Brief history of children's literature

Children's books flood bookstores around the world today. There are all genres,
in various formats, with sounds and even smells. But this vast offering is a very
recent phenomenon in terms of literary history.

In the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, access to books was very limited, and
those that could reach the most fortunate children have little to do with what we
understand as a children's book today. These were alphabets, syllabaries,
catones (these contained complete phrases) and bestiaries. Far from telling
adventure stories, they included moral lessons that reflected the religious
beliefs of the time.
With the arrival and popularization of the printing press, stories for children until
then disseminated through oral tradition were published. Along with the
translation of Aesop's Fables , Sebastián Mey's Fabulario (1613) achieved great
popularity in Spain, in which he brought together 57 fables and stories that conclude with a moral lesson.
Charles Perrault and his Tales of yesteryear (1697) deserve special mention. Among the Celtic legends and the
French and Italian popular stories that he collected, we find classics such as Cinderella , Puss in Boots , Little
Red Riding Hood and Thumbelina .
As light adventure novels appeared, attention to children's reading increased. Two classic examples are
Robinson Crusoe (1719) and Gulliver's Travels (1726), both written for adults but recommended over time also
for children. Once the exclusively didactic aspect of children's books was overcome, the idea took shape that
the child is not a miniature adult , but rather has a different conception of the world and reading, to which one
had to adapt.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the current of romanticism led to the rise of
fantasy . Two icons of children's literature, of great literary talent, date from this
time. On the one hand, the brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm who, from Snow
White to Sleeping Beauty , popularized many of the most famous characters today
thanks to their Tales for Childhood and Home (1812-1815). No less transcendent
was Hans Christian Andersen 's contribution, Tales for Children (1835),
characterized by his sensitivity when sculpting characters as diverse as The Little
Mermaid and The Ugly Duckling . The Saturnino Calleja publishing house,
created in 1876, was the one that disseminated the best pieces of children's
literature in Spain thanks to the so-called “ Calleja Stories ”, which had the
collaboration of the best illustrators of the time.
If various nineteenth-century writers such as Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, Rudyard
Kipling, Robert Louis Stevenson, Jules Verne and ETA Hoffmann already flirted
with the genre, it would be in the 20th century when children's literature would acquire its complete autonomy
and maturity . The psychology and interests of the child would be taken into account to draw much more
elaborate characters and plots , which evolve throughout the story. The list of children's classics would be
endless, and could be headed by such well-known books as Peter Pan , Mary Poppins , The Little Prince , The
Chronicles of Narnia , Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Neverending Story . Adventures, all of them
light years away from the fables of the 17th century, but which perhaps would not have been born if it weren't for
them.
Have you been wanting to know more? Well, don't miss our two selections on children's literature. Happy
Universal Children's Day!
Children's literature

A tour of the history of children's

literature . Children's books are a relatively recent phenomenon. Until
practically the 19th century , authors did not think about children when writing
their works. That's not to say that before that time there weren't interesting
and appropriate books for children; but their authors did not write them with
them in mind.

What is meant by children's literature?

Children's literature includes very diverse books, from classic works of
literature to illustrated books and easy-to-understand stories written
exclusively for children. The most frequent genres and most appreciated by the
little ones are fairy tales , fables , lullabies and popular stories, generally
transmitted orally. In the beginning, the books that were chosen for children
were mainly those that could have moral or didactic content, that is, that could
serve as teaching or allow them to learn rules of conduct or behavior.

History
One of the first works written with children in mind is Visible World in Drawings
(1658), by the humanist Comenio, which presented a novelty of enormous
importance for the future, as each word was accompanied by a figure. In some
ways, it can be considered the first illustrated children's book in the history of
children's literature. At the end of the 17th century and during the 18th century
, three works were published that, although they were not intended for
children, became, over time, great classics of children's literature . The first,
published in 1697, is Tales from the Past, subtitled Tales of Mother Goose , by
the French writer Charles Perrault , who compiled French popular tales and
also Italian narratives . At the end of each story he added a moral . With these
wonderful stories, Perrault introduced and enshrined the world of fairies in
children's literature. Some of these stories are known by almost all children,
such as: Cinderella , Thumbelina , Puss in Boots , Sleeping Beauty , Little Red
Riding Hood or Donkey Skin , among others.
Furthermore, in the 18th century , specifically between 1704 and 1717, the
stories of One Thousand and One Nights were translated, for the first time in
the West,

Arabian Nights
They soon became famous throughout Europe . Two of
the countless stories included in that book are The
Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor and Aladdin and the
Wonderful Lamp .
The date of 1745 is also important, since, that year, John Newberry opened the
first children's bookstore and publishing house The Bible and the Sun in
London , and in 1751 launched the world's first children's magazine.

The 19th century: Golden Age of children's

literature.
At the beginning of this century , compilations of popular stories and legends
were published throughout Europe, transmitted orally from generation to
generation. Two collections are particularly important. The first was published
in Germany by the brothers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm,

Grimm brothers
best known for The Brothers Grimm , and is titled Tales for
Childhood and Home (1812-1815). The collection, expanded in
1857, is known as Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm. In these
stories characters appear that would become famous
throughout the world, such as Snow White , Bluebeard ,
Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood . Sometimes the stories
of some writers coincide with those of others, since in many cases they are
based on similar legends and common traditions.
The other great collection of stories from the 19th century is Tales for Children
(1835), by the Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen , who combined great
sensitivity with extraordinary fantasy. Some of his stories are The Ugly
Duckling , The Tin Soldier , The Little Mermaid or The Match Seller . Within this
fantastic trend, a unique and extraordinary book stands out, Alice in
Wonderland , published in 1865. Its author, Lewis Carrol , in addition to being a
writer, was a notable mathematician, hence the original mix of logic and
fantasy that appears in Alice. Carrol wrote the book for the daughter of a friend
of his. Throughout the 19th century, more realistic children's literature also
developed, which did not include fantastic elements, such as witches or fairies
, and was mainly based on adventures and travel. Within this current, the most
important books are Treasure Island (1883), by the Scottish writer Robert Louis
Stevenson , which tells of the search for treasure by a boy and the cunning
pirate John Long Silver, or The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), by Mark
Twain , also author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
In the 19th century, many other classics of children's literature were
published, including A Christmas Carol (1843), by Charles Dickens , Pinocchio
(1883), by Carlo Collodi , which tells the story of a wooden doll that ends up
becoming in a boy of flesh and blood, or The Jungle Book (1894), by Rudyard
Kipling , which tells the adventures of Mowgli , a boy raised in the jungle by
wild animals full of wisdom. It is also important to highlight the development of
a new trend within children's literature: science fiction . The best-known and
most important representative of this trend is the writer Jules Verne, who
advanced in his novels many of the discoveries, achievements and inventions
that would later become a reality, as reflected in From the Earth to the Moon
(1865) or Twenty A Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870).

