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Once upon a time: a brief history of children’s literature

Director, Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, The University of Western Australia

Researcher, The University of Western Australia

Lecturer in medieval and early modern history, The University of Western Australia

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April 2 is International Children’s Book Day and the anniversary of the birth of one of the most famous contributors to this genre, Hans Christian Andersen . But when Andersen wrote his works, the genre of children’s literature was not an established field as we recognise today.

Adults have been writing for children (a broad definition of what we might call children’s literature) in many forms for centuries. Little of it looks much fun to us now. Works aimed at children were primarily concerned with their moral and spiritual progress. Medieval children were taught to read on parchment-covered wooden tablets containing the alphabet and a basic prayer, usually the Pater Noster. Later versions are known as “hornbooks”, because they were covered by a protective sheet of transparent horn.

Spiritually-improving books aimed specifically at children were published in the 17th century. The Puritan minister John Cotton wrote a catechism for children, titled Milk for Babes in 1646 (republished in New England as Spiritual Milk for Boston Babes in 1656). It contained 64 questions and answers relating to religious doctrine, beliefs, morals and manners. James Janeway (also a Puritan minister) collected stories of the virtuous lives and deaths of pious children in A Token for Children (1671), and told parents, nurses and teachers to let their charges read the work “ over a hundred times .”

These stories of children on their deathbeds may not hold much appeal for modern readers, but they were important tales about how to achieve salvation and put children in the leading role. Medieval legends about young Christian martyrs, like St Catherine and St Pelagius, did the same.

Other works were about manners and laid out how children should behave. Desiderius Erasmus famously produced a book of etiquette in Latin, On Civility in Children (1530), which gave much useful advice, including “don’t wipe your nose on your sleeve” and “To fidget around in your seat, and to settle first on one buttock and then the next, gives the impression that you are repeatedly farting, or trying to fart. So make sure your body remains upright and evenly balanced.” This advice shows how physical comportment was seen to reflect moral virtue.

Erasmus’s work was translated into English (by Robert Whittington in 1532) as A lytyll booke of good manners for children, where it joined a body of conduct literature aimed at wealthy adolescents.

In a society where reading aloud was common practice, children were also likely to have been among the audiences who listened to romances and secular poetry. Some medieval manuscripts, such as Bodleian Library Ashmole 61 , included courtesy poems explicitly directed at “children yong”, alongside popular Middle English romances, saints’ lives and legends, and short moral and comic tales.

Do children have a history?

A lot of scholarly ink has been spilled in the debate over whether children in the past were understood to have distinct needs. Medievalist Philippe Ariès suggested in Centuries of Childhood that children were regarded as miniature adults because they were dressed to look like little adults and because their routines and learning were geared towards training them for their future roles.

But there is plenty of evidence that children’s social and emotional (as well as spiritual) development were the subject of adult attention in times past. The regulations of late medieval and early modern schools, for example, certainly indicate that children were understood to need time for play and imagination.

Archaeologists working on the sites of schools in The Netherlands have uncovered evidence of children’s games that they played without input from adults and without trying to emulate adult behaviour. Some writers on education suggested that learning needed to appeal to children. This “progressive” view of children’s development is often attributed to John Locke but it has a longer history if we look at theories about education from the 16th century and earlier.

Some of the most imaginative genres that we now associate with children did not start off that way. In Paris in the 1690s, the salon of Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, Baroness d’Aulnoy, brought together intellectuals and members of the nobility.

There, d’Aulnoy told “ fairy tales ”, which were satires about the royal court of France with a fair bit of commentary on the way society worked (or didn’t) for women at the time. These short stories blended folklore, current events, popular plays, contemporary novels and time-honoured tales of romance.

These were a way to present subversive ideas, but the claim that they were fiction protected their authors. A series of 19th-century novels that we now associate with children were also pointed commentaries about contemporary political and intellectual issues. One of the better known examples is Reverend Charles Kingsley’s The Water Babies: A Fairy Tale for a Land Baby (1863), a satire against child labour and a critique of contemporary science.

The moral of the story

By the 18th century, children’s literature had become a commercially-viable aspect of London printing. The market was fuelled especially by London publisher John Newbery, the “father” of children’s literature. As literacy rates improved, there was continued demand for instructional works. It also became easier to print pictures that would attract young readers.

More and more texts for children were printed in the 19th century, and moralistic elements remained a strong focus. Katy’s development in patience and neatness in the “School of Pain” is key, for example, in Susan Coolidge’s enormously popular What Katy Did (1872), and feisty, outspoken Judy (spoiler alert!) is killed off in Ethel Turner’s Seven Little Australians (1894). Some authors managed to bridge the comic with important life lessons. Heinrich Hoffman’s memorable 1845 classic Struwwelpeter reads now like a kids’ version of dumb ways to die .

By the turn of the 20th century, we see the emergence of a “kids’ first” literature, where children take on serious matters with (or often without) the help of adults and often within a fantasy context. The works of Lewis Carroll, Robert Louis Stevenson, Mark Twain, Francis Hodgson Burnett, Edith Nesbit, JM Barrie, Frank L Baum, Astrid Lindgren, Enid Blyton, CS Lewis, Roald Dahl and JK Rowling operate in this vein.

Children’s books still contain moral lessons – they continue to acculturate the next generation to society’s beliefs and values. That’s not to say that we want our children to be wizards, but we do want them to be brave, to stand up for each other and to develop a particular set of values.

We tend to see children’s literature as providing imaginative spaces for children, but are often short-sighted about the long and didactic history of the genre. And as historians, we continue to seek out more about the autonomy and agency of pre-modern children in order to understand how they might also have found spaces in which to exercise their imagination beyond books that taught them how to pray.

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Children's Literature

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Children’s Literature: Exploring Intertextual Relationships

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• Published: 22 January 2023

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• Esra Sever Serezli   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1378-6335 1  

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Texts carry traces of the language, social and cultural characteristics of both the period in which they were written and the period before them. Because of this, it is important to read intertextually in order to make sense of the text. The reader needs to discover the mystery revealed by the author during the intertextual reading process, and to know where the intertextual relationship begins and ends. While adult readers may notice the intertextual relationship due to their experience with the reading process, children may have more difficulty in this situation than adults. The activities that children do with their teachers are important in the process of discovering intertextual relationships. Children’s interaction with different text types and the questions asked to understand the text support the process of establishing relationships between texts. However, the activities for the discovery of intertextual relations differ for beginning or more skilled readers. In this study, sample activities that can help beginning and advanced readers to discover intertextual relationships are presented to teachers to enable students to discover the relationships between texts, to construct meaning through questions, and to use cognitive processes.

