The Hidden Adult: Defining Children's Literature

What exactly is a children's book? How is children's literature defined as a genre? A leading scholar presents close readings of six classic stories to answer these questions and offer a clear definition of children's writing as a distinct literary form.

Perry Nodelman begins by considering the plots, themes, and structures of six works: "The Purple Jar," Alice in Wonderland, Dr. Doolittle, Henry Huggins, The Snowy Day, and Plain City--all written for young people of varying ages in different times and places--to identify shared characteristics. He points out markers in each work that allow the adult reader to understand it as a children's story, shedding light on ingrained adult assumptions and revealing the ways in which adult knowledge and experience remain hidden in apparently simple and innocent texts.

Nodelman then engages a wide range of views of children's literature from authors, literary critics, cultural theorists, and specialists in education and information sciences. Through this informed dialogue, Nodelman develops a comprehensive theory of children's literature, exploring its commonalities and shared themes.

The Hidden Adult is a focused and sophisticated analysis of children's literature and a major contribution to the theory and criticism of the genre.

Author: Perry Nodelman
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Published: 09/30/2008
Pages: 408
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.30lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.00w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9780801889806

Review Citation(s):
Chronicle of Higher Education 11/14/2008 pg. 21
Reference and Research Bk News 11/01/2008 pg. 293
Choice 04/01/2009
School Library Journal 07/01/2009 pg. 112

About the Author

Perry Nodelman is professor emeritus of English at the University of Winnipeg and author of The Pleasure of Children's Literature and Words About Pictures: The Narrative Art of Children's Picture Books. Professor Nodelman is also an accomplished author of children's books such as Behaving Bradley.