Brief (very brief) history of children's

literature
By Veronica Juárez July 7, 2008 History , Children's Literature No comments
11

Although many dates have been mentioned as the beginning of children's literature, it is still difficult to give
an exact date; Authors such as Enzo Petrini point out that it was the Neapolitan Giovanni Batista Basile who
began literature for children with his Pentamerone in the 17th century; For his part, Juan Ricardo Nervi tells
us that it was in 18th century France where children's literature appeared thanks to the publication of the
book The Children's Friend . Anne Pellowsky claims that children's literature is no more than two centuries
old, and according to her it was in the 18th century that John Newberry first wrote a children's book that was
not based on oral tradition. However, most specialists agree that it was Charles Perrault in the 17th century
with his Comtes de ma mère l'Oye (Tales of Mother Goose) who began the children's literary tradition.
Years later we find the Moral Fables of Félix María de Samaniego.
Other specialists, however, point out that children's literature is a relatively young genre that formally
existed long after Perrault's publication, and that it is in the first decades of the 19th century when the formal
beginning of children's literature is marked, between the years from 1812 and 1825 with the stories of the
childhood and home of the Brothers Ludoig Jakob and Wilhelm Grimm; Despite the above, the Brothers
Grimm did not think of children as recipients of this compilation, what they intended was the search for the
past and the German identity, it was a philological sense.

With the above, we can note that at first children's literature did not exist as such, that is, the books were not
directly intended for children and children only read and listened to what was written by and for adults. In
fact, it is thought that children's literature emerged only when such literary works intended for adults were
adopted and adapted for children; We find very clear examples in great literary works such as Robinson
Crusoe (1719), by Daniel Defoe; Gulliver's Travels (1726), by Jonathan Swift; Alice in Wonderland (1865)
and Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There (1872), by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, better
known by his pseudonym Lewis Carroll; The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn (1885) by Mark Twain; The Selfish Giant , which was part of The Happy Prince and
Other Tales (1888), by Oscar Wilde; Treasure Island (1883), by Robert Louis Stevenson and many other
books that were in no way written for children (except perhaps for the stories of Lewis Carroll), and which,
however, are today considered great classics of children's literature.
Of course, if we pay more attention to the dates mentioned, it is interesting to find out what gave rise to
children's literature; it emerges precisely when children are sent to school and their education is formalized,
which coincides with the dates already indicated; For example, in the 18th century, compulsory education
legislation emerged for the first time in Europe; between 1802 and 1886 in different European countries
 forms were established that limited and protected minors in the workplace; That is to say, throughout the
19th century, children stopped being workers and began to formally attend classes and undergo special
studies.

Already entering the 20th century we find The Little Prince (1943) by Antoine de Saint-Exúpery, and it is in
the second half of this century when children's literary production reaches a boom that continues to bear fruit
to this day. In terms of children's literature in Spanish, we find that many publishers are beginning to publish
more authors in Spanish and fewer children's works from other countries are translated. Emblematic
examples are the Fondo de Cultura Económica, with its collection A la Orilla del Viento , the Editorial
Española SM, the Alfaguara children's collection, etc. It is also in the 20th century when associations
focused on the study and promotion of children's literature emerged, such as IBBY (International Board on
Books for Young People), the Book Foundation, CEPLI, among many others.

CHILDREN'S LITERATURE:

TOPIC 1: CHILDREN'S LITERATURE: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE.-

1.- CONCEPT OF CHILDREN'S LITERATURE.-

They are all those oral and written literary productions composed to develop fantasy, imagination, creativity,
sensitivity, knowledge and acquisition of the language for children and early primary years.

Three aspects :
 There must always be interaction between language and literature.

 The approach to children's literature should always be playful (children always play)

 We also have to take into account other aspects such as rhythm, body expression, coordination, movement, etc.

Objectives of the DCB (base curriculum design):

 It aims to make them aware of the cultural manifestations of their environment.

 Folklore is clearly alluded to.

 Language is used adjusting it to each communication situation.

 Children's expressive possibilities are enriched and diversified using medium resources.

 Grammatical and corporal expression.

 Importance of oral language.

Through literature, the child establishes contact to enter the world of language. These contacts are established
through a series of ways that appear globally:
 Listening route : from the texts that adults tell them.

 Way of the game : they play with the texts.

 Way of expression .
 Way of creating texts : the child contributes something.

According to Teresa Colomer, children's literature can have four functions:

 Initiate access to the representation of reality : Literature offers images, symbols,... For example: the wolf = bad
person; listen to your mother.

 Develop the learning of narrative, poetic and dramatic forms : Rhythm, rhyme, etc. Illustrations play an important
role. Illustrated albums recently appeared.

 Cultural socialization : Children's literature was born with the aim of socializing children.
 Playful, creative, liberating function through fantasy .
2.- ORIGINS OF CHILDREN'S LITERATURE.-
 17th century : some stories begin to be collected.

 18th century : childhood begins to be seen as a different stage from that of adults! “Robinson Crusoe”, “Beauty and the
Beast”.

 19th century : literacy begins in children, women and workers. Industrialization begins. There is an important change in
society. The stories and legends begin. Romanticism begins. ! “Pinocchio”, Grima Brothers.

 20th century : It is a post-industrial society. Society is based on leisure and consumption. This greatly influences literature.

 In the 60s there were demands for children's rights. ! "The little Prince"

 In the 70s there was economic and cultural development: a new vision of childhood. A new way of educating emerges,
more books are created, schooling is expanded, schooling is required. From the 70s onwards, different themes appear in
literature:
o The complexity in personal relationships and vital conflicts.

o The humor. Cute, crazy characters.

o Topics with greater permissiveness previously considered inappropriate.

o Individual right to freedom and pleasure: “The Little Prince”

o Fantasy: imagination is one of the most important values: “The Neverending Story”, “The Lord of the Rings”

o Multiculturalism: respect for other races and cultures.

o Folklore renewal: elements of traditional folklore along with fantasy and modern folklore.

o In the 80s, publishing houses were given free rein, there were changes but not as abrupt as before. Market demands follow.
Personal conflicts are accentuated.
o In the 90s, the changes were retained, the literary discoveries created in the 70s were revived, abortion, multiculturalism,
drugs, etc. were talked about. New types of books are created: for non-readers, game-books, etc.

Reading: “LITERATURE, A WEAKENED RIVER?