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Second Reader

Valerie Byrd-Fort

This thesis is the amalgamation of a creative writing project and an exploration of the ways that children’s literature influences and draws from social justice causes. It started after reading Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls and realizing that children’s books are not as simple as I remember them being. This book inspired me to consider the power of children’s literature to push young readers to be aware of and thoughtfully engaged with political, social and cultural conversations. The first phase of my thesis was exploring the relationship between social justice and children’s books by reading scholarly materials. In these materials and through experiences in an English course about children’s literature, I gained a better sense for the field and a foundation in the concepts and trends that are prevalent in books. The next phase was reading a broad selection of children’s books that are characterized by a message related to a social issue. These books were selected from many sources; librarian recommendations, scholarly article references, news articles and awards lists. I read books that addressed issues such as sexuality, gender identity, race relations, drug use, immigration and mental health. In my reading, I tried to cover a diverse spread of books, ones from varying publication years and written in varying structures.

The books were both a source of information and inspiration that lead to the final phase of my project, creating my own children’s book. In this phase, I focused on writing a story dedicated to feminist themes and I explored different styles and forms for the story. With the feedback of my directors and second reader, and the support of a friend with artistic skills, I came to the final stage where I have a manuscript of a children’s book and a few sample illustrations. Each phase was a stepping stone to the next phase and ultimately the project has built upon itself to result in a better understanding of how impactful children’s literature is on social justice. With this thesis, I have demonstrated the power children’s books have to give children an honest and thought-provoking perspective on the world they will grow up in.

Recommended Citation

Reynolds, Lyndsey, "Children's Literature as a Catalyst for Social Change" (2019). Senior Theses . 289. https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/senior_theses/289

© 2019, Lyndsey Reynolds

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Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Schools ; Children's Literature'

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Bainbridge, Judith. "Storybook schools : representations of schools and schooling in British children's fiction 1820-1880." Thesis, University of Roehampton, 2015. https://pure.roehampton.ac.uk/portal/en/studentthesis/storybook-schools(dd59298f-a634-4e4e-9d3f-7071a3364ee1).html.

Rahman, Shireena Basree bt Abdul. "The Implementation of the Contemporary Children's Literature Program in Malaysian Primary Schools." Thesis, University of Reading, 2007. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.485821.

Manno, Annette Christine. "Teaching about conflict and values through children's literature." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1999. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1526.

Al-Nokhada, Mohamed A. H. "Children's literature, their books and reading interests : a study in primary schools in Bahrain." Thesis, Durham University, 1999. http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/4862/.

Raby, Shauna Rae. "Children's Literature in the Elementary Schools: Which Books Are Being Chosen for Literacy Instruction?" Diss., CLICK HERE for online access, 2006. http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd1496.pdf.

Bandré, Patricia Ellen. "The status of the selection and use of children's literature in K-6 rural Ohio public school classrooms." Connect to resource, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=osu1121782590.

Klein, Gillian. "The development of multicultural and antiracist books for use in schools 1973-1993." Thesis, Birmingham City University, 1997. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.363175.

McCreery, Elaine. "Promoting children's spiritual development in education : a review of the literature and an exploration of teachers' attitudes." Thesis, Roehampton University, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.326828.

Yarmolovich, Daryl. "Bias in children's literature : a descriptive and analytical case study of two schools at different socio-economic levels /." Staten Island, N.Y. : [s.n.], 2005. http://library.wagner.edu/theses/education/2005/thesis_edu_2005_yarmo_bias.pdf.

Staas, Gretchen L. (Gretchen Lee). "The Effects of Visits by Authors of Children's Books in Selected Elementary Schools." Thesis, North Texas State University, 1987. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc331813/.

Humphrey, Judith Ann. "Liberating images : a feminist analysis of the girls' school-story." [n.p.], 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/.

Briggs, Connie Craft. "The Use of Nonfiction/Informational Trade Books in an Elementary Classroom." Thesis, University of North Texas, 1994. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc277870/.

Krenn, Elisabeth. "School-based interventions supporting refugees and asylum seeking children in mainstream schools : A systematic literature review." Thesis, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, Högskolan i Jönköping, HLK, CHILD, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-35783.

Englund, Micaela. "The power of literature : A literature review on the incorporation of children’s literature in the lower-elementary English as a Second- Language classroom." Thesis, Högskolan Dalarna, Pedagogiskt arbete, 2015. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:du-20876.

Baier, Stacey. "A critical review of literature understanding bullying behaviors in children /." Online version, 2007. http://www.uwstout.edu/lib/thesis/2008/2008baiers.pdf.

Crawford, Rachel Elizabeth. "Bonza schooldays : an annotated bio-bibliography of Australian school stories /." [St. Lucia, Qld.], 2005. http://www.library.uq.edu.au/pdfserve.php?image=thesisabs/absthe19374.pdf.

Jennessen, Vanja. "A Story of English Language Learning – How Can Children’s Literature be Used in Teaching Vocabulary to Young English Language Learners? : - A Literature Review." Thesis, Högskolan Dalarna, Pedagogiskt arbete, 2015. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:du-19870.

Wilkinson, Sheena Maria. "Girls' school and college friendships in twentieth-century British fiction." Thesis, Durham University, 1998. http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/4779/.

Cecire, Maria Sachiko. "The Oxford School of children's fantasy literature : medieval afterlives and the production of culture." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2011. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:782b7491-c1fd-473f-9118-6890156013fc.

Koster, Joan Bouza. "Bookmarking racism challenging white privilege through children's literature and participatory research in a suburban shcool /." Diss., Online access via UMI:, 2005.

Oldby, Jennifer, and Elin Rushworth. "Is Early L2 Reading of Children’s Literature a Good Idea? : How the attitudes to reading English children’s literature affect book access and teacher-library collaboration in two Swedish primary schools." Thesis, Malmö universitet, Fakulteten för lärande och samhälle (LS), 2021. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-41885.

