Qualities Of Outstanding Children’s Literature

The process of defining a children’s book can be difficult. There are many definitions agreed upon that encapsulate children’s literature as a whole, varying from the content of the book itself to the genre of the book to the message behind the text of lack thereof. The broadest definition of children’s literature is “children’s books are books that are read to and by children”. Today, there are hundreds of thousands of books published that are expressly for children.

This was not always the case. Many classic stories such as Arabian Nights and Robinson Crusoe were written with adults in mind but were read to and enjoyed by children. The inverse of this situation also rings true, as books marketed as children’s stories are consumed by adults as well, some notable examples being Little House on the Prairie and Harry Potter. Children’s literature stretches across multiple genres and includes books made for children young as infants or as old as young adults.

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The most inclusive definitions of children’s literature emphasize books that are read to and by children rather than the content of the book, genre of the book, or age range that the book appeals to.

Most of the time, children’s literature follows a few defining qualities. To resonate with children, books most often have a child protagonist and an issue that concerns children. Without these, it’s more difficult for children to connect fully with the characters or subject matter. Children’s literature should also contain a straightforward story line.

Convoluted and nonlinear story lines are a no go. In addition, the setting and time sequence should generally stay the same, but this depends on the age range that the book was written for. For these reasons, children’s literature often contains timeless lessons and stories about being human and understanding of the world. Children’s literature generally has precise and carefully chosen words that get the point across concisely. It also contains language that paints a vivid picture in the mind of young readers and balances the amount of content that has to be imagined versus the amount that is already explained. Children’s literature should avoid language that is overly complex and flowery.

“Books I’ve read as a child feel more like places I’ve been to and people I’ve met than narratives I’ve read”. There are good children’s books and there are great children’s books. As a child, my absolute favorite books to read were Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie series and Erin Hunter’s Warrior Cats series. I’ve read them multiple times through as a child and still pick them up from time to time as an adult. These books feel like places I’ve been to. The plot points feel like experiences I’ve lived through and to me, it feels like I know the characters personally. To be considered outstanding, children’s literature must do more than simply appeal to children. Great children’s books expand awareness of the world around us as well as all of the life that exists within it. They tell the truth about universal human experiences and embrace the hard times just as much as the good times. Outstanding children’s literature must also show originality. Providing children with multiple points of view and a diverse cast of characters not only helps them more easily connect with a book, it also gives children valuable insight into other human experiences that they have not necessarily lived through. Additionally, outstanding children’s literature goes beyond language that can be understood and analyzed by children. It is artful in the words chosen and is masterful in crafting imagery that leaves a lasting impression on readers.

Outstanding children’s literature must have integrity. All elements of the story including genre, plot, language, characters, style, theme, and illustrations joined together to make a cohesive final product. Most importantly, outstanding children’s literature has to be enjoyable! Children’s books can teach lessons while still mainly being about entertainment.

As a child, I learned many life lessons from my favorite books. Warrior Cats taught me how to be confident in myself without putting others down, but it also fostered my love for fantasy genres. Little House on the Prairie described such incredible settings that I could imagine vividly when I was only 7 years old. These defining book series of my childhood embody all of the qualities of outstanding children’s literature and will definitely be in my classroom’s library.

Awards for Children’s Literature

There are numerous awards that can be given to especially outstanding children’s books. These awards have specific criteria that books must follow in order to be eligible for consideration. For some awards, books must discuss a certain topic such as social justice or feminism. Other awards deal with children’s literature that is written by Latino or Mexican American authors and/or deals with Latino or Mexican American culture. There are awards for books about African-American culture, books about Asian-American culture, books about Jewish culture and Native-American culture. Awards can also be given to authors or illustrators for creating outstanding books. Awards like the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award and Once Upon a World Children’s Book Award specifically award outstanding children’s books that deal with the issues of and promote the cause of social justice, diversity and world peace. The Tomas Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award, The Pura Belpre Award, and the Americas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature all reward books that promote awareness of Latino culture and experience. The Pura Belpre Award requires for the author to be Latino/Latina as well. Other awards like the Coretta Scott King Award are given to African-American authors who encourage appreciation of people of all cultures in their children’s books.

Awards like the Hans Christian Andersen Award and the Randolph Caldecott Medal recognize authors and illustrators for either their entire body of work or having an outstanding children’s book of quality. Lots of children’s literature awards often overlap in their criterion for eligibility. There are patterns of rewarding children’s literature with common themes, notably diversity and the human experience. Many distinguished children’s literature awards also require the author to be a U.S. citizen or for the book to have been published in the United States.

Conclusion

After learning about the qualities of outstanding children’s literature, I will be more rigorous in analyzing children’s literature. I never knew about unifying factors that go into a children’s book such as themes and language. From now on, I will pick children’s literature not just based on the idea that it is “written for children.” I now realize that children’s literature is a vast and interesting genre of literature that has just as much, if not more, merit than literature read by adults.