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE

CHILDREN'S LITERATURE

The education of boys and girls at different times in the history of peoples has obeyed objectives derived
from the ideal of man that they want to form, so it can be said that the historical evolution of children's
literature is related to the history of the culture and pedagogy of the people.
The appearance of important personalities linked to education, from all over the world, mainly pedagogues
and psychologists from different eras, changes the situation of the child, since the needs and interests of this
public begin to be considered in literature. The contributions of Pestalozzi, Montessori, Dewey, Piaget.
Change the look of the children's theme.
GREECE:
The very ancient Greek and Eastern traditions are those that in some way influence the formation of the
Greek child. Mothers and nurses used mythological stories with terrible stories and fables with moralizing
content, which, far from being attractive to the child, produced fear and distance since the content of these
stories was not intended for children. This worried the philosopher Plato, who saw in this the waste and
marked pedagogical error, for which he made an ardent defense for the benefit of the child, proposing to
carry out some type of control of the creators of fables, he considered that it was not possible for children to
indiscriminately listen to stories that harmed them in their intellectual and moral training. He proposed the
careful selection of existing fables until he found those that met minimum requirements and were real
contributors of formative elements. Plato highlighted that mothers and caregivers must be convinced of the
importance and need to understand the projection that a chosen story can have on the young child in such a
way as to put all their effort, affection and dedication into their task.
Another philosopher of great importance, Aristotle, defends boys and girls by taking another look and
considers that it is the state that must take charge and prohibit children from attending the theater of
tragedies and comedies, until they have a solid moral formation. He also considers and states it in his book
VII of “Politics” that Aesop's fables should be narrated for children under 5 years of age.
ROME:
The influence that literature had on Roman education until the 1st century BC It was very scarce. The
concept of education in force at that time excluded that aspect. They will be the Greek conquests from 146
BC which will allow the Romans to learn about Aesop's fables, which were reworked by Roman writers, in
addition to doing a great job translating the great epic poems into Latin. The stories of nurses and old ladies
are based on fables known to this day such as “The Raven and the Fox,” “The Country Mouse and the City
Mouse,” among others.
Writers also emerge at this time who highlight the importance and need to educate children from the earliest
years, considering literary culture as a basis. Others, like Plutarco, highlight the importance of poetry in
children's education.
MEDIEVAL TIMES:
At this time the church is in charge of maintaining and safeguarding the spiritual and cultural formation of
the people, with religious literature emerging as a way to counteract the influence of pagan literature. The
stories refer to the childhood of Jesus, passages from the gospel and the lives of saints and martyrs.
Ancient myths and legends are mixed until they become confused with religious literature, thus enriching
popular literature.
The cultural heritage received from antiquity, due to continuous invasions and struggles, was dispersed, so
education loses in this era the importance it had acquired in previous times and very few people learn to read
and write, which is why books, all manuscripts, are considered rare items.
In contrast to this, it is figurative art that provides, with its frescoes and stained glass windows, knowledge
and educational examples that are supposed to reach adults and children. Later these artistic manifestations
would be called “the Bible of those who cannot read.”
As a consequence of this warrior life, deeds arose here, adventures narrated in the form of a romance that
were transmitted orally and that recounted a set of memorable events of a character or the town.
Some countries have given rise to legendary historical poems, such as the “Poema Del Mio Cid” from Spain,
“The Song of Roland” from France, and “The Legend of King Arthur” from England. These poems were
transmitted to the public by minstrels and troubadours.
It is notable that through a slow process that began in the 5th century, European countries strengthened their
national language. Pedagogical books are written, referring to animal stories, with moralizing intentions,
which, together with highlighting rewards or punishments depending on the action, fail to awaken the
interest of children.
England has, within its folk tradition, rhymed stories that are unique in their kind, with simple themes and
great musicality intended to be sung or recited by young children. Their origin is very ancient and it is
believed that they were created by wet nurses and other women who carried out domestic tasks, in the
kitchens of feudal castles, and are known as “Nursery Rhymes” which were rhymes for ancient nurseries.
These rhymes were transmitted orally, until their first edition in 1744.
There have been many attempts to translate this rhyme, unfortunately it is not possible to achieve the
musicality that characterizes it, however it was in Argentina where Mrs. María Elena Bash managed to make
a sample only possible in a poet and singer of English descent, with “Old Nother Husband” (the crazy dog),
Sing a Song of Sixpence” the bird cake among others. (not in its translation but in its reworking)
HUMANISM:
In this period, Greek and Latin works were once again considered, to the detriment of Christian religious
works. And as a characteristic of this era, a resurgence of art in general is observed.
The ancient Greek fables are used again, this time to teach children symbolic concepts, Aesop is
rediscovered and his reading motivates prominent artists of the time such as Leonardo Da Vinci, who wrote
some fables.
The invention of the printing press, by Gutenberg, in Nungencia, Germany, in the middle of the 15th
century, will allow the printed book to spread; alphabet books and primers also begin to appear in response
to a pedagogical decision of the reform that establishes primary education. for all. Martin Luther (1483-
1546) wrote a small catechism for children.
THE ENLIGHTENMENT:
In his “Didactica Magna” (1592-1670) Comenius criticizes the use of mythological narratives as literary
material for childhood. He wrote “Orbis Sensualium Pictus” (1658) which can be considered the first literary
work for children since it was made with appropriate methodology and intended especially for children. In
this work Orbis... aims to teach through things and not through words, he relies on the idea of Bacon and
Locke. The word-figure resource is used. The image of an animal goes next to each of the letters of the
alphabet, and also includes illustrations of trades and selections from popular narratives.
In France, in the literary circles of the court of Louis Another important figure is Fenelon (1651-1715),
preceptor of the Duke of Burgundy, who writes “Telemachus”, which is an adventure book based on the
Odyssey. Perrault also published “Stories of my Mother Goose” which are folkloric stories that end with
some moral teaching. Curiously, these stories are written and dedicated especially to the palace maids and
not to the children. This book consists of 11 stories of which 6 of them correspond to compilations (Sleeping
Beauty in the Forest, Thumbelina, Cinderella, Donkey Skin, The Fairies and Puss in Boots. There has been
much discussion about the theme of these stories because most of them are not considered suitable for
children, even though they have been told for several generations. Excessive punishments, morbidity,
incestuous loves, anthropophagy, etc. appear. The review and analysis of some of them such as Bluebeard,
Little Red Riding Hood, Donkey Skin, Little Thumb etc. Check these aspects.
In England, at this time, literature dedicated to children leaves fantasy aside and books are written that
preferably highlight the maritime colonizing spirit of the English people. Mention may be made here of
“Robinson Crusoe” by Daniel Defoe (1660-1731) and “Gulliver’s Travels” by “Jonathan Switf. The
characteristic of these works is that both adults and children enjoy and dream of reading or narrating them.
CENTURY XVIII
In France, the first work dedicated to children is published, it is an encyclopedic work called “The Children's
Store”, written by Mme.De Beaumont. It is structured in a pleasant way since its contents alternate with
stories.
Rosseau makes pedagogical contributions, referring to children's literature, by criticizing La Fontaine's
fables through “El Emilio”. Considers that its content is not suitable for the understanding of children. He
also criticizes “Robinson Crusoe” as only appropriate for teenagers.
Rosusseau, a supporter, like Comenius, of the ideas supported by Bakon and Lucke of educating through
things, states that “Literature is a scourge of childhood, adding that through books children learn to talk
about what they do not know.” it's known. He believes that it is not advisable to give books to children
under 12 years of age.
ENGLAND:
The publication of “A little pretty pocketbook” (mid-1700s). which is a book of children's games, rhyming
alphabet, rules of civility and fables, maraca a milestone in the history of children's literature. This book is
the beginning of the history of children's literature. It is also the beginning of the first collection of children's
books. The Lilliputian newspaper was also published at that time, which became the first of its kind.
In countries like Spain, Italy, and Germany, the fable emerged and although this genre has detractors, it
continued to be used as literature suitable for children. In this century, full-color printed books were
published and the first illustrators emerged.
The works that are written and published are mostly of a naturalistic conception, abandoning the magical or
wonderful element due to estimates that distance children from reality.
ROMANTICISM (S. XIX)
This century marks the return of fantasy literature. Federico Froebel's position in “The Education of Man” in
recognizing the importance of children's stories and poetry in the education of children influences this
return. He says, “The narrated life achieves, with its causes and effects, a deeper impression than could be
achieved by practical applications that would add to the moral that could be extracted.” Froebel also writes a
book dedicated to mothers that includes illustrated poems, popular songs and reflections on children's play,
childhood and life.
Germany is considered the cradle of romanticism. Children's literature receives decisive support and
impetus, thanks to the folkloric-literary research carried out by Jacob Grimm (1785-1865) and his brother
Milken Grimm (1788-1855). Both collect versions of popular tales through narrations told by old peasant
women. This compilation aimed to reconstruct national traditions for the knowledge and teaching of young
generations.
Hans Andersen, in Denmark, is the writer closest to children, although he is criticized for his stories being
loaded with pessimistic symbolism and full of melancholy. Because of these characteristics, his stories
satisfy adolescents more than younger ones.
In England, Edward Lear (1812-1888) and Lewis Carrol stand out. His works “A Book of Nonsense” (read)
and Alice in Wonderland” link perfectly with Nursery Rhymes.
In this century it also stands out for the search for knowledge that leads to understanding the child in all its
aspects. Dewey in the United States, Rrschanaiminer in Germany, Rriet and Feriere in France, stand out as
psychologists and pedagogues in this search.