Werlang, Sandra Danieli. "Alfabetização e letramento mediados pela literatura infantil, no 1º ano do ensino fundamental." reponame:Repositório Institucional da UCS, 2015. https://repositorio.ucs.br/handle/11338/1309.

Mook, Julia Denise. "Critical thinking: Integration into the middle school literature classroom." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2000. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1676.

Cocks, Neil Hayward. "Reading repetition and difference in the school story and its criticism." Thesis, University of Reading, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.368663.

Prillaman, Barbara. "Conversations to help make meaning ELLs and literature circles /." Access to citation, abstract and download form provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company; downloadable PDF file, 202 p, 2008. http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1500060691&sid=33&Fmt=2&clientId=8331&RQT=309&VName=PQD.

Englund, Micaela. "English as a Second Language and Children’s literature : An empirical study on Swedish elementary school teachers’ methods and attitudes towards the use of children’s literature in the English classroom." Thesis, Högskolan Dalarna, Pedagogiskt arbete, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:du-21348.

Bandre', Patricia E. "The status of the selection and use of children's literature in K-6 rural Ohio public school classrooms." The Ohio State University, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1121782590.

Rose, Katelyn. "Literature in the landscape: designing public parks to encourage outdoor exploration, activity and reading for elementary school-aged children." Kansas State University, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/35428.

Fleener, Ann Whitney Robinson Carolyn Walton. "The effects of the Literature in the Garden curriculum on life skills of children." Auburn, Ala, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10415/1474.

Dickson, Joanna, and n/a. "The visual representation of the Maori in the School Journal 1907-95." University of Otago. Department of Anthropology, 1997. http://adt.otago.ac.nz./public/adt-NZDU20070531.122035.

Arico, Rebecca A. "Effect on student achievement and attitudes towards learning mathematics when integrating children's literature into a mathematics lesson." Honors in the Major Thesis, University of Central Florida, 2007. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETH/id/1017.

Ribeiro, Taisa Andrade de Souza Silva [UNESP]. "Papel e tela: um estudo sobre preferências das crianças, literatura infantil e narrativas televisivas." Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/143942.

Dijkshoorn, Anna. "Inclusive Education for Refugees and Asylum Seeking Children : A Systematic Literature Review." Thesis, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, Högskolan i Jönköping, HLK, CHILD, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-30510.

Behnke, Joseph. "School in the lives of immigrant students and their families a critical review of the literature /." Online pdf file accessible through the World Wide Web, 2009. http://archives.evergreen.edu/masterstheses/Accession89-10MIT/Behnke_JMITthesis2009.pdf.

Wang, Minzhi. "The impact of teacher-student classroom interactions in primary school environment on children's engagement in classroom : A systematic literature review." Thesis, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, Högskolan i Jönköping, HLK, CHILD, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-35882.

Roberts, Tarryn Elizabeth. "School Psychologists’ Perceptions of Selecting Divorce-Themed Books for Elementary-Aged Children Experiencing Parental Divorce." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2019. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/8555.

Ventura, Fabiana Cristina [UNESP]. "Literatura infantil e juvenil na escola: encontros e encantos." Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/11449/144322.

Hill, Cecily Erin. "Formal Education: Early Children’s Genres, Gender, and the Realist Novel." The Ohio State University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1429278003.

Tezas, Nikolaos. "Community and School Based Mental Health Interventions for Refugee Children and Adolescents: A 2010-2020 Systematic Literature Review." Thesis, Jönköping University, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-48364.

Rehman, Nida Ammar. "Peer Victimization of Children and Adolescents with Intellectual Disabilities : A Systematic Literature Review from 2000-2020." Thesis, Jönköping University, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-48338.

Wester, Louise. "Läraren i barnlitteratur. : Lärares undervisning och relation till elever i barnlitteratur i ett historiskt perspektiv." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för film och litteratur (IFL), 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-48965.

Papagrigoraki, Anna. "Peer mediated learning in inclusive education : A systematic literature review on the methods and their effects on children." Thesis, Högskolan i Jönköping, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, 2016. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-30347.

Pan, Peng. "School situation and social conditions of children with ASD in mainland China : A Systematic Literature Review from 2011-2017." Thesis, Högskolan för lärande och kommunikation, Högskolan i Jönköping, HLK, CHILD, 2018. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-43190.

Kich, Morgana. "Mediação de leitura literária : o Programa Nacional Biblioteca da Escola (PNBE)." reponame:Repositório Institucional da UCS, 2011. https://repositorio.ucs.br/handle/11338/1019.

Correia, Carla Sofia Leal. "Relatório da prática de ensino supervisionada em educação pré-escolar: a pertinência da literatura infantil no processo de aprendizagem." Master's thesis, Universidade de Évora, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10174/13051.

Seibert, Michelle L. "Consultation in the School Psychology Literature: Has the Field Moved beyond the Three Traditional Models?" TopSCHOLAR®, 2010. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/145.

Smith, Kathryn Ruth. "Elementary School Teachers' Perceptions of Book in a Bag as a Social Skills Instruction Program." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2018. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/7385.

Emmertz, Joanna, and Liridona Vllasa. "Reading aloud : A study about the use of reading children’s literature aloud as a pedagogical tool in a pre-school in Thailand." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för pedagogik, psykologi och idrottsvetenskap, PPI, 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-13480.

Harlow, Mnisa Lyn. "The Efficacy of a Literature-Based Social Communication Intervention on Teacher Report of Sociability for Children with Language Impairment." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2016. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/6450.

Peterson, Cammy G. "The Efficacy of a Literature-Based Social Communication Intervention on Teacher Report of Withdrawal for Children with Language Impairment." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2017. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/6904.

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The Complicated Artist Behind the Moomins

The Finnish artist and writer Tove Jansson had a love-hate relationship with her most famous creations.

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By Nadja Spiegelman

Nadja Spiegelman is the author of the memoir “I’m Supposed to Protect You From All This” and five books for children.

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TOVE JANSSON: Life, Art, Words, by Boel Westin. Translated by Silvester Mazzarella.

Tove Jansson longed to be alone. As a child, she slept on a high shelf in her family’s home in Helsinki. Her mother, a successful illustrator, piled books from floor to ceiling and her father, a sculptor, kept a studio that dominated the majority of the space.

The Janssons were part of the relatively affluent Swedish-speaking minority in Finland, a group stereotypically regarded as artistic. Magazine and newspaper articles were written about the Janssons’ bohemian home.

