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Essentials of Children's Literature, 10th edition

Published by Pearson (April 7, 2022) © 2023

  • Kathy G. Short University of Arizona
  • Desireé W Cueto University of Arizona

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For survey courses in children's literature.

A thorough, concise compendium of information about children's literature

Essentials of Children's Literature invites pre-service teachers and librarians to experience the joy of reading, selecting, and sharing excellent children's books with students. Clear, concise narrative is paired with book lists, examples, figures and tables. Students will gain core knowledge about literature and engaging children with literature, freeing up time to engage with it themselves.

The 10th Edition includes a new chapter on diversity in literature as well as coverage of key developments, recent children's titles, new children's book creators and current issues.

Hallmark features of this title

  • Excellent Diverse Books to Read Aloud lists are a simple way for teachers to select just the right book to share with students. Each genre chapter includes curated, up-to-date recommendations organized by sub-genre.
  • Milestones summarize important developments in children's literature, providing historical and current context for practice.
  • Notable Authors and Illustrators highlight influential creators impacting children's literature today.
  • Invitations for Further Investigation give readers starting-off points to delve deeper into topics.
  • Figures and tables summarize key information in easy-to-scan visuals.
  • Landmark studies and national reports summaries keep readers informed of issues affecting practice.

New and updated features of this title

  • NEW: Chapter 5 on learning about diversity in literature considers the often mis- or under-represented experiences of marginalized groups. Evaluation criteria for examining cultural authenticity, lists of diverse creators who write from their own experiences, and lists of translated international books support the discussion.
  • UPDATED: Chapter on picturebooks discusses multimodal formats and the increasing integration of visual images in novels, including the trend of hybrid middle-grade novels
  • NEW: Section on genre crossings is included in each genre chapter to raise complex issues that surround definitions of genres and blur the lines between genres.
  • NEW: Exemplary book titles from 2016 to 2021 are included in every chapter.
  • UPDATED: Special features (Milestones, Excellent Diverse Books to Read Aloud, Notable Authors and Illustrators, and Invitations for Further Investigation) include important developments, recent outstanding children's titles, new creators of children's books, and current issues.

The LMS-Compatible Assessment Bank streamlines assignments and grading

  • NEW: Learning outcome quizzes, application exercises and automatically graded chapter tests can be assigned from a packaged file. Questions give students feedback and model responses based on their answers.

Part 1: Valuing Literature for Children

  1. Connecting to the Value of Story
  2. Connecting Children with Literature

Part 2: Evaluating Literature for Children

  1. Learning about Literary Elements
  2. Learning about Illustration and Visual Elements
  3. Learning about Diversity in Literature

Part 3: Understanding the Categories of Literature

  1. Picturebooks, Graphic Novels, and Hybrid Novels as Multimodal Formats
  2. Poetry
  3. Traditional Literature
  4. Fantasy and Science Fiction
  5. Realistic Fiction
  6. Historical Fiction
  7. Nonfiction: Biography and Informational Books

Part 4: Bringing Children and Books Together

  1. Literature in the Curriculum
  2. Engaging Children with Literature

About our authors

Kathy G. Short teaches graduate courses in children's literature, inquiry, and curriculum at the University of Arizona and taught elementary school in Indiana and Ohio. Her books include Teaching Globally: Reading the World through Literature, Critical Content Analysis of Visual Images in Books for Young People, Critical Content Analysis of Children's and Young Adult Literature, Creating Classrooms for Authors and Inquirers, and Stories Matter: The Complexity of Cultural Authenticity. She is director of Worlds of Words (www.wowlit.org), a Center of Global Literacies and Literatures, and an Endowed Chair of Global Literature for Children and Adolescents. She served on the Caldecott and Batchelder Committees, NCTE book award committees, and as president of NCTE and USBBY.

Desiree W. Cueto teaches undergraduate courses in children's literature and language arts at Western Washington University. Her perspectives on utilizing diverse children's books to transform educational spaces are informed by nearly two decades in PK to 12 education. She was an elementary teacher and middle school counselor in Maryland and served as director of multicultural curriculum in Arizona. Her work has appeared in journals such as Research in the Teaching of English, Journal of Literacy Research, Journal of Children's Literature, and Language Arts. She is director of the Pacific Northwest Children's Literature Clearinghouse and has served on the NCTE Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction for Children and the USBBY Outstanding International Books committees.

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