Writing, Retelling, and Critically Reading Children's and Young Adult Tales

“The edited volume delivers a fresh and diverse assortment of timely critical perspectives. Placing various genres, formats, and literary traditions in direct conversation through its thematic organization, the collection invites reflection on intertextuality, culture, and childhood and adolescent identity. As a teacher educator who works with pedagogies of English language literature, I would be excited to share this collection with my students.”
—Dr Jessica Allen Hanssen, Professor, Nord University, Norway

"In literacy education research, it is common to engage with literature for children and young adults through perspectives such as feminism and history to enhance students’ critical reading skills. This collection explores how classic stories can be reimagined and reinterpreted. I appreciate the focus on critical literacy and the potential for these tales to foster a deeper understanding and engagement in young readers."
—Dr Tati Lathipatud Durriyah, Head of the MA in Education Program, Indonesian International Islamic University, Indonesia

"This collection explores historical contexts popularized by classic novelists through a new literary lens and re-examines modern classics for the interest of contemporary audiences. This huge contribution to the genre of modern retelling of children’s classics provides a space for cultural reinterpretation, introducing readers to diverse perspectives."
 —Dr Beena Giridharan, Professor, Curtin University Malaysia 

This collection traces the evolution of writing, retelling, and critically reading children’s and young adult tales over decades of cultural, social, and technological changes. Global contributions cover the increasingly diverse narratives found in children’s literature, including how contemporary authors challenge traditional gender roles found in fairy tales through modern increasingly prevalent retellings. Chapters also consider the psychological impact of storytelling on children and how narratives can provide children with frameworks for understanding their emotions and experiences. Tales and novels studied notably include The Little Prince, To Kill a Mockingbird, Vitya Maleyev in School and at Home, Gon, the Little Fox, Śr?mad-Bh?gavatam, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Princess Knight, and Lonely Castle in the Mirror.

Bernard Montoneri is Associate Professor in the Department of Foreign Languages at National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan. He is the editor of the IAFOR Journal of Literature and Librarianship. Dr Montoneri edited a book titled Time Travel in World Literature and Cinema in 2024.