Although it has been said that the characteristic of the 19th century is the return of fantastic literature, a
realist current emerged in this era that considers as themes the life of forest animals, insects, children's
stories in which they openly narrate situations. painful or embarrassing, but which are supposed to reflect a
social reality. Hence, within this realist current, two directions are perceived, one towards the social genre
and the other towards the scientific genre. As examples of the first one could cite “Pinocchio” by Collodi
and “The Wind in the Willows” by Kenneth Grahama.
20th and 21st CENTURY
It is during these centuries that children's literature has a real boom, the child is no longer unknown and
there is concern for him. In the pedagogical, social and commercial fields. The attitude of writers has
changed and none of them consider it easy to write for the little ones. Those who feel motivated and
prepared to undertake this task do so with seriousness and respect.
Conferences are promoted in different European countries with the aim of discussing and exchanging ideas
about literature for children. The best works are awarded (John Newley Medal. Andersen International
Award. Grand prize children's hall. The best illustrators Arcanewey Medal and Bald Colt award.
Specialized libraries are founded and newspapers or supplements are dedicated. In Europe, the United States
and South America.
Prominent illustrators are interested in knowing the characteristics and needs of the child in order to adapt
their art, considering these aspects. Publishers include books for children in their production plans.
Critics and researchers emerge who are dedicated to evaluating children's literary works.
INTRODUCTION

Children's literature is a genre that is defined, not so much by its own characteristics, but by its
recipients. The birth of children's literature is related to pedagogy, morality and folklore. The
origins of this genre are highly debated but, as explained by J. Cervera in his work Theory of
children's literature: children's literature as such arises from the moment in which the child
begins to be considered as a being with its own entity and not only as a future man. We place
this moment in the 18th century , in which we began to think of the child as an autonomous
being with his own educational needs and, following the same author again, it can be stated that
educational books cannot be considered children's literature. whose origins date back to the 6th
century AD, although we will deal with these works as precedents. Precisely, if we have
affirmed that morality is at the origins of children's literature, it is because for a long time works
that were completely removed from our current concept were considered children's books, and
thus children's literature was a mixed bag in which they fit: compilations of apologists from
Eastern tradition with a moral character, alphabet books, pedagogical primers, popular books on
sacred history (such as the Old Testament for Children (1549) by Hans Holbein), exemplars
along the lines of the Mirror of the Christian Child (fundamentally given during the 17th century
in England and Germany) and treatises on the education of princes, of which we find samples
from the Middle Ages until well into the 18th century, in which the Letters from an Old Man to
a Young Prince (1751) appear in Sweden written by Carl Gustav Tesin for the education of
Prince Gustav III.

Before the birth of children's literature as an autonomous genre, children delighted in the same
works that adults listened to and read: epic poems, romances, and string literature. This is not
strange, since children's literature is also related to folklore and orality, whose manifestations
required an almost childlike naivety and unlimited credulity from the public to accept the
mixture of the natural and the supernatural as something everyday. Enzo Petrini , in his work
Critical Study of Youth Literature , has come to the conclusion that the incorporation of
folklore into children's literature resides above all in the "wonderful" and in the naive
interpretation of reality, where the transcendent takes the lead. appearance of the extraordinary
and the magical. The child uses these procedures to escape from himself and his own reality,
using fiction as an escape. For Cervera , in Theory of Children's Literature , folklore and the
imaginary coincide in the same terrain: that of fiction, whether past fiction, in folklore, whether
present or future fiction, in the imaginary. No matter how absurd fiction may be for the didactic
spirit, it responds to the child's deep need not to be content with his own life. Within the
imaginary we can include all the modalities distinguished by Todorov: the wonderful, the
fabulous, the fantastic and the magical.

GO TO INDEX

The precedents of Children's Literature: Didacticism and Fairy Tales

Before dealing with Perrault, we will distinguish a book that revolutionized the world of early
childhood education, the Orbis Pictus or World in Images by Comenius , which appeared in
Germany in 1658 and was published in Latin, German, Italian and French. It is a picture book in
which each word has its drawing. This book breaks away from the monotony of the usual
alphabets and primers and is very advanced, since it defends co-education and talks about
nursery school and kindergarten.

Perrault , at the end of the 18th century, in his Tales of my mother the goose or Tales of
yesteryear (1697) compiled traditional French tales with Celtic, Eastern and Italian influences,
in which the wonderful element predominates in different modalities: enchantments, good fairies
and bad fairies, bloodthirsty ogres, reminiscences of barbaric times and memories of ancient
myths. Here we find immortal stories, which end with a morality very much to the taste of the
time, such as: Griseldis, Ridiculous Desires, Donkey Skin, Sleeping Beauty in the Forest, The
Fairies, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Bluebeard, Puss in Boots , Thumbelina and Riquete
the Tufted. According to Carmen Bravo Villasante in her work History of Universal
Children's Literature , these stories collect the world of the wonderful, the "féerie" and the
miraculous, which was fashionable in this court of Louis XIV, "Sun King", where also
everything It seemed wonderful, although monstrosities were hidden behind it. These stories are
examples that impress the imagination in which the fantasy of invention is united with morality,
as in poetic fables.

The "Perrault" fairy tales were so successful that they were widely cultivated, especially by
women. Thus we see how Jeane L'héritier and the Countess D'Aulnoy wrote several volumes
of them. However, we can consider these stories more as courtly exercises than as compositions
with a literary desire. Later, Madame Leprince de Beaumont wrote The Children's Storehouse
(1751), a book with diverse contents that includes one of the most beautiful stories in fantastic
literature: Beauty and the Beast. Another of the French authors who wrote, although a century
later, was the Countess of Ségur , but she did so with a much more moralistic intention.

During the Enlightenment era, works of a moral nature that combine delight with teaching
predominate. This genre derives from the Fables of Lafontaine (1668), written for the Dauphin,
which is part of the tradition of the regiment of princes, "Ad usum delphini". Fenelón also wrote
pedagogical texts for his disciple, the grandson of Louis XIV. Lafontaine is not innovative in the
themes, taken from Phaedrus and Aesop , but in the treatment, since he considers fables the
most appropriate genre for the child to distinguish good from evil.

