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Foxes In Children’s Literature
A fox is a wolf who sends flowers. Ruth Weston FOXES IN FOLKTALES These summaries are from Baughman’s Type and Motif Index of the Folktales of England and North America by Ernest Warren Baughman, 1966. Read through these story summaries and you’ll get a good idea of how coats have been used throughout history. Can you see patterns? Arthur…
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Fear of Engulfment in Storytelling
There’s a very good reason why girls should be told the truth about baby-making as soon as they ask: If she’s old enough to be asking, she’s old enough to be worrying.
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Storms, Cyclones and Wind in Art and Storytelling
The wind blew as ’twad blawn its last; The rattling showers rose on the blast; The speedy gleams the darkness swallow’d; Loud, deep, and lang, the thunder bellow’d: That night, a child might understand, The Deil had business on his hand. Robert Burns “STORM” BY SARAH WEATHERALL In some parts of the world, wind is…
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In A Dark, Dark Room And Other Scary Stories
In A Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories written by Alvin Schwartz was first published in 1971 for emergent readers ready for scary… but not too scary. I recently looked closely at a modern picture book called Creepy Carrots, another excellent example of a ‘scary’ story perfectly pitched at 4-6 year olds. This collection…
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The Story Of The Kind Wolf by Wilkon and Nickl Analysis
“The Story Of The Kind Wolf” is a 1982 picture book by Jozef Wilkon, illustrated by Peter Nickl and translated into English by Marion Koenig. The story is now out of print and hard to find. This is a Tawny Scrawny Lion plot, and very much of its time. This was the era of the…
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Zog by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
Zog (2010) is a picture book by best-selling British team Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. Zog is regularly held up as a great feminist story for young readers. Zog interests me as an excellent example of a children’s story which looks feminist at first glance.
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Blueberries For Sal by Robert McCloskey (1948)
Blueberries For Sal (1948) is a picture book written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey, also well-known for Make Way For Ducklings. Both stories are thrillers for the preschool set, especially this one. In fact, I’m about to try and convince you that Blueberries For Sal is the inspiration behind Cormac McCarthy’s No Country For Old…
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Avocado Baby by John Burningham (1982) Analysis
Avocado Baby (1982) is a picture book written and illustrated by John Burningham. This was my first introduction to John Burningham. Our teacher read it in class. I was about six.
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The Veldt by Ray Bradbury Short Story Analysis
The Veldt (1950) is one of the more famous short stories by American author Ray Bradbury. As I’ve seen it described: “The one where the techno wallpaper eats the parents.”
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How To Make Friends With A Ghost by Rebecca Green Picture Book Analysis
How To Make Friends With A Ghost is a 2017 picture book written and illustrated by Rebecca Green. This cosy supernatural story is written as a non-fictional how-to guide and because this book deals with supernatural subject matter, covertly teaches how to be a good friend.
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Hildilid’s Night by Durán Ryan and Lobel Analysis
Hildilid’s Night is a 1971 picture book written by Cheli Durán Ryan, illustrated by Arnold Lobel. The illustrations are notable for being rendered entirely in black and white until the sun comes up at the end. This story feels like it’s based on an ancient myth.
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The Monster At The End Of This Book
The Monster At The End Of This Book by Jon Stone and Michael Smolin (1971) is possibly the most successful of the Little Golden Books published starring Sesame Street characters.
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Frog Goes to Dinner by Mercer Mayer 1974 Analysis
Frog Goes To Dinner (1974) is a wordless carnivalesque picture book by American author/illustrator Mercer Mayer, and the fifth in a series about a boy and his beloved frog. Wordless picture books are perhaps the most emotionally affecting, because they work with us at a deeper level. Frog Goes To Dinner works on an emotional…
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The Art Of Nightmares
Some dreams, some poems, some musical phrases, some pictures, wake feelings such as one never had before, new in colour and form—spiritual sensations, as it were, hitherto unproved… Lilith | George MacDonald How does an artist offer the viewer a sense of nightmare? Desaturation Over all, 12 percent of people dream entirely in black and white. … In…
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The Treatment of Curiosity Across Storytelling
Are we supposed to be curious, or aren’t we? From reading stories, I just can’t make up my mind.