“I want to be a wild thing, not an artist,” the young Tove wrote in her diary. But she was an artist, ineluctably, just as her father had hoped she would be. She didn’t create out of a desire for notoriety — when fame hit in her late 30s, it only made her shyer, as Boel Westin, an emeritus professor of literature at Stockholm University, points out in her biography, “Tove Jansson: Life, Art, Words.”

The first comprehensive biography of a creator whose reputation has only grown with time, Westin’s work, translated by Silvester Mazzarella, is thorough and well researched. While one might wish for more insight into the subject, this is still a boon to fans of the enigmatic Jansson.

Tove Jansson, it is clear, created out of a need to capture her ever-changing self in ever-changing forms. At 13, she made her own magazines to sell in school, boiling the glue to bind the pages. In the diaries she kept in art school, she wrote through alter egos, attributing to “Fernanda” the episodes from her daily life, to “Dulcinea” her thoughts and to “Ellen” her more poetic phrasings.

Jansson was most at home in the intermingling of words and pictures (even her diaries and letters were illustrated). It was only natural that she become a cartoonist, but at periods in her life she felt the pull to be seen as either a serious artist or writer.

Over the course of her life, Jansson would create political cartoons, still lifes, opera librettos, portraits, murals for public buildings, children’s books, short stories, novels, syndicated comic strips, poetry, abstract paintings, essays, scripts for film and television, plays and, of course, the Moomins.

“Oh, we are all Moomins,” a Finnish person once said to me, by way of explanation for her offbeat personality. Today, Moomin Characters is one of Finland’s most profitable businesses.

The Moomins are a nature-loving, philosophical family of long-snouted, rotund white troll-creatures, born during World War II in a period when Jansson was a leading political cartoonist. Jansson found herself at odds politically with her father during the war, but never wavered in her hatred of Hitler. “It was the utterly hellish war years that made me, an artist, write fairy tales,” she later wrote.

The word “Moomin” was never given a clear etymology, though Jansson traced their lineage to the ghost stories of her childhood. Published and received as children’s books, the Moomin series appealed equally to adults. Jansson never censored her stories out of a false sense of childhood’s innocence. Most children, she believed, “live in a world in which the fantastic and the matter-of-fact have equal value,” and death visited the Moomins’ lives like any other.

The first several Moomin books received little fanfare in Finland and Sweden, where they were eclipsed by the contemporaneous appearance of Pippi Longstocking, yet Jansson was, characteristically, completely undeterred. She wrote the second book before the first was printed, and the third before the second was published. After the war, color rushed back into her work.

Despite their particular Finnishness, the appeal was international. The Moomins landed in America, were syndicated in newspapers throughout England, took Japan by storm. Academics debated Moomin philosophy. The Moomins grew larger and fatter as they grew more famous, and Jansson’s anxieties about her celebrity became a subject in their stories.

“It’s going so well I can’t help getting rich, even if they keep cheating me,” she wrote to a friend. The Moomins, in their strange specificity, spoke to a near-universal audience, and Jansson’s readers felt they knew her. She received approximately 2,000 letters a year, and sent a handwritten response to every letter she received.

Meanwhile, she dreamed of the tiny islands off the coast of Finland toward Estonia. She avoided the academies and turned down honors in favor of her solitude. She built homes on the remote islands, but friends and fans washed up unannounced. People “come there to stare at me,” she complained. “I’ll have to move back to town so I can work in peace.” Jansson often found herself sleeping in a tent by the sea to accommodate visitors in her home. In her diary, she marked off the blessed days when she got to be alone.

The grueling business of creating ever more stories about the Moomins, especially as a syndicated comic strip, came to haunt her. She took to dating her letters to loved ones with the number of drawings she had reached (“10,242”). Her inspiration had run dry: “I used to show the beautiful, abundant, profusion of the world. But how do you set about showing an empty room?!”

After seven years of newspaper strips, she celebrated her divorce from the Moomins with two bottles of Alsatian wine. “I shall never again be able to write about those happy idiots who forgive each other and never realize they’re being fooled,” she wrote. But she was not through with them. She would continue writing about the Moomins until near the end of her life.

For decades, the back of the Moomin books stated that Tove Jansson lived alone on an island off the coast of Finland. The truth was more complicated. As a younger woman, Jansson referred jokingly to her suitors as “male collars.” She was more suited to what she described, in the coded language of the time, as “the spook side” or “the Rive Gauche.” She spent the second half of her life — 46 years — with a woman, the graphic artist Tuulikki Pietilä, whom she called Tooti.

Soon after they began seeing each other, in the winter of 1955, a new character appeared in the Moomin universe: Too-Ticky, a sage and practical solver of problems, in a tam and striped shirt. Jansson and Pietilä owned studios in the same apartment complex, connected through an attic hallway through which they visited each other. “I love you, enchanted and at the same time at great peace,” Jansson wrote to Pietilä. She never mistook the serenity of their partnership for boredom.

In the later part of her life, Jansson took to writing literature for adults — including several masterpieces, though one contemporary reviewer dismissed her as “a great violinist who has grown tired of the violin and is now trying out her talent on the piano.”

One of those books is “Fair Play” (1989), a frank and autobiographical portrait of her relationship. Within it Tove is “Mari” and Tooti is “Jonna.” In the final story, Jonna receives an offer to spend a full year in a residency in Paris. She suggests she ought to turn it down, though it is clear that Jonna secretly longs for the space and time apart to work, and so Mari tells her to take it.

The final lines of the book read: “A daring thought was taking shape in her mind. She began to anticipate a solitude of her own, peaceful and full of possibility. She felt something close to exhilaration, of a kind that people can permit themselves when they are blessed with love.” In the end, Jansson found what she had longed for, what every artist dreams of: a love so great that it permitted her to be alone.

TOVE JANSSON : Life, Art, Words | By Boel Westin | Translated by Silvester Mazzarella | University of Minnesota Press | 525 pp. | $29.95

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The complicated, generous life  of Paul Auster, who died on April 30 , yielded a body of work of staggering scope and variety .

“Real Americans,” a new novel by Rachel Khong , follows three generations of Chinese Americans as they all fight for self-determination in their own way .

“The Chocolate War,” published 50 years ago, became one of the most challenged books in the United States. Its author, Robert Cormier, spent years fighting attempts to ban it .

