traditions are the good ones All others are just fluffy bunnies and deserve to be burned The only true art is ones who challenge our way of thinking read tell us porn or anti establishment is good I couldn t even finish Maybe it gets better but from glancing through the table of contents and other topics covered I m going to say it doesn t Betsy Bird The three authors were all US children s book bloggers so the focus is there They cover such issues as diversity in authors book banning the history of kid s books in the US adults reading children s books and many other things as well sex matricide with a fork celebrity writers etc Lots of fun stuff well presented and amusingly Should appeal to readers of children s books librarians teachers and those of us who just can t ignore a catchy phrase like matricide with a fork even if we already follow the blogs I hope there will be books to come. Ebook wild things acts of mischief in children's literature free download Library copy natch Betsy Bird Overall quite contradictory in its condemnation of books that will doubtless be re evaluated in the near future and its utilitization of a nebulous definition of PC deciding for others what is offensive and why Many aspects of the book will not hold up as well as say Caldecott and Co Notes on Books and Pictures or Touch Magic Fantasy Faerie Folklore in the Literature of Childhood but I still highly recommend Wild Things for its varied opinions on many books and issues. Ebook wild things acts of mischief in children's literature book Wild Things performed a great service for me by clarifying my thoughts on the fantasy trend in Young Adult literature of books with no real fantastic wondrous or numinous elements at all rather teenage fairies debutante vampires and boy hunk werewolves behave in typically high school ways with cliques exclusive schools feelings of deserving these privileges for being so special and much dramatic self pity for the problems of being a non human creature and otherwise appearing to be a run of the mill adolescent This trend has distressed me by seeming to take away something from my own adolescence a sort of hidden place for my spirit to soar and to leave behind the popularity contest and at times snake pit of teenage life. Pdf wild things acts of mischief in children's literature A simple phrase dispels a lot of the depression of this trend they re Deceptions they re Babysitter s Club Collection Books 1 4 they re all the Nancy Drew knockoff mystery series that have mostly disappeared over the years This indicates that the fairy vampire magic wizard student fad is going to disappear someday And I hope that what remains will be well written variations on the theme and wholly original books for young readers who like to find a great book after a long quest. Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literaturer reading Even though I don t rate the book the highest I m sure I will go back to it for the irreverent parts and the gossip both of which I recommend you at least skim for Betsy Bird 
Born in Kalamazoo Michigan undisputed center of the universe Betsy Bird nee Elizabeth Ramsey grew up and promptly left Michigan the moment her legs could propel her southward She didnt get far Obtaining a B. Pdf wild things acts of mischief in children's literature A at Earlham College in Richmond Indiana home of recorded jazz and dont let anyone tell you otherwise she set her sights on Portland Oregon When that didnt pan out it was Minneapolis Minnesota Then New York New York In the midst of all this she somehow managed to get a library degree and a job at New York Public Library eventually becoming their Youth Media Specialist a. Wild things acts of mischief in children's literature childrens stories a the person who bought all the kids books for Manhattan Staten Island and the Bronx She created the childrens literary blog A Fuse 8 Prod Born in Kalamazoo Michigan undisputed center of the universe Betsy Bird nee Elizabeth Ramsey grew up and promptly left Michigan the moment her legs could propel her southward She didn t get far Obtaining a B. What effect did the success of where the wild things are have on children's publishing A at Earlham College in Richmond Indiana home of recorded jazz and don t let anyone tell you otherwise she set her sights on Portland Oregon When that didn t pan out it was Minneapolis Minnesota Then New York New York In the midst of all this she somehow managed to get a library degree and a job at New York Public Library eventually becoming their Youth Media Specialist a. Pdf wild things acts of mischief in children's literature pdf a the person who bought all the kids books for Manhattan Staten Island and the Bronx She created the children s literary blog A Fuse 8 Production and schmoozed as no one had ever schmoozed before The result A non fiction text for library students a picture book called Giant Dance Party a picture book illustrated by Caldecott winner Dan Santat called The Great Santa Stakeout a behind the scenes title for adults co written with two of her favorite bloggers called Wild Things Acts of Mischief in Children s Literature an anthology of some of the most hilarious women writing for kids today called Funny Girl Funniest Stories Ever and her first middle grade novel for kids Long Road to the Circus illustrated by Caldecott award winner David Small Betsy Bird is now the Collection Development Manager of Evanston IL Stop by We ll have lunch It ll be nice site_link Secret lives scandalous turns and some very funny surprises these essays by leading kids lit bloggers take us behind the scenes of many much loved children s books Did Laura Ingalls cross paths with a band of mass murderers Why was a Garth