Interviews William Horwood, a British writer who has undertaken a series of sequels to Kenneth Grahame's "The Wind in the Willows." Recounts the story of how the books came to be and their significance for the author. (PA)

Reviews the 1990 conference on children's classics that was sponsored by Drexel University and the Free Library of Philadelphia. Highlights include summaries of and excerpts from papers by author and illustrator Wendy Watson and Anita Lobel, and information on the recipient of the 1990 Drexel Citation, author and illustrator Carolyn Croll. (LRW)

Argues that critics of children's literature who extol the folktale should think twice before so vehemently scorning popular fiction such as the Nancy Drew series and that historians of children's literature should consider further what some writers of children's classics may have owed to the formulas of popular adult fiction. (HOD)

The teaching of writing and formation of the literary canon are influenced by two myths. First, writers must assume they will be neglected, misunderstood, and unappreciated in their lifetimes, and second, the writer will prevail if the work is good. Both ideas are examples of underlying religious metaphor in writing instruction and publication.…

Suggests that Ralph Waldo Emerson is one of the most important figures in American Literature, yet his writing can be too "lofty" for many modern students to grasp. Offers some examples of ways to bring Emerson down to earth, grounding his spiritualist musings in material illustrations and making him more accessible to students. (NB)

States that Great Britain's National Curriculum pre-20th century list of prescribed authors is overloaded with unrealistic choices. Reports on a small-scale survey of actual choices made by teachers from this list. Calls for further research. Discusses teaching treatments of actual texts and makes a case for recognizing the work of the poet John…

This book argues against the politicization of literature and presents a guide to the great works and essential writers of the ages, the "Western Canon." The book studies 26 writers and seeks to isolate the qualities that made these authors canonical, that is, authoritative in Western culture. Noting that although originally the…

Contrasts the complaints of a class of gifted students about Dickens' novel "A Tale of Two Cities" with their teacher's discomfort at sitting through the long and tedious movie "Brazil." (NKA)