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Children's Literature in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries

In the 18th century the conception of the child changed thanks to the influence of Swiss
pedagogy, represented by Rousseau and the pedagogue Pestalozzi. In this century, two books
definitely influence children's literature, although they are not actually children's books:
Robinson Crusoe (1719) by Daniel Defoe and Gulliver's Travels (1726) by Jonathan Swift ,
both English (not in vain, in England, John Newberry had created the first children's bookstore
in 1726). These books mark two of the paths that children's literature will later take, adventures
and fantastic invention, and point out in passing the important role that England will have in
children's literature during the 19th and 20th centuries. Robinson Crusoe acquires its fame,
mainly, thanks to the praise that Rousseau makes of it in his Emilio (1762), a novel of education
in which a model of child totally different from that of the 17th century is established. Rousseau
does not understand the irrationality that makes children learn Lafontaine's fables without them
understanding them, since he thinks that they are not simple at all. He claims to hate books and
only saves Robinson Crusoe because he considers it a treatise on natural education because he
wants the child to be able to learn everything through his experience, just like Robinson, who
goes through all the stages of humanity: he achieves fire, hunting, fishing, tanning, planting and
gathering. Gulliver's Travels are inspired by Lucian, Bacon's Atalante and More's Utopia. Both
are books for symbolic reading and, however, Carmen Bravo Villasante has seen in the
aforementioned work how children clear up all this symbolism to reduce it to a simple story
with the dynamism of action and invention.
Robinson Crusoe had a great influence on children's education and, for a long time, children's
books were written according to this new vision of life. The book had several continuations by
Defoe herself and gave rise to a series of "robinsonades": for example, Young Robinson (1780),
by the German Campe , and The Swiss Robinson (1812) by Rudolf Wyss. Both books are a
pretext to disseminate knowledge of botany, zoology, crafts, history, geography and travel, and
present a clear difference with their inspiring model, as Carmen Bravo Villasante points out in
History of universal literature, both are Robinson family and offer a social model in which the
father takes the role of the teacher who teaches.

The 19th century and Romanticism, with its exaltation of the individual, favored the rise of
fantasy, and, with the interest in the national, encouraged native folklore that led authors to
search for and collect ancient legends and folklore tales.

In Germany, the work of the Brothers Grimm (Wilhelm and Jakob ) stands out, two authors
similar to Perrault who, in their Tales for Childhood and Home (1812-1822), collect popular
narratives, seeking information from both cultured poets and people. from town. Among them,
Snow White, Hänsel and Gretel, Thumbelina, Yorinda and Yoringel, and Rapunzel stand out. It
should be noted that, in its prologue, a romantic manifesto of exaltation of the popular and
fantasy, they note that these stories contain everything that exists in the world and that, although
the book is not written for children, it is They like them, so much the better.

We must not forget either, within this time, the work of Hoffmann who wrote several volumes
of his Fantastic Pictures (1813) among which are The Golden Jug and The Nutcracker.

The figure of Hans Christian Andersen stands out in Denmark with Tales for Children (1835).
Perrault and the Grimms collected the oral tradition, however Andersen, although based on it,
makes a more personal work, with greater author awareness, we even find some
autobiographical features such as the fact that his mother was forced to beg in her childhood.
and then barely survived as a washerwoman. His stories are very sad, and they highlight the
beauty and soul of nature, insisting on the animation of inanimate objects. Among them are: It
Was No Good, The Ugly Duckling, The Snow Queen, The Tin Soldier, The Wild Swans,
Mother Elder, Match Girl and The Little Mermaid.

In Italy, Carlo Collodi stood out some time later with his Pinocchio (1883). Collodi had begun
writing educational books starring Gianettino, a character with clear reminiscences of Gianetto
or Juanito, a character created by Parravicini years before and still connected with didactic
literature, since he was offered as a model of behavior for the child in his family and social
duties. . But Collodi will achieve fame with the story of this doll who becomes a child of flesh
and blood. We can interpret this as a symbol of the evolution towards the child's awareness, a
symbol so universal that it has been recreated many times today, such as in The New Pinocchio
(1988) by the excellent author Christine Nöstlinger or, in Spain, Bartolozzi 's Pinocchio. Also
in the 19th century, a current of social humanitarianism developed, somewhat tearful,
represented mainly by Corazón (1866) by Edmondo De Amicis , a genre that will also find a
certain representation in Little Women (1868-69) by Louise May Alcott in United States.
In England they realize that children's excellent response to fairy tales is nothing more than an
example of their unlimited fantasy and their ease in moving from the real to the fantastic.
Edward Lear was the initiator of nonsense or absurd literature, based on traditional nursery
rhymes, authentic poetic creations of the absurd, meaningless rubble in which art for art's sake
predominates. As R. López Tamés in Introduction to children's literature : nonsense,
children's nonsense may be at the origin of the poetic fact. Nothing is said in it, only rhythm and
sound. The surrealists knew this well and wanted to return to that childhood of freedom and
absurdity. It would be Lewis Carroll who would take nonsense to its ultimate consequences in
Alice in Wonderland (1865) and Alice Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Saw There
(1872). These books were written at the request of a girl, the real Alice, who asked for a book
"full of nonsense" and this request demonstrates the assimilation of this concept in English
childhood. Under this appearance of nonsense hides a peculiar logic derived from Carroll's
status as a mathematician.

At the end of the century, Oscar Wilde continues the tradition of the wonderful story, which
always contains a deep moralizing symbolism, in stories such as The Happy Prince, The Selfish
Giant and The Nightingale and the Rose, with strong aestheticizing content.

As for adventure books, we can highlight above all Stevenson with Treasure Island (1882),
Rudyard Kipling with The Jungle Book (1894) and Rider Haggard , all in England. In
Germany to Karl May and, in Italy, to Emilio Salgari . In France, Jules Verne 's novels play a
fundamental role, combining adventure and mystery with scientific anticipation. Mark Twain ,
in North America, with The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), narrates the adventures of an
ordinary child with credible events that moves away from the good child model, presenting the
naughty child who succeeds and is happy. This is usually considered the precedent of the awake
boys with a great sense of humor that we will later see in Emilio and the Detectives (1929) by
the German Erich Kästner and Richmal Crompton 's Guillermo.
Another character comes from England who becomes a universal prototype, like Pinocchio. It's
J.M. Barrie 's Peter Pan (1904), which first appeared as a play and was later turned into a book.
It is the story of a boy who does not want to grow up, who talks to animals, listens to the elves
who live in the park and knows the secret world that hides behind reality. It stylizes topics from
children's books, adventures, Indians, and police intrigues, placing all of this at the service of the
universal and secret desire of adults not to grow up and live free of responsibilities, which is
precisely where their success lies.

Also in the Anglo-Saxon world, in the last third of the 19th century and the beginning of the
20th, works such as: The Wind in the Willows (1908) by Kenneth Grahame , The Wizard of
Oz (1900) by L. Frank Baum , the autobiographical book series The little house (1932-1934)
by Laura Ingalls Wilder , the works of Beatrix Potter , illustrator and writer, with her little
books about animals written between 1900 and 1930, The Little Lord (1885) and The Secret
Garden (1912) by Frances Hodgson Burnett , Puff's World (Winnie the Pooh) by A. Milne ,
creator of the famous teddy bear, the series of the peculiar English governess Mary Poppins
(1935) by Pamela Travers , the series of William the Naughty by the aforementioned Richmal
Crompton and the more than four hundred works of Enyd Blyton (1900-1968) , of which his
famous adventure and mystery stories featuring the Los Cinco gang, among others, stand out.
But the great revolution in children's and youth literature will be marked by Tolkien with The
Hobbit (1938) and, already in the postwar period, with The Lord of the Rings (1953-55), in
which he recreates an entire imaginary mythological world populated by beings. that have
passed down history, like elves and hobbits.

