The Effects Of Realistic Fiction On Children s Literature

hildren’s literature is universally known for its â€Å"wide range of works, including acknowledged classics of world literature, picture books and easy-to-read stories written expressly for children,† in addition to its many â€Å"fairy tales, lullabies, fables, folk songs, and other primarily orally transmitted materials† (Encyclopedia of Literature 237). In this encyclopedic denotation, we fail to see the presence of realistic fiction, wherein â€Å"everyday events, particularized settings, and characters from all ranks on life† are portrayed (Segel 417). Most people hold firm to the belief that children’s literature is only limited to hope and happy endings, when it is truly unbounded and free to be expressed in whatsoever way is possible. Moreover, in recent debates discussing realism or mimesis in children’s literature and its ongoing aim to reflect â€Å"more accurately the random and inclusive nature of actual events and the complex individuality of actual people† (Segel 417), the problematic issue that continues to arise is whether realistic fiction is too realistic for the children it is ostensibly written for. Two books that are in question specifically at the moment are Kimberly Willis Holt’s My Louisiana Sky and Rita Williams-Garcia’s One Crazy Summer. In both narratives, authors Holt and Williams-Garcia take their implied audiences (children) on a journey through explicit subject matter foreign and forbidden in the fruitful and fantastical garden of conventional children’sShow MoreRelatedTeenage Literature Essay1465 Words   |  6 PagesModern teenage literature is often stories about the first school love, adventures and problematic relationships with parents. 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