Processes of Canonisation in Children’s Literature: Between Academic Consecration and Popular Dissemination and Adult Nostalgia

Literature for young readers comprises one of the cornerstones of cultural heritage. In many cultures, children’s and young-adult books are some of the building blocks of cultural identity, as literature for young audiences can be used to instill important cultural values in its readership.

The papers in this file examine how the oeuvres of prominent children’s book authors and illustrators from disparate regions of the world are getting canonised. They investigate through what means these bodies of work are gaining acclaim (academic, popular, or a mixture of both), and what role nostalgia plays in these canonisation processes.