The use of literary criticism has served to provide different lenses to analyze, evaluate, and interpret the content and context of the written text in all its forms and varieties, especially in children's and young adult (YA) literature. This study was aimed at analyzing the way in which "Feminist Criticism" may be applied to young…

In light of the concepts of appropriation and essentialism, othering, and binary oppositions, the author will examine the interrelation between various feminist theories and gender representation in multicultural children and young-adult literature. Additionally, the author will address the practical implications of those theories and concepts for…

Susan Price's "Odin Trilogy" (2005-2008) is a juvenile science fiction series that depicts a future where class relations have become polarised due to late capitalist and technological developments and where ways of doing gender continue to be strongly connected with class. The society in the novels is based on slavery: people are either…

Deborah Ellis's "The Breadwinner" is a popular young adult novel about Muslim girls. In this paper, we offer an analysis of the representation of Muslim girls and women in the book as well as responses from undergraduate students enrolled in a children's literature course to these constructions. Building on the work of postcolonial feminism…

Recommends Lucy Maud Montgomery's novel, which first appeared in l923. (FL)

Argues that Andre Norton's "Octagon Magic" is neither a conventional girls' book, nor a witch tale, nor a time fantasy but rather a unique coming-of-age story best understood within the context of theorists such as Carol Gilligan, Mary Belenk, and Jean Baker Miller. (TB)

Argues that, in Ethel May, Charlotte Yonge had, altogether unwittingly, created a new kind of heroine; one whose faults were real and who in the curing of them remained altogether herself. (HOD)

Studies how the novel "Permanent Connections" by Sue Ellen Bridgers explores the coming of age of teenage and older characters, particularly of two women who begin to lead their own lives. Analyzes the feminine "crisis of choosing" experienced by these two main characters. (HB)

Examines arguments that view "The Secret Garden" as stereotyping female roles and making females subservient to males. Argues that Mary's quest remains central throughout the book and is successful to the point that she is able to transcend egocentric concerns, while Colin remains trapped in the same kind of male self-absorption that…

Explores the roles allocated to women in the famous collection. States that, although collaboration figures prominently in many of the more than 200 tales, the benefits of collective action are not extended to women. Examines the differences between male and female collaboration in the tales. Contemplates the implications of these differences for…

Examines the interconnected careers of four women of New England origin, Caroline Hewins, Anne Carroll Moore, Alice Jordan, and Bertha Mahony, for their individual accomplishments and their collective influence in developing the fields of library service to children and children's literature. Topics include literary criticism, writing, leadership…

An examination of the Ancient Greek myth of Demeter and Persephone shows how much can be learned about the culture in which it was produced and circulated. The reader can make a number of inferences about the relative positions and roles of men and women in ancient Greek society and what traits were considered positive in each. Six modern versions…

Jessica and Elizabeth are two female characters, twins, featured throughout Francine Pascal's Sweet Valley series, the Bantam Publishers popular series for girls from elementary school through junior high, high school, university, and well into adulthood. This paper notes that these books are a part of the same formula that are used for romance…

A study used three Newbery books--"The Voyages of Dr. Doolittle (Lofting, 1922), "Charlotte's Web" (White, 1952), and "Maniac Magee" (Spinelli, 1990)--to examine three female characters identified in these books in the role of rescuer, accentuating their commonalities and differences within Jungian and feminist theory in…

Critiques the work of Appalachian writer Gloria Houston who has written six children's books based on the culture and history of rural North Carolina. Her most successful work, "My Great-Aunt Arizona," presents an alternative to the usual stereotypes of backwoods teacher and school. Includes a bibliography of Appalachian children's…