Sweden is a country with a great tradition in children's literature and, at the beginning of the
century, Selma Lagerlof stands out with The Wonderful Travels of Nils Holgerson through
Sweden (1906-1907), a book that has been described as the "Don Quixote" of children. . Nils is
miniaturized by an evil goblin and transported across the country on a goose, where he learns
the secrets of nature and talks to animals. The author makes an effort to understand the world of
animals similar to that made by Rudyard Kipling in The Jungle Book.

We must also highlight Astrid Lindgren with Pippi Longstocking (1945), María Gripe , who
has truly mastered children's literature since the seventies with titles such as Elvis, Elvis! (1973),
The Beetles Fly into the Dusk (1979) and Agnes Cecilia (1981) and Elsa Beskow.

In France, the work of the cartoonist Jean de Brunhoff stands out, creator of the elephant
Babar who appears in 1932 in Historia de Babar. The book, with simple texts by Arturo Celeste,
is very successful and is followed by other books in the same series. After the death of Jean de
Brunhoff, his son Laurent will take over. Another capital book of children's literature is The
Little Prince (1943) by Antoine de St. Exupèry , deeply allegorical narrative.

Currently, authors such as Gianni Rodari with Tales by Telephone (1962), Michael Ende with
Momo (1973) and The Neverending Story (1979), J.L. I continued with the series that began
with Little Nicholas (1962) and Ángela Sommer-Bondenburg with the Little Vampire series
(1985). Also notable are: Roald Dahl with The Great Kind Giant (1982) and The Witches
(1983) among other titles, the North American ones, Judy Blume with Are You There, God?, I
Am Margaret (1970) and Susan E. Hinton with books on youth problems such as The Law of
the Street (1975), Margaret and the English Anne Fine , concerned with issues of family
coexistence with works such as Mrs. Doubfire (1987), apart from the already mentioned
Christine Nöstlinger and María Gripe.

To put an end to this panorama, we will point out that in Switzerland, home of Joahna Spyri 's
character Heidi and a country with a great pedagogical tradition, the International Board on
Books for Young People (IBBY) was created in 1954, which integrates writers, illustrators,
booksellers , pedagogues, etc. Every year, this organization awards the Andersen Medal, which
can be considered the Nobel Prize for Children's Literature, to a writer and an illustrator.

Precedents in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

In a primitive stage of literature there was no children's literature, and children and adults
listened to the same things and had the same readings. This fact is explained by the naivety of
the origins of all literatures, as we have already commented. Works such as: The Miracles of
Our Lady, The Cantigas of Santa María, the exploits of Greco-Roman heroes such as The Book
of Alexandre, The Poem of My Cid and the Romances, especially those of Rosaflorida or The
Count Olinos, seem like fairy tales and examples of children's poetry in which we detect the
presence of the wonderful.

In Spain we had a good sample of exemplars, punishments and pedagogical books, which were
written at the time with children and adults in mind at the same time. Pedagogy and didacticism
are developed, either through collections of apologists with clear oriental roots or through
pedagogical treatises.

- The didactic apologists of the Eastern tradition are manifested in the translation and adaptation
from Arabic of the Calila e Dinna, which appeared with the title of Exemplary against the
dangers and dangers of the world (1493) and in the Book of Examples or the Book of Cats , both
from the 14th century, romance versions of fables starring animals. Following this same
tradition is the Libre de las besties by Ramón Llull (1235-1315), who also wrote the Ars
Puerilis and Proverbis de enseyement in couplets, dedicated to the education of children, which
contains some fabulistic pieces. Also belonging to the tradition of the apologist and didactic, El
conde Lucanor or Libro de Patronio (1335), written by Don Juan Manuel . In it we find fifty
apologists, many of them from the Eastern tradition aimed at young and old that end with a
moral in verse. Among them, we find popular motifs such as: "The young man who married a
very strong and very brave woman", which would give rise to Shakespeare's The Taming of the
Shrew; Doña Truhana, which is a version of the milkmaid's story; or The king with the scoffers
who made the cloth, whose theme is the same that would give rise to Andersen's Deceitful
Cloth, although, of course, these are not direct influences, but rather common traditions that
have been collected and taken shape in different ways. throughout all universal literature.

- We also find a series of educational books in which the child is taken as a pretext. They were
books that the kings used to commission from writers and poets for the education of the princes,
such as Los Proverbios (1437) by the Marquis of Santillana , written by order of King Juan II
for his son. The Book of States or Book of the Infante (1337), written by Don Juan Manuel and
the Regiment of Princes, by Francisco de Eximenis (1484), already at the time of the printing
press.

Also with the arrival of the printing press, the Historiated Isopete (1489) stands out, fables of
Aesop illustrated with wood engravings, which included an explanation of their meaning at the
end of each fable. And, thanks to the testimony of Saint Teresa, we know that the children also
read chivalric and miraculous books such as the Flos sanctorum.

GO TO INDEX

Children's Literature in the 18th and 19th centuries

We have already commented that, until the 18th century, it cannot be said that children's
literature itself existed. In the 16th and 17th centuries we only find some compilations of
children's folklore, such as Christmas Eve Games to the Divine, by Alonso de Ledesma (1562-
1623) or Fabulary of Old and New Tales (1613) by Sebastián Mey.

In the 18th century it was already considered that the child deserved special attention, although
the didactic intention continued to predominate. In a similar way to what was done in the Middle
Ages, books for children are written by official commission. Now the sponsors are the
enlightened ministers. Thus, Tomás de Iriarte wrote his literary Fables (1782) at
Floridablanca's request. These fables, starring animals, as was done since classical times, are
written in verse to facilitate learning. According to Iriarte, the problem is that children who are
fond of the wonderful, no matter how false or implausible, postpone what is true, what is useful
and what is necessary. Félix María de Samaniego composes his Fábulas (1781) commissioned
by Peñaflorida. He tries to write easy verses with a simple and clear style, and tries to adapt to
the childish mentality by criticizing Lafontaine's fables, of which he says that only five or six
fables are known, in which childish simplicity shines with eminence.

XIX century
We have already mentioned the collecting work of Fernán Caballero , which is carried out in
newspapers such as La Educación Pintoresca or La Illustration de la Infancia, in which
Joaquina Balmaseda, Ángela Grassi or Hartzenbusch and Campoamor , among others,
collaborate. Antonio Trueba stands out with his Peasant Tales, rosy tales and popular tales.
Father Coloma with his Collection of recreational readings (1884), stories among which is El
Ratón Pérez, and a historical novel aimed at children, Jeromín (1902).

