Unexpected Jolts of Children’s Literature

It’s that time again. Time to discuss cases in which the world of adult literature and the world of children’s books intersect in all new and interesting ways. Today I’ve a special treat for you though. A video that just blew me away, and with the release of that… downright interesting Harold and the Purple Crayon film? Well, it couldn’t be better timed, that’s all.

Check this out:

I mean, that is how you do a book trailer, people. I think that it may be fair to say that Oxford University Press has never hosted one as accomplished, smartly edited, or enticing as this. Also, where the heck did you get that purple guitar, Phil? Some answers (not all, but a good slew) can be found at this blog post How to Draw the World: Book Trailer. And it really does explain the origins of that guitar (which are more than mildly amazing).

Okay, before I go any further today, there’s a matter I need to discuss. I’ve always sort of figured that these posts were my own invention, done just by me, possibly for only my own interest. Then, on July 19th, Publishers Weekly scooped me. Swear to god, I don’t know how it happened, but their piece Adult Books on Children’s Lit covers a lot of the same stuff I do. And worse still? It’s a really good piece. I believe it mentions Phil’s book here as well as a slew of others, so go on and check it out if you can.

Happily, I do have a couple other titles it missed, though. Because while they concentrated primarily on adult books that discuss children’s literature, I have the option of looking at adult books penned by people who previously wrote books for kids.

For example, it’s a little difficult to believe that the author of this book:

Also created this book:

Yet it’s true! That’s what we call range, folks. Tiny Threads is pretty much what its cover suggests: Fashion horror. Specifically, a horror that focuses on the historical cycle of privileged white men taking advantage of young Latina seamstresses. PW got bitten by the pun bug when they reviewed it, but I still gotta respect their description. They said, “there’s enough masterful detailing and vividly imagined scares to keep readers on pins and needles.” Wokka wokka, folks.

Okay, this one’s even better. We’re going from this book:

To this book:

How’s that for a shift in tone? This book covers three generations within a single Ghanian family. Now to be fair, this isn’t Brew-Hammond’s first foray into adult literature. Last year she edited Relations: An Anthology of African and Diaspora Voices which was a cross-genre anthology with a wide breadth of writing by African and African diaspora authors. She’s one of the few people I know to alternate between adult writing and writing for kids with such fluidity.

Then there’s this book as well:

The PW roundup did miss this little number. I rather like the publisher’s description. It says:

“Susan Friedland, a Marguerite Henry fangirl turned historian, learned to ride in the same horsey community where the Misty of Chincoteague author and her famous pony lived decades earlier. After re-reading Misty as an adult, Susan launches a personal quest to find people, places, papers and ponies to reveal the backstory of Misty and the life of Marguerite Henry. Enjoy this Marguerite Henry biography that will take you to the shores of Chincoteague Island and help you revel in horsey nostalgia.”

And that’s all she wrote today, folks! Join me next time for another startling array of books on the horizon.

Filed under: Unexpected Jolts of Children's Literature