Joan Didion’s distinctive prose and sharp eye were tuned to an outsider’s frequency, telling us about ourselves in essays that are almost reflexively skeptical. Here are her essential works .

Each week, top authors and critics join the Book Review’s podcast to talk about the latest news in the literary world. Listen here .

10 of the Best New Children’s Books Out May 2024

Margaret Kingsbury

Margaret Kingsbury grew up in a house so crammed with books she couldn’t open a closet door without a book stack tumbling, and she’s brought that same decorative energy to her adult life. Margaret has an MA in English with a concentration in writing and has worked as a bookseller and adjunct English professor. She’s currently a freelance writer and editor, and in addition to Book Riot, her pieces have appeared in School Library Journal, BuzzFeed News, The Lily, Parents, StarTrek.com, and more. She particularly loves children’s books, fantasy, science fiction, horror, graphic novels, and any books with disabled characters. You can read more about her bookish and parenting shenanigans in Book Riot’s twice-weekly The Kids Are All Right newsletter. You can also follow her kidlit bookstagram account @BabyLibrarians , or on Twitter @AReaderlyMom .

View All posts by Margaret Kingsbury

May children’s book releases explore many diverse experiences. In May picture book releases, a Cherokee girl moves, a Moroccan library tells its story, an anxious child learns to love a pet, Muslim children become friends, and a young girl experiences persecution during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. In May middle grade releases, a Chinese American girl discovers a magic paintbrush, a Pakistani American experiences harassment, a nonbinary kid has their first romance, a Hindu boy discovers what it means to be brave during the British Partition of India, and a girl learns to value beauty from within. All of May children’s book releases were fantastic, and I can’t wait for everyone to get a chance to read them, too.

To read reviews of even more of May children’s book releases, make sure to subscribe and follow my reviews on Book Riot’s kidlit newsletter .

May Children’s Book Releases: Picture Books

Being Home by Traci Sorell & Michaela Goade (May 7; Kokila)

Most picture books about moving depict a child who doesn’t want to move or feels nervous about it. While those books are needed, Sorell instead shows a child who looks forward to moving. A young Cherokee girl and her family are leaving the city to move closer to family on a Cherokee Nation reservation. The picture book opens with the girl saying goodbye to her old home. Her mother tells her they’re on a new path, “One that leads us to / our ancestors’ land / and to our people.” The girl is ready and excited to follow the path. Once they arrive at their new home, relatives come to help and celebrate and explore with the girl. Goade’s illustrations are warm, joyous, and vibrant. It’s a beautiful celebration of Indigenous culture and what it means to be home.

Behind My Doors: The Story of the World’s Oldest Library by Hena Khan & Nabila Adani (May 7; Lee & Low Books)

This wonderful nonfiction picture book is told from the unique perspective of the oldest library in the world—the Al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez, Morocco. The library is born in 859 when Fatima al-Fihri uses her inheritance to build a mosque and school, with a library to serve both. For centuries, the library enjoys prestige and relishes in the scholars who visit. But slowly people stop visiting, and the library falls into disrepair. In 2012, the government hires the architect Aziza Chaouni from Fez to restore the library. This is a really magical and accessible glimpse into a library’s history with soft and warm illustrations.

Growing Up under a Red Flag by Ying Chang Compestine & Xinmei Liu (May 7; Rocky Pond Books)

This is the first picture book memoir that I know of that takes place during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Compestine was three when Mao Zedong declared a Cultural Revolution and punished educated people like Compestine’s parents, who were doctors and taught Compestine English. When she turned five, they were no longer allowed to read or speak any foreign languages, and the leader of the Red Guard came to live with them to ensure compliance with all of Mao Zedong’s rules. Eventually, the Red Guard arrested Compestine’s father, and she doesn’t see him again until she’s a teenager. This is a compelling glimpse into an important historical moment accompanied by dramatic and moving illustrations. A short author’s note with photographs follows.

Sister Friend by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow & Shahrzad Maydani (May 7; Abrams Books for Young Readers)

This heartwarming picture book grapples with the too-common struggle of finding friends when you look different and come from a different culture than everyone else. Ameena is the only brown girl and Muslim in her class. The other kids don’t really play with her. At recess, she plays an old game her Momma taught her alone. When a new student arrives, Sundus, who is brown like Ameena and wears a hijab, Ameena hopes they can be friends. But Ameena’s too-hasty words make Sundus believe she’s making fun of her. However, when the two attend the masjid together, Sundus realizes that Ameena can also be the friend she seeks. This special friendship book has gorgeous, soft illustrations that feel like a hug.

Neat Nick’s Big Mess by Chad Otis (May 7; Rocky Pond Books)

Nick loves everything to be just so—tidy, organized, planned. Nothing out of the ordinary, unexpected, or messy. But sometimes Nick’s concentration on everything being neat and tidy makes him feel lonely. So, his mom buys Nick a big, hairy, happy dog as a surprise. This doggo is not neat. He’s squishy and slobbery and messy and excitable. Can Nick learn to love this slobbery mess? Can the dog help Nick break out of his shell? This is such a sweet and funny book for anxious kids.

May Children’s Book Releases: Middle Grade

Plain Jane and the Mermaid by Vera Brosgol (May 7; First Second)

This delightful Eastern European fairytale graphic novel set in a nebulous historical time explores the idea of beauty. Jane has always known she’s plain; her wealthy parents made sure of that, constantly critiquing her eating, face, and demeanor. When her parents die, Jane learns that girls can’t inherit property. Her horrible male cousin will receive everything and kick her out of the only home Jane’s ever known. Jane will receive an inheritance if she marries, so she finds the most handsome boy in the village—the fisherman’s youngest son—and asks if he’ll marry her. He hesitantly agrees, wanting to escape a life of catching fish, but then a beautiful mermaid lures him into the ocean. Jane isn’t about to let her handsome fiance go, so she goes on a quest into the ocean’s depths to save him. This is so very entertaining. Fairy tale readers of all ages will love it.

Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemnani (May 7; Balzer + Bray)

This moving middle grade verse novel occurs during the British Partition of India. Twelve-year-old Raj, who is Hindu, loves flying kites with his best friend, who is Muslim. Raj is the middle child and often feels like he isn’t good enough in his father’s eyes. Raj loves cooking, but his father sees that as women’s work. His father wants Raj to excel at math so he can work in the family’s tailor business, but numbers swim for Raj. He and his family are initially excited about India’s independence, but then they learn they will be forced to move into what is now considered ‘India.’ During the harrowing journey, Raj’s younger sister is lost. Once they arrive at their new home, more difficulties face the grieving family. Thankfully, everything begins to improve thanks to Raj’s bravery, which is something he struggles to understand from the beginning. This is a lovely novel that I flew through despite the length.

Any Way You Look by Maleeha Siddiqui (May 7; Scholastic Press)

This is a fantastic and relatable novel about consent and fashion. Sixth grader Ainy, who is Pakistani American, and her family are going through hard times financially. Her father has moved back to Pakistan to care for his mother with cancer. Their family has moved into a friend’s basement, unable to afford their apartment’s rent. Ainy really wants to work in her mother’s clothing store, and her mother finally agrees. Her older sister gets a job at a coffee shop to help the family. When boys harass Ainy, she feels like she needs to deal with it herself. Her family is so busy and worried; she doesn’t want to add to their burdens. Ainy begins wearing a hijab like her older sister, hoping the boys will leave her alone. She feels guilty about this, knowing wearing a hijab should be about faith rather than hiding. When the hijab fails to deter the boys, she finally tells her family. This also has friend drama and first crushes.

The Magic Paintbrush by Kat Zhang, Eric Darnell, & Phoebe Zhong (May 21; Crown Books for Young Readers)

This is such a fun first book in a new illustrated fantasy series full of Chinese folklore. Seventh grader Amy has always loved art but feels like her art has been stuck in a bit of a childish rut lately. When she visits her Lao Lao in Flushing, the two bond over art. One day, while Amy is using Lao Lao’s jade paintbrushes, the bird-headed tiger she creates comes alive! She realizes Lao Lao’s jade paintbrushes are magic. Meanwhile, a university student in China has been hunting for the magic paintbrushes. This is a fast-paced, exciting fantasy read.

Upstaged by Robin Easter (May 28; Little, Brown Ink)

I smiled so much while reading this sweet, queer middle grade graphic novel romance. Ash (they/them) and Ivy (she/her) always share a cabin at a musical theater summer camp. This is the last year they can attend the camp, and Ash wants it to be the best year yet. But Ivy and Ash are put in different cabins, and Ash, who has a crush on Ivy, worries that Ivy is falling for her fellow costar in the musical they’re performing—”Ella,” a retelling of Cinderella. Ash doesn’t know how to tell Ivy they have a crush on her, and their worries are ostracizing them from other caring campers.

If you’re looking for more new children’s book releases beyond this list of May children’s book releases, check out my list of April children’s book releases , March children’s book releases , and February children’s book releases .

You can find a full list of new releases in the magical New Release Index , carefully curated by your favorite Book Riot editors, organized by genre and release date.

You Might Also Like

The Asian American Literature Festival returns — without the Smithsonian

Literary groups are banding together to host a new gathering in September, with events in cities across the country

About a year after it was abruptly called off with little explanation , the Asian American Literature Festival will return in September, organized by a collective of literary groups — and this time, without the Smithsonian.

Last year, the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC), which curated and funded the biennial gathering, canceled it just weeks before the planned kickoff. Festival staff and outside organizing partners, dissatisfied by what they viewed as the changing rationale for the decision, questioned whether concerns over potential cultural controversy played a role . (The Smithsonian denied that the festival’s contents factored into the cancellation.)

At the time, Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III and Undersecretary of Museums and Culture Kevin Gover said they were exploring options for a “virtual event” in 2023 and a “larger public event” in 2024, but no further announcements were made. (According to Pamela Baker-Masson, director of the Office of Public Affairs, APAC will open an exhibition about the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington this fall and host “an opening festival” focused on the city’s Asian American cultural production and community organizing.)

“We felt really strongly that we had to come back from the cancellation,” said Cathy Linh Che, executive director of Kundiman, a nonprofit that is part of the new festival collective.

“We’re doing it on our own terms,” said Neelanjana Banerjee, managing editor of Kaya Press, another member of the collective. “What’s so exciting is that this is coming out of what was destroyed by the Smithsonian last year — but also, we’ve been drawing connections amongst ourselves, supporting each other and really thinking about what it means to collaborate.”

Striking out on their own comes with one obvious drawback for the festival organizers: funding. “The biggest loss is that we’re having to dig into our own pockets,” said Banerjee, noting that the collective has not been able to secure a comparable funding partner.

“Though there is a new limitation regarding funding, it also offered more freedom in some ways too,” said Che. “We weren’t tied to hosting it in D.C. We were able to think expansively.”

The 2024 festival will take a new format, with hybrid and in-person events hosted in cities across the country; some programs will take place as far away as Australia and New Zealand. (A lineup will be posted later this summer .) This decentralized approach means that the programs will feel more deeply rooted in each city’s particular arts scene, partnering with institutions ranging from new Asian American bookstores to long-running open mics.

“Returning to a more grass-roots approach feels very fitting,” said Che. “It’s in line with our values of working with one another and welcoming in communities that are local to us.”

This opens up a further challenge: making the various readings, workshops and other activities feel like a cohesive celebration of Asian American literature, rather than a diffuse array of isolated programs.

“One of the things I loved about the festival is what you do in your downtime — going out for a drink or going to pick up books at a table,” said Banerjee. The organizers are still thinking through how to create that sense of community: “How do we try to take some of that and bring it to these distributed spaces?”

Sarah Park Dahlen, who is organizing children’s literature events for the festival in Champlain, Ill., hopes that in future years, the festival will be able to convene its events in a shared location again. For now, though, “the fact that we’re doing this together, and persisting despite the cancellation, is a way of being in community together.”

The planned 2024 gathering represents a fulfillment of a promise that the participants made to one another last summer, when attendees had tried to make the best of the cancellation, hosting scaled-down readings — often with cheeky titles — at Washington bookstores.

At the end of one of them, recalled Che, they gathered in a circle and committed to finding some way to bring the festival back.

“We put it into the air that we couldn’t wait another four years,” she said. “People really need it. These spaces of gathering are so important.”

