The history of children’s literature begins with stories. Stories, or narratives, non-fictional or fictional, orated or transcribed, are the building blocks of children’s literature. Stories are the entire reason children’s literature exists. Stories bring together, educate, and/or entertain individuals, communities, and disparate cultures, but maybe most importantly, and probably the reason children’s literature exists, stories help subdue a crying toddler. It is important to remember in this exploration of the evolution of children’s literature that stories, or narratives, were developed to meet the demand for the entertainment and enjoyment that the human condition requires.
John Newbery, the son of an English farmer, is arguably the most influential figure in the evolution of modern children’s literature. In 1740 Newbery, who by that time had been trained in printing via a teenage apprenticeship, opened his own publishing company. Newbery, while not solely focused on publishing children’s literature, held the relatively unique position that literature written for children should be used to both entertain and educate the child, with primary focus on entertainment (Madej, 2003). In 1744, Newbery published his first book in the children’s literature category and it was titled A Little Pretty Pocket-Book. The book is often referenced as the first modern children’s book. The thing that made Newbery so good and so influential was that he really understood his market. Newbery’s children’s books were physically attractive and solely focused on containing entertaining stories (Madej, 2003).
What this shows is Newbery had an ingrained knack, or propensity, for marketing. He understood what appealed to his audience and was would bring them back for more. John Newbery, as his career progressed, would eventually be referred to as the originator of children’s literature. Today, the John Newbery Medal is annually awarded to the most influential or best work of children’s literature in America.
The year 1744 also marked the release of another influential piece of children’s literature. That year, Mary Cooper released a collection of nursery rhymes titled Tommy Thumb’s Pretty Song Book (Avery, 1994). This book contained timeless rhymes such as “Hickory Dickory Dock.” This publication highlights a different side and purpose of children’s literature aside from education: sing-a-longs. Singing and rhyming are entertaining and will surely fall into that category, but an important, unique facet of children’s literature that Cooper’s book brought to the genre was the element of song. Further, the collection brought together a number of stories and rhymes into one place for children and families to enjoy.
Today, music and songs are at the forefront of many works of children’s literature. For example, author Caroline Jayne Church has penned books titled Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and Rain, Rain, Go Away, many baby books include electronic systems that play music as its pages are turned, and even Bob Dylan has released children’s literature. It goes without saying from these examples that children’s literature has made huge leaps since 1744, but it also hints that Newbery’s elements remain in tact.
Newbery inspired the entire genre of children’s literature to emerge from its shell. Following his works came 19th century classics from the Brother Grimm. The Brothers Grimm brought folklore classics such as Cinderella, Snow White, and Hansel and Gretel, though the original versions of these stories were a little grimmer than their Disney remakes (Stone, 1975). In 1865, Lewis Carroll published Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. What is interesting about Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is the difference in the book’s depth and language in comparison to modern children’s literature. Certainly it is not fair to compare a masterpiece to any work in its category, but Lewis Carroll’s most recognizable work is in a field of its own. Today, the majority of children’s literature is far simpler.
Children’s literature progressed at a steady pace from this point forward until it became an entire industry in the late 20th century. Notable works such as Treasure Island, The Jungle Book, and Peter Pan highlight the fantastical and epic twist that children’s literature encountered at the turn of the 19th century, a twist the genre had been moving closer to since Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Today, post-1950s, children’s literature often comes in second to movies or television shows. However, authors such as Roald Dahl, C.S. Lewis, and J.K. Rowling have been the inspirations for many of those motion pictures and the fads in the industry that come from them. Specifically, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter sparked a movement towards the magical that inspired the Twilight franchise that in turn snowballed into the development of young adult literature and movie franchises such as the Hunger Games and Veronica Roth’s Divergent trilogy.
Children’s literature began as a medium to entertain and educate children through the telling of stories. As time passed, those stories became more developed and we saw classics such as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, a time that is often considered the golden age of children’s literature. The stories during that time, those narratives that were inspired by Newbery’s influence and push for entertainment, have transcended through the generations. That is what stories do and that is what stories are. They are narratives that inspire and enrapture children and future authors alike, whether orally or written as children’s literature. In 1744, John Newberry started a genre that would give children for centuries to come the opportunity to find joy in text and drawings and fantastic lands hidden in the bookshelves of their bedrooms.