In 1876 the Calleja publishing house was founded, which collected stories inspired by popular
traditions with a slight instructive and moral intention, and also the classic stories of Perrault,
Grimm and Andersen. His little books, the famous Cuentos de Calleja, are small format, very
cheap and illustrated with bright colors. They became so well known that they gave rise to the
saying "You have more story than Calleja." It also has another collection of large-format books,
the Pearl Library, which includes One Thousand and One Nights, Gulliver's Travels and The
Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.

Emilia Pardo Bazán complained about the lack of Spanish story tradition and the importation of
themes from France and Germany "because they send us things that are very strange and
contrary to the nature of our country, and instead of our classic witches, fairies, giants and
enchanting characters make us become acquainted with ogres, elves and other beings of northern
mythology and demonology", which is why it proposes inspiration in popular Spanish folklore.
That is what José Ortega y Munilla (1856-1923) will do in part, who, if he does not deal with
popular folklore, does deal, at least, with the situation of Spanish children in stories such as Los
tres sorianitos, in which the adventures of three children forced to emigrate from Soria to
America.

Twentieth century
Already in the first half of the 20th century, three authors stand out: Salvador Bartolozzi, Elena
Fortún and Antoniorrobles . Salvador Bartolozzi begins to publish, in the second stage of the
Calleja publishing house, new adventures of Pinocchio (1917), illustrated by himself. His
Pinocchio is idealistic and selfless and, as if it were a Quixote, he has his counterpoint in the
Chapete doll. The same author also published several works starring Pipo and Pipa. Magda
Donato and Manuel Abril collaborate with him in an attempt to address the authentic child for
which they cultivate a literature of the absurd. These authors also published dramatic pieces in
El Teatro de Pinocchio so that children could perform them at home.

Elena Fortún , pseudonym of Encarnación Aragoneses, achieved fame with her series of Celia
and Cuchifritín and Matonkiki, first in Gente Menuda (1928-1936), the children's supplement of
Blanco y Negro, and, starting in 1933, in books by the Aguilar publishing house. In a similar
way to what Richmal Crompton had done with his Guillermo, it is put into the child's
perspective and accurately reproduces, through the adventures of this girl belonging to the
Madrid bourgeoisie, the language and character of childhood at the same time. that ridicules the
elders and invites them to enter the game, although it is sometimes not free of a certain
didacticism.

Antoniorrobles , pseudonym of Antonio J. Robles Soler began his publication in the children's
press and then published his 26 stories in alphabetical order (1930), Tales of Living Toys (1931)
and Hermanos monigotes (1935). He exposes his theory of children's literature in books
published in his Mexican exile such as: Did the wolf eat Little Red Riding Hood? (1942) and
Rompetacones and a hundred more stories (1962).

In the postwar period this panorama was truncated and attempts were made to use literature on
both sides to ideologically instruct children. Many of the previous authors such as Bartolozzi,
Elena Fortún, Magda Donato and Antoniorrobles go into exile, while conservative authors such
as Josefina Bolinaga, Carmen Martel and Matilde Ras, among others, try to offer suitable
readings for the child of the new Spain.

Quality attempts to renew children's literature in all genres go unnoticed. These attempts are
made by authors who had stood out in adult literature, such as Elisabeth Mulder with her Tales
of the Old Clock (1941), Mª Luz Morales with Maribel and the Elephants (1945), Carmen
Conde with Doña Centenito, Wild Cat (1943) and Aladino (1944), children's theater, and Celia
Viñas with her poems, Canción silly del sur. On the contrary, models for children are imposed
in the didactic line of Parravicini's Juanito from the 18th century, differentiating of course
between models for girls and boys. They are: Cuto by Jesús Blasco , Chatillo by José Mª
Huertas and Mari Pepa by Emilio Cotarelo , and Mari-Sol by Josefina Álvarez de Toledo .
Even Elena Fortún tries to keep her heroine Celia, but within parameters more appropriate to the
new situation, with deliveries such as Celia madrecita (1939).

Borita Casas with Antoñita La Fantástica (1948), a character that appeared on the radio, would
rival Celia's popularity years later. Antoñita, a girl with a great imagination, is another
representative of the wealthy middle class who establishes a contrast with her maid Nicerata.
Borita Casas also writes a humorous section in Chicas magazine called "Juana the List's Silly
Page."

In the following decade, children's literature was consecrated and, in 1958, the Lazarillo Prize
was created, which attempted to be a Spanish-style Andersen Prize and later the Doncel Prize
was created. At this time, María Luisa Gefaell stands out, who won the National Literature
Prize in 1950, with The Little Princess Who Had Magical Fingers (1953) and Antón Retaco
(1955), and José María Sánchez Silva with Marcelino Pan y vino (1952), story of a boy taken
in by the friars who spoke with Christ. This work became a true sociological phenomenon, its
success reached such a point that it eclipsed its author, despite the fact that he had written
numerous works. This author received the Andersen Prize in 1968.

GO TO INDEX

In the sixties, the following stand out: Ana María Matute with works such as El stowaway del
Ulises, winner of the 1960 Lazarillo Prize; Elisabeth Mulder with The Nights of the Green Cat
(1963); Carmen Kurtz, creator of a character called Óscar who won several awards, such as the
CCEI with Óscar Cosmonauta (1964) and also in the same year the Lazarillo award with Color
of fire; Montserrat del Amo , Lazarillo winner with Rastro de Dios in 1960, which she
continued to publish in the 1980s; Carmen Vázquez Vigo with Mambrú no fue a la guerra
(1970), Mint candy (1973) and Don Bepo's doll (1983), and Jaime Ferrán with Ángel en la
luna (1976).

Starting in the 70s, children's literature experienced a real boom in Spain, favored by several
factors that have been pointed out by Alfonso García in the article: "Children's literature in the
EGB."

- The influences of Gianni Rodari, María Gripe and Michael Ende, who have marked the line
towards an imaginative literature that we can see in works by Juan Manuel Gisbert or
Consuelo Armijo , for example.
- The influence of the educational change that began in the 70s, which established an active
approach in language teaching.

- The publishing boom, with the appearance of publishing houses and collections such as
Miñón, Alfaguara, Noguer, Anaya, Júcar, Ala Delta, etc.

- The influence of the novel currents of the 60s, which is manifested in the thematic renewal
(escape from the topic and themes close to children), and in the narrative procedures (with
works that play with a double narrative plane, introspection, points of varied view), requires
greater teacher preparation.

- Regarding the themes, we find: the awareness-raising problem, the fantastic, the demystifying
vision of the traditional story schemes, the adventures that perhaps diminish in their traditional
sense, biographies although contextualized in their time, the ecological theme, the return to the
story of folklore narration, etc.