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Celebrating AANHPI heritage month with cool recommendations from NPR staff

Sommer Hill

May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. We're celebrating with a list of recommendations from the NPR AZNs employee resource group at NPR. This guide, full of books, songs, movies, podcasts and dishes can be used for entertainment or educational purposes. These lists also focus solely on the AANHPI community.

Feel free to scroll through and learn about a new dish or get your next read, listen or watch!

Happy AANHPI Heritage Month NPRExtra hide caption

Happy AANHPI Heritage Month

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

Daughters of the Samurai by Janice P. Nimura

America Is in the Heart by Carlos Bulosan

The Latinos of Asia: How Filipino Americans Break the Rules of Race by Anthony Ocampo

Aspara Engine by Bishakh Som

Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino

Molly by Any Other Name by Jean Davies Okimoto

South Asian American Digital Archive (SAADA)

slant'd Magazine

The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese

Smoke and Mirrors by Kikagaku Moyo

Batang-Bata Ka Pa by APO Hiking Society

Ishq Mujhko Nahin sung by Chitra Singh, written by Mirza Ghalib

Nohorai Temaiana

Mevina Liufau

Teiho Tetoofa

1 Thing by Amerie

Skate by Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak

Shortcomings (2023)

Lea Solonga

Return to Seoul by Davy Chou

Dave Bautista

Cinderella (1997)

They Call Us Bruce

Shoes Off! A Sexy Asian Podcast

This Is Our Hawai'i

Inheriting – A forthcoming Asian American and Pacific Islander family history show hosted by NPR's Emily Kwong and debuting May 23rd

Dancer/Culture Practitioners/Music & Educators: Tiana Nonosina

Choreographer: Dylan Vincent

Māhū Dancer and Educator: Matatini Mou

Jade Makana Iulio

Desiree Woodward-Lee

Nui Sefa Drums

Kare-kare (and you can't have it without bagoong!)

Opor Ayam (chicken cooked in coconut milk and spices)

Halwa Puri Aloo

Just One Cookbook - English-language resource for Japanese recipes

Children's Books:

Thank you to Caregivers's Caucus at NPR for the AANHPI Heritage Month children's literature

The Best Kind of Mooncake by Pearl AuYeung

Dumpling Dreams by Carrie Clickard

Playing with Lanterns by Wang Yage

Once Upon A Time... there was an Old Woman: A Tale About Hope

Dumpling Day by Meera Sriram

Cooler than Lemonade by Harshita Jerath

The Discovery of Ramen by Phil Amara

Bindu's Bindis by Supriya Kelkar

Berry Song by Michaela Goade

Magic Ramen by Andrea Wang

I Am Golden by Eva Chen

Yumi by Annelore Parot

Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang

Hot Pot Nights by Vincent Chen

Punky Aloha by Shar Tuiasoa

Ramen for Everyone by Aram Kim

Sunday Funday in Koreatown by Aram Kim

I Live Inside a Whale by Xi Li

Every Night At Midnight by Peter Cheong

The Boring Book by Shinsuke Yoshitake

Sata the Rabbit by Yuki Ainoya

We hope you find something you enjoyed on this list. If you have any more recommendations, please tag us on social media @NPRExtra!

Thank you to the NPR AZNs employee resource group for your help and contributions!

Happy AANHPI Heritage Month!

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The best new science fiction books of May 2024

A new Stephen King short story collection, an Ursula K. Le Guin reissue and a celebration of cyberpunk featuring writing from Philip K. Dick and Cory Doctorow are among the new science fiction titles published this month

By Alison Flood

A new short story collection from Stephen King, You Like It Darker, is out in May

Shane Leonard

Every month, I trawl through publishers’ catalogues so I can tell you about the new science fiction being released. And every month, I’m disappointed to see so much more fantasy on publishers’ lists than sci-fi. I know it’s a response to the huge boom in readers of what’s been dubbed “ romantasy ”, and I’m not knocking it – I love that sort of book too. But it would be great to see more good, hard, mind-expanding sci-fi in the offing as well.

In the meantime, there is definitely enough for us sci-fi fans to sink our teeth into this month, whether it’s a reissue of classic writing from Ursula K. Le Guin, some new speculative short stories from Stephen King or murder in space from Victor Manibo and S. A. Barnes.

Last month, I tipped Douglas Preston’s Extinction and Sofia Samatar’s The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain as books I was looking forward to. I can report that they were both excellent: Extinction was a lot of good, clean, Jurassic Park -tinged fun, while Samatar’s offering was a beautiful and thought-provoking look at life on a generation ship.

The Language of the Night: Essays on writing, science fiction, and fantasy by Ursula K. Le Guin

There are few sci-fi and fantasy writers more brilliant (and revered) than Ursula K. Le Guin. This reissue of her first full-length collection of essays features a new introduction from Hugo and Nebula award-winner Ken Liu and covers the writing of The Left Hand of Darkness and A Wizard of Earthsea , as well as her advocacy for sci-fi and fantasy as legitimate literary mediums. I’ve read some of these essays but not all, and I won’t be missing this collection.

Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen

This isn’t science fiction, not quite, but it is one of the best and most important books I have read for some time. It sees Jacobsen lay out, minute by minute, what would happen if an intercontinental ballistic missile hit Washington DC. How would the US react? What, exactly, happens if deterrence fails? Jacobsen has spoken to dozens of military experts to put together what her publisher calls a “non-fiction thriller”, and what I call the scariest book I have possibly ever read (and I’m a Stephen King fan; see below). We’re currently reading it at the New Scientist Book Club, and you can sign up to join us here .

Read an extract from Nuclear War: A scenario by Annie Jacobsen

In this terrifying extract from Annie Jacobsen’s Nuclear War: A Scenario, the author lays out what would happen in the first seconds after a nuclear missile hits the Pentagon

The Big Book of Cyberpunk (Vol 1 & 2)

Forty years ago, William Gibson published Neuromancer . Since then, it has entranced millions of readers right from its unforgettable opening line: “The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel…”. Neuromancer gave us the literary genre that is cyberpunk, and we can now welcome a huge, two-volume anthology celebrating cyberpunk’s best stories, by writers from Cory Doctorow to Justina Robson, and from Samuel R. Delaney to Philip K. Dick. I have both glorious-sounding volumes, brought together by anthologist Jared Shurin, on my desk (using up most of the space on it), and I am looking forward to dipping in.