Williams bunny tale dubbed integrationist propaganda For adults who are curious about children s books and their creators here are the little known stories behind the stories A treasure trove of information for a student librarian new parent or anyone wondering about the post Harry Potter book biz Wild Things draws on the combined knowledge and research of three respected and popular librarian bloggers Told in affectionate and lively prose with numerous never before collected anecdotes this book chronicles some of the feuds and fights errors and secret messages found in children s books and brings contemporary illumination to the warm and fuzzy bunny world we think we know Wild Things Acts of Mischief in Children s LiteratureThis was loads of fun to read The number of famous kids lit authors and illustrators who had unacceptable for then sexual inclinations I mean LGBT boggles the mind Good thing most weren t publicly known about at the heyday of their career It likely would have ended a number of careers Speaking of sex did you know that the reason Ungerer vanished from the scene was because he self published a book of erotica Can t have a kids writer who admits an interest in sex after all Actually that is an attitude that many kids lit professionals have had to deal with a general reaction that a they don t do real work Thanks J K Rowling for breaking that perception and b they are rather like big kids themselves One Newbery award winner says she often feels that if she admits her field of work that she is about to be patted on the head So of course you simply can t have these professionals interested in sex right Trina Schart Hyman was not one to cross in the field She has always been one of my favorite illustrators At one point she popped a couple well coupling into the artwork on the side of a table look on p133 She also got even with a particularly vitriolic review about her work from Kirkus via a tombstone in Jean Fritz s Will you sign here John Hancock That tombstone will be blank in all but the extremely rare first edition so don t bother racing to your library and looking it up But if you read p129 130 you can get the full story there is no copy of the original tombstone darn it OK it worked I now have a copy on order for my system Betsy Bird This has prompt me to look up many books I already had a banned challenged bookshelf but this encouraged me to seek of those books out I was already interested in LBGTQ picture books and to a lesser extent YA I have read Luna and heard of many that were mentioned and this helped list titles I was unfamiliar with I will also now be seeking out books by celebrities and books that won awards good as well as bad awards. Book wild things acts of mischief in children's literature I loved how the idea of censorship was presented It s a thorny issue yet not all bad I was pleased to see some examples of positive censorship such as a contemporary author changing her ending a little by a few words to avoid exoticizing her non white main character Or forwards added to long ago published works explaining why and how the original text was or in some instances weren t altered In other instances it was only images that were changed Fascinating topics such as why some works in some contexts should not be censored eg works by Twain in an academic setting I agree that history literary texts should not be edited to make us look better and that it can in the right setting lead to powerful lessons and understanding Perhaps that is somewhat of an anthropological view but still valid. Book wild things acts of mischief in children's literature book Only one minor critique I wish that the authors had acknowledged their western view point as it seemed that mostly western texts and ideas were discussed I am also curious as to other view points For example in China Alice s Adventures in Wonderland was at one time banned due to talking animals different cultures and eras have different s and ideology Betsy Bird I was hoping this would be about dishing Wanda Gag s diary We would quote some of the passages for you but the pages of this book might ignite Dang guys It s evil to tease like that and less about Issues but there s still sufficient scandal threaded through the moral and social ruminations to keep things lively I did see a contradiction in all the mocking of pundits and librarians who object ed to language character types violence or values in children s books that seemed immoral or dangerous to them or at the time and how many of those protests actually came to anything but then a little later sounding a clarion warning about celebrity books quoting with apparent approval Amanda Craig s screed and others on their child damaging potential It seems inconsistent to dub as silly the idea that impressionable children might be moved to kill someone or become gay in imitation of their fave authors or reading but then take seriously the threat of getting breast implants or taking up pole dancing for the same reason Still there s lots to cherish in this book There is definitely something to be said for children having their own literature a separate secret subversive world of their own But there may also be some good in having a common ground of reading between children and adults books that provide a bridge and understanding Books we can all share Right on. Book wild things acts of mischief in children's literature Some further comments until the late 19th century children s books rarely depicted children who were not white male and privileged Not too sure they ve come all that far since particularly as regards the white part I disagree with a later claim that children s literature like fairy tales never takes the part of the