If you are not happy with the results below please do another search
In the latest in our long-running Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor take a critical look at joy in children’s books. The phrase ‘childhood joy’ often goes with words like ‘pure’ and ‘unadulterated’. But joy as depicted in children’s literature is almost always adulterated—written by adults. This means that joy in […]
In the latest in our long-running Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor explore exhibitions of children’s books. In the late 1990s, the British Library ran an exhibition of children’s books (it was called Children’s Books at the British Library). The poster for the exhibition featured a picture from Janet and Allan […]
In the latest in their long-running Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor consider representations of Jewish people in children’s literature. Many children in Britain will read books featuring Jewish people in Religious Education lessons. However, Jewishness can also be thought of as an ethnicity, and historically has been seen as a […]
In the latest in our Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor examine the way the Gypsy Roma and Traveller communities are represented in children’s literature. Gypsy, Roma and Travellers are identified in Britain as minority ethnic groups in the Race Relations (Amendment) Act (2000). The Act places a general duty on […]
In the latest in their long-running Beyond the Secret Garden feature, examining the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic voices in British children’s literature Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor look at magic and who gets to wield it. The first English translation of 1001 Nights (variously titled as Arabian Nights, Arabian Nights’ Entertainment, and […]
For this issue of BfK’s long-running series Beyond the Secret Garden, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor offer a different kind of column, about the importance of preserving and celebrating children’s books in a national institution. Listen to this story about an exhibition, the first exhibition entirely focused on the history of children’s literature by and […]
In the latest in the Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor examine depictions of Black people’s hair in children’s books. It is not uncommon for children’s books, in Britain and beyond, to feature characters who are identified by their hair or stories their hair plays a significant role in events. Descriptions […]
In the latest in the Beyond the Secret Garden series, which looks at the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic voices in British children’s literature, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor explore the works of Welsh authors. In March 2022, Repeater Books publishes Welsh (Plural): Essays on the Future of Wales edited by Darren Chetty, […]
In the latest in the Beyond the Secret Garden series, which looks at the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic voices in British children’s literature, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor examine abridgements made when books are revised for younger readers. In 1800, an edition of Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, originally published in 1719, was […]
In the latest in the Beyond the Secret Garden series, which looks at the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic voices in British children’s literature, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor examine ideas of home. As the year draws to a close and families start making plans to get together for the holidays, home takes […]
For the latest in their Beyond the Secret Garden series, and in the light of recent discussions, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor explore the notion of ‘policing the imagination’. The recent Twitter discussion relating to Kate Clanchy’s Some Kids I Taught and What They Taught Me has had ramifications for writers, publishers, and readers […]
In the latest in their Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor look at racially minoritised LGBT characters in children’s literature. Back in 1976, the Trinidadian born US writer Rosa Guy published Ruby, a follow-up to her novel The Friends. Ruby was the older sister of Phyllisia in The Friends, and she […]
In the latest in their Beyond the Secret Garden series, Karen Sands-O’Connor and Darren Chetty examine children’s books dealing with protest and politics. In 1979, Des Wilson wrote a book for young people on politics entitled So You Want to Be Prime Minister: An Introduction to British Politics Today (Peacock). In it, he argued ‘we […]
In their latest Beyond the Secret Garden feature examining the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic voices in children’s literature, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor look at the Kate Greenaway Medal and recent children’s books. In 1936, following the lead of the American Library Association, the British Library Association created its first prize for […]
In a seasonal special in the Beyond the Secret Garden series, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor find presents for everyone. Writing the Daily Mail’s ‘Children’s Books for Christmas’ column in 1991, the author Penelope Lively suggested that ‘A book is the most permanent present you can give. Particularly for a child.’ While many end-of-year booklists have become […]
What does it mean to be a writer of colour during a pandemic and a global movement protesting systemic racism? For this issue’s Beyond the Secret Garden column, we asked Black British and British Asian authors about their experiences over the past few months. Several generously took the time to send us responses to questions […]
Hoorah for Health Workers! In the latest in their Beyond the Secret Garden series examining how BAME voices have been represented in children’s literature in Britain, Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor raise a cheer for some fictional doctors and nurses. Discussing the postwar migration of health care workers from the Caribbean to Britain in a […]
At the beginning of 2018, we invited Darren Chetty and Karen Sands-O’Connor to contribute articles to Books for Keeps examining the way black, Asian and minority ethnic voices have been represented in the English national story, through children’s literature. Their articles make for powerful and thought-provoking reading. We bring them all together here. The Fantasy […]
Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.
Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT
Telephone: 0780 789 3369
ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).