You Like It Darker by Stephen King

You could categorise Stephen King as a horror writer. I see him as an expert chronicler of the dark side of small-town America, and from The Tommyknockers and its aliens to Under the Dome with its literally divisive trope, he frequently slides into sci-fi. Even the horror at the heart of It is some sort of cosmic hideousness. He is one of my favourite writers, and You Like It Darker is a new collection of short stories that moves from “the folds in reality where anything can happen” to a “psychic flash” that upends dozens of lives. There’s a sequel to Cujo , and a look at “corners of the universe best left unexplored”. I’ve read the first story so far, and I can confirm there is plenty for us sci-fi fans here.

Enlightenment by Sarah Perry

Not sci-fi, but fiction about science – and from one of the UK’s most exciting writers (if you haven’t read The Essex Serpent yet, you’re in for a treat). This time, Perry tells the story of Thomas Hart, a columnist on the Essex Chronicle who becomes a passionate amateur astronomer as the comet Hale-Bopp approaches in 1997. Our sci-fi columnist Emily Wilson is reviewing it for New Scientist ’s 11 May issue, and she has given it a vigorous thumbs up (“a beautiful, compassionate and memorable book,” she writes in a sneak preview just for you guys).

Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes

Dr Ophelia Bray is a psychologist and expert in the study of Eckhart-Reiser syndrome, a fictional condition that affects space travellers in terrible ways. She’s sent to help a small crew whose colleague recently died, but as they begin life on an abandoned planet, she realises that her charges are hiding something. And then the pilot is murdered… Horror in space? Mysterious planets? I’m up for that.

In Hey, Zoey, the protagonist finds an animatronic sex doll hidden in her garage

Shutterstock / FOTOGRIN

Hey, Zoey by Sarah Crossan

Hot on the heels of Sierra Greer’s story about a sex robot wondering what it means to be human in Annie Bot , the acclaimed young adult and children’s author Sarah Crossan has ventured into similar territory. In Hey, Zoey , Dolores finds an animatronic sex doll hidden in her garage and assumes it belongs to her husband David. She takes no action – but then Dolores and Zoey begin to talk, and Dolores’s life changes.

How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler

Davi has tried to take down the Dark Lord before, rallying humanity and making the final charge – as you do. But the time loop she is stuck in always defeats her, and she loses the battle in the end. This time around, Davi decides that the best thing to do is to become the Dark Lord herself. You could argue that this is fantasy, but it has a time loop, so I’m going to count it as sci-fi. It sounds fun and lighthearted: quotes from early readers are along the lines of “A darkly comic delight”, and we could all use a bit of that these days.

Escape Velocity by Victor Manibo

It’s 2089, and there’s an old murder hanging over the clientele of Space Habitat Altaire, a luxury space hotel, while an “unforeseen threat” is also brewing in the service corridors. A thriller in space? Sounds excellent – and I’m keen to see if Manibo makes use of the latest research into the angle at which blood might travel following violence in space, as reported on by our New Scientist humour columnist Marc Abrahams recently.

The best new science fiction books of March 2024

With a new Adrian Tchaikovsky, Mars-set romance from Natasha Pulley and a high-concept thriller from Stuart Turton due to hit shelves, there is plenty of great new science fiction to be reading in March

In Our Stars by Jack Campbell

Part of the Doomed Earth series, this follows Lieutenant Selene Genji, who has been genetically engineered with partly alien DNA and has “one last chance to save the Earth from destruction”. Beautifully retro cover for this space adventure – not to judge a book in this way, of course…

The Downloaded by Robert J. Sawyer

Two sets of people have had their minds uploaded into a quantum computer in the Ontario of 2059. Astronauts preparing for the world’s first interstellar voyage form one group; the other contains convicted murderers, sentenced to a virtual-reality prison. Naturally, disaster strikes, and, yup, they must work together to save Earth from destruction. Originally released as an Audible Original with Brendan Fraser as lead narrator, this is the first print edition of the Hugo and Nebula award-winning Sawyer’s 26 th novel.

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin

Just in case you still haven’t read it, Justin Cronin’s gloriously dreamy novel The Ferryman , set on an apparently utopian island where things aren’t quite as they seem, is out in paperback this month. It was the first pick for the New Scientist Book Club, and it is a mind-bending, dreamy stunner of a read. Go try it – and sign up for the Book Club in the meantime!

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SEEDS OF CHANGE: EXPLORING THE POTENTIAL FOR GREENER SCHOOLYARDS IN INDIANAPOLIS

until file(s) become available

Seeds of Change: Exploring the Potential for Greener Schoolyards in Indianapolis

Existing literature suggests that having gardens and trees in schoolyards has proven to be positive for student health. Tree canopies in schoolyards provide shade, mitigate urban heat island effects, reduce air, and noise pollution, and even improve mental well-being. Edible schoolyards can enhance children’s hands-on learning experience, foster stronger environmental stewardship, offer fresh food opportunities, and help develop healthier eating habits. However, the implementation of green and edible schoolyards in Indiana remains relatively low. This thesis aims to explore the current tree canopy and garden coverage within the school grounds to understand how these green spaces correlate with demographic factors such as race, income, and population density, aiming to identify potential inequities in the school environment creation. Moreover, it gathers green feature coverage data and staff perspectives to further investigate the potential of expanding different edible green features in schoolyards of the Indianapolis region.

This study included 167 public schoolyards in the research process. Geospatial data analytic and social science methods were utilized in this research. First, ArcGIS was used to analyze the spatial distribution pattern of school Tree Canopy Coverage (TCC) and garden existence. We also examined the relationships between TCC and garden existences to other demographic factors using R language to understand impact criteria and summarize future hurdles and opportunities. In the second method, online surveys were distributed to the same schools to understand the attitudes of school staff towards edible schoolyards. Some preliminary challenges were identified with the 35 responses collected, including funding mechanisms, collaboration limitations, and lack of integration into curriculums to allow valuable education. This research concludes with 2 case studies to represent two common typologies of schoolyards in Indianapolis, using interviews to gain a deeper understanding of further concerns and future working directions for green schoolyard advocates.

Degree Type

• Master of Science
• Horticulture

Campus location

• West Lafayette

Advisor/Supervisor/Committee Chair

Additional committee member 2, additional committee member 3, additional committee member 4, usage metrics.

• Landscape architecture