strong against the weak By number most children s books still reflect majority western European middle class experiences and values But then look who writes illustrates and publishes them Edward Gorey another author who initially set out to write for adults yet whose tales were ultimately appropriated by children Not really search him as an author in the NYPL catalog and you ll find 15 children s records and 140 adult the greatest stories written for children are those produced by people who have felt outside of the mainstream in some manner Really Mark Twain Randolph Caldecott Dr Seuss E. Kindle wild things acts of mischief in children's literature review B White Madeleine L Engle Ludwig Bemelmans St Exupery Tolkien Pratchett Willems just a few mainstreamers who come to mind Betsy Bird I enjoyed reading this but overall I would have liked a meatier read on these topics It felt like chit chat whereas I like my nonfiction to be written in a tone that justifies my feelings of smugness for reading it I m Improving My Mind I want to be thinking This was irreverent which makes sense given the subject matter but it was sometimes at the expense of actual information I really enjoyed the chapter on well meaning censorship in children s literature I d like to learn about that My least favorite sentence in the book Illustrators create computer generated art Some illustrators myself included use a computer to create art The computer does not generate it. Wild things acts of mischief in children's literaturex book For those who don t know I have a degree in librarianship Sadly I hated my Master s program but you can call me master which is pretty cool One of the only courses I actually enjoyed during my time in library school was on the history of children s literature I ve been a reader all my life and despite the fact that I didn t read many of the children s classics or I did and forgot them the history of children s books is fascinating to me As such I found Bird Danielson and Sieruta s Wild Things a delight full of fun trivia. Kindle wild things acts of mischief in children's literature review Let s be real I don t read much non fiction Why Because so much of it is dry and dull and there is no plot so I am bored There s good non fiction but I am very story and narrative voice driven as a reader so non fiction can be really tough for me Thankfully Wild Things is by a trio of librarians professional reviewers bloggers and it s written in a very engaging style Wild Things not only had interesting content but was compelling to actually read The authors are clearly striving for humor in their telling and they achieve that. Wild things acts of mischief in children's literature pdf free Ultimately I think the authors had two main points 1 Children s books deserve a lot respect than they get 2 Children s book authors are people and not perfect ones The overall goal seems mainly to be to dispel the idea that people have about children s books and they re creators The uninformed think of children s books as fluffy bunny books and very simple to throw together with an extra emphasis on picture books here The authors thereof are seen as quirky and wholesome perhaps in a bit of an eternal youth If there s a connecting thread through the various essays it s that Children s books and their authors are complex than people generally give them credit for. Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literaturev books While everything in here wasn t new to me thanks to my course in library school there was a lot of stuff that was I am a HUGE fan of trivia so that was delightful For example did you know that author Paula Fox is the grandmother of Courtney Love To make the story sound even fictional Fox only learned that when the daughter she d given up for adoption found her fifty years later In other news Shel Silverstein worked for Playboy before he became a children s book author Those are two of my favorite little nuggets of trivia treasure but there is much to be enjoyed. Epub wild things acts of mischief in children's literature One section of this book almost made me cry which as my friends know is not an easy feat There s a lengthy section on LGBT picture books and authors Basically I want to punch humanity sometimes It s great that strides are being made but my heart breaks for so many of these people Even I m upset that I didn t know a single one of these authors Maurice Sendak and Louise Fitzhugh for example was GLBTQ even though I m really plugged into the bookish community It makes it feel like it s being somewhat kept secret even now and that saddens me Then there s the section on the reasons books get banned which includes homosexuality and Christina had some angry feels My point is that non fiction doesn t tend to make me emotional but this actually did Nice work authors The only real issue I have with Wild Things is the scope The subtitle is Acts of Mischief in Children s Literature but that is really misleading There is some of that certainly as I ve enumerated but there s so much Being gay and writing children s books is not an act of mischief for example The subtitle s cute and catchy but it really doesn t fit with the content As I said it s not about mischief but about the stereotypes of children s literature and how narrow minded they truly are. Pdf wild things acts of mischief in children's literature pdf There s a lot of great information in Wild Things and I think other adult readers of children s lit would enjoy reading this book as much as I did Betsy Bird
| Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literature By Betsy Bird |
| 0763651508 |
| 9780763651503 |
| 288 |
| Hardcover |
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