Mothers in Children's and Young Adult Literature: From the Eighteenth Century to Postfeminism (Children's Literature Association Series)

Living Or Dead, Present Or Absent, Sadly Dysfunctional Or Merrily Adequate, The Figure Of The Mother Bears Enormous Freight Across A Child's Emotional And Intellectual Life. Given The Vital Role Literary Mothers Play In Books For Young Readers, It Is Remarkable How Little Scholarly Attention Has Been Paid To The Representation Of Mothers Outside Of Fairy Tales And Beyond Studies Of Gender Stereotypes. This Collection Of Thirteen Essays Begins To Fill A Critical Gap By Bringing Together A Range Of Theoretical Perspectives By A Rich Mix Of Senior Scholars And New Voices. Following An Introduction In Which The Coeditors Describe Key Trends In Interdisciplinary Scholarship, The Book's First Section Focuses On The Pedagogical Roots Of Maternal Influence In Early Children's Literature. The Next Section Explores The Shifting Cultural Perspectives And Subjectivities Of The Twentieth Century. The Third Section Examines The Interplay Of Fantasy, Reality, And The Ethical Dimensions Of Literary Mothers. The Collection Ends With Readings Of Postfeminist Motherhood, From Contemporary Realism To Dystopian Fantasy. The Range Of Critical Approaches In This Volume Will Provide Multiple Inroads For Scholars To Investigate Richer Readings Of Mothers In Children's And Young Adult Literature-- Introduction: Mothers Wanted / Lisa Rowe Fraustino And Karen Coats -- Part I. Historical Legacies: Maternal Instruction And Delight. Chapter 1. Barbauld And The Body-part Game: Maternal Pedagogy In The Long Eighteenth Century / Donelle Ruwe -- Chapter 2. Juliana Ewing's Six To Sixteen: Realizing And Rewriting Maternal Legacy / Koeun Kim -- Chapter 3. The Romance Of Othermothering In Nineteenth-century Backfisch Books / Julie Pfeiffer -- Part Ii. Mothering In Modernity: Shifting Culture Sand Subjectivities. Chapter 4. The Women Who Sent Their Children Away: Mothers In Kindertransport Fiction / Adrienne Kertzer -- Chapter 5. Minority Mama: Rejecting The Mainstream Mothering Model / Dorina K. Lazo Gilmore -- Chapter 6. Cultural-historical Activity Theory And The Expansive Cycle Of Mothering While Black / Lauren Causey And Karen Coats -- Chapter 7. The Hills Were In Her Bones: Living In The Blend Of Mothers And Environments / Anna Katrina Gutierrez -- Part Iii. The Mother-child Bond: Fantasy And Desire For The Real. Chapter 8. Animal Mothers And Animal Babies In Picture Books / Robin Calland -- Chapter 9. A Daughter's Sacrifice: Saving The 'good-enough Mother; From The Good Mother Fantasy / Alexandra Kotanko -- Chapter 10. The Mother Was The Mother, Even When She Wasn't: Maternal Care Ethics And Children's Fantasy / Mary Jeanette Moran -- Part Iv. Performing Postfeminist Motherhood. Chapter 11. I Would Never Be Strong Enough Sarah Dessen's Postfeminist Mothers / Sara K. Day -- Chapter 12. Abandoning Mothers / Lisa Rowe Fraustino -- Chapter 13. A Mom Shaped Hole: Psychoanalysis And The Dystopian Maternal / Jennifer Mitchell. Edited By Lisa Rowe Fraustino And Karen Coats. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Winner of the Children's Literature Association's 2018 Edited Book Award Contributions by Robin Calland, Lauren Causey, Karen Coats, Sara K. Day, Lisa Rowe Fraustino, Dorina K. Lazo Gilmore, Anna Katrina Gutierrez, Adrienne Kertzer, Kouen Kim, Alexandra Kotanko, Jennifer Mitchell, Mary Jeanette Moran, Julie Pfeiffer, and Donelle Ruwe Living or dead, present or absent, sadly dysfunctional or merrily adequate, the figure of the mother bears enormous freight across a child's emotional and intellectual life. Given the vital role literary mothers play in books for young readers, it is remarkable how little scholarly attention has been paid to the representation of mothers outside of fairy tales and beyond studies of gender stereotypes. This collection of thirteen essays begins to fill a critical gap by bringing together a range of theoretical perspectives by a rich mix of senior scholars and new voices. Following an introduction in which the coeditors describe key trends in interdisciplinary scholarship, the book's first section focuses on the pedagogical roots of maternal influence in early children's literature. The next section explores the shifting cultural perspectives and subjectivities of the twentieth century. The third section examines the interplay of fantasy, reality, and the ethical dimensions of literary mothers. The collection ends with readings of postfeminist motherhood, from contemporary realism to dystopian fantasy. The range of critical approaches in this volume will provide multiple inroads for scholars to investigate richer readings of mothers in children's and young adult literature.