In these years, authors such as: Fernando Alonso with The Little Man in Gray (1978),
Consuelo Armijo with the series that begins with Los Batautos (1974), which represent Spanish
nonsense, El Pampinoplas (1979) and Aniceto vencecanguelos ( 1981); Joan Miguel Gisbert
with fantastic and science fiction works such as The Mystery of Tokland Island, (Lazarillo
Award in 1974) and Fantastic Scenarios (1979); Jordi Serra y Fabra with Young Lennon
(1988) and Friday Night (1994), and Juan Farias with Some Children, Three Dogs and More
Things (National Children's Literature Award in 1981). There are also many authors who
combine narrative for adults with children's, such as: José María Merino with his trilogy on the
American theme composed of: The Gold of Dreams (1986), The Land of Lost Time (1987) and
The Tears of the sun (1989); Andreu Martín with Vampiro a mi spite (1992), who in
collaboration with J aume Ribera writes his series about the children's detective Flannagan,
which begins with Don't ask for a sardine out of season (1988); Rosa Montero with The Nest of
Dreams (1991); Antonio Martínez Menchén , with Fosco (1985) and Tina's Awakening (1988)
and The Sword and the Rose (1993), or Carmen Martín Gaite with The Garden of the Three
Walls (1981) and Little Red Riding Hood in Manhattan (1990). One of the most successful
latest additions is that of Elvira Lindo , with her series starring Manolito, which opens with
Manolito Gafotas (1994), a boy from Carabanchel who opens with a character who, like
Antoñita la Fantástica, Before becoming a book, it appeared on a radio program and then in the
children's supplement of El País.

The publishing boom also brings with it great splendor in the world of illustration, with Spanish
illustration being considered one of the best in the world in this field. Among its representatives
are: Miguel Calatayud, Alfonso Ruano, Carmé Solé, Asún Balzola, Arcadio Lobato, Alicia
Cañas and Javier Serrano.

The interest in children's theater is manifested at the beginning of the century in works such
as: Children's farce of the dragon's head (1910) by Valle Inclán, or in Jacinto de Benavente 's
attempts to achieve "The Children's Theater", in the which represented works by other authors,
such as the aforementioned by Valle or those by Sinesio Delgado and Marquina, although it was
not very successful. In the 1930s, Elena Fortún published theater in Gente Menuda that was
later collected in 1942, in her Teatro para niños. And a theater that receives contributions from
masters such as El Lindo Don Gato (1932?) by Casona and La Farándula Niña (1929) by
Fernando J. also knows its golden age. from Larra; Federico García Lorca with The Girl
Who Waters the Basil and the Questioning Prince (1923), and Rafael Alberti with The Painted
Bird (1932). After the civil war, the theatrical work was largely truncated, although at the end of
the forties we find the performances of María Luisa Villardefrancos , with The princess of the
secret room (1949) and The prince who had no heart (1949), and Juan Antonio de la Iglesia
with The Cowardly King (1949). Also noteworthy is the work carried out by the Women's
Section with several publications and the company "El carro de la farándula", in which Carola
Soler collaborated, as well as the company "Teatro Nacional de Lope de Rueda". In the 1950s,
other children's theater companies were consolidated: "Los Tïteres" and "El Teatro Popular
Infantil" in which Lauro Olmo collaborated, who collected his works in the volume Teatro
Infantil (1969), and Alfonso Sastre stands out with Historia de an abandoned doll (1964) for
which he is based on Bertold Brecht. Later, the CNINAT (National Center for the Initiation of
Children and Adolescents to Theater) was created, and collections such as "Team Game
Theater" were created, in which children's texts are dramatized. "Spanish School" deals in the
eighties with works such as The Three Magician Queens (1979) by Gloria Fuertes or Pecas,
Dragoncín and the Treasure by Carmen Bravo Villasante . Lately Luis Matilla has stood out
with his Teatro para armar y desarmar (1985) and La fiesta de los dragones (1986).

IRA TO THE INDEX

Children's Literature in Latin America

In Latin America, children's literature emerged after European literature and was initially
nourished by books from Spain and Portugal. When one begins to create one's own literature, it
is also done by imitating European models, thus a multitude of fabulists emerged in the 19th
century known as the Iriarte or Samaniegos of their respective countries. This is the case of the
Peruvian José María Sánchez Barra , the Mexican José Rosas Montero or the Ecuadorian-
Guatemalan Rafael García Goyena. But soon the authors began to incorporate exotic and
national elements typical of their fauna and flora into their fables, an incorporation that will also
be fundamental in the story-telling work.

Politicians such as Andrés Bello, Rubén Darío or José Martí begin to care about children's
education and promote the combination of literature, politics and pedagogy. The first step will
be the recovery of folklore as an integral element of one's own nationality. Within this work, the
works of José María Arguedas and Ricardo Palma in Peru, Miguel Ángel Asturias in
Guatemala and Juan Alfonso Carrizo in Argentina stand out.

This collecting tradition continues to extend well into the 20th century and we thus fear a whole
series of authors of Latin American children's literature, either compilers of popular folklore or
writers of their own works inspired by this folklore. In Mexico, the works of Amado Nervo,
Cantos Escolar, stand out ; José Vasconcelos, Classic readings for children; Vicente Mendoza ,
Children's Lyrics in Mexico (1951), and Blanca Lidia Trejo who wrote popular stories in the
1940s. Horacio Quiroga, Uruguayan, published his Tales from the Jungle for Children (1918).
In Peru, José María Arguedas writes Myths, legends and Peruvian stories (1947) and Arturo
Jiménez Borja , Cuentos peruanos (1937). Other similar works are: Anthology of Bolivian
traditions and legends (1969) by Antonio Pérez Candía ; Traditions and legends of Panama
(1956), by Luisita Aguilera Patiño ; Salvadoran Folklore (1932) by Francisco Espinosa ;
Popular poetry in Guatemala by Consuelo Vivar ; The Popular Poetry of Puerto Rico (1933) by
María Cadilla; Christmas Lullabies (1945) by the also Puerto Rican Ester Feliciano ; Towns
and legends of the Cuban Herminio Almedros (1898-1976); Folklore of the Cuban Child
(1960) by Teresa Alzola or Black Tales of Cuba by Lydia Cabrera ; In the same style we can
consider the Tales of my Aunt Panchita, by the Costa Rican Carmen Lyra , written in popular
Costa Rican language.

In addition, we also find very unique figures, far removed from this folklore movement, such as
the Argentinian ones: María Elena Walsh, poet and humorous minstrel in the nonsense
movement, with works such as The Reverse Kingdom (1960); Elsa Isabel Bonermann with An
Elephant Takes Up a Lot of Space (1977); Fryda Schlultz de Mantonvani with Tales for Later
(1978) and María Granada with The Blue Fox Hunter and Other Stories (1981). In Chile,
Marcela Paz creates the series of Papelucho, a boy from a wealthy family who rebels against
his elders and who is part of a literary movement against authority, along the lines of that
cultivated by Elena Fortún in her Celia. Hernán del Solar also stands out in Chile, with a
literature full of surprise and ingenuity, in Las venturas de Totora (1946), and in Ecuador
Hermán Rodríguez Castelo stands out, with Memoria del Gris, el gato sin amor. Other
important authors are: the Venezuelans Eduardo Egui (1921-1970) with his humorous stories
Cuen que una vez, and Manuel Felipe Rugeles with his poetic work Canta Pirulero, and the
Peruvian Carlota Carvallo de Nuñez (1915-1980), author of the novel Rutsi, the little
hallucinated one (1947).

Within children's theater we highlight the Uruguayan Adolfo Montiel Ballesteros (1881-1971)
with his Teatro Menudo; to the Argentines Javier Lafañe , author of the "Títeres de andariega"
theater and Germán Berdiales , creator of the Little American Theater (1958); to the
Panamanian Rogelio Sinán with his work Chiquilinga, or the glory of being an ant and the
cockroach Mandinga, and to the Bolivian Antonio Paredes Candía with his Selection of
Bolivian theater for children (1969).