Sharing Literature With Children: A Thematic Anthology

Literature for children appears in many genres, each with its own conventions and traditions. But beyond the mechanical devices, beyond the crafting of a well-wrought tale, lies wisdom of heart. Wisdom of heart is experienced by child and adult alike, but sharing the experience is sometimes as difficult for the adult as it is for the child. Butler's book brings adults into active participation in sharing literature with children, challenging adults to confront the inner child in themselves. She calls this "restorying the adult." In addition, she shows how literature can be shared with children in conjunction with storytelling, games, dancing, singing, puppetry, acting out, and other fascinating and creative activities. Using the best available standards of literary taste and an educated intuition, Butler chose pieces for feeling, value, quality, and balance. The five themes that form the major divisions of the book: Toys and Games, Fools, Masks and Shadows, Sex Roles, and Circles, grew organically from a decade of study of the shared literary interests of children and adults. Each section is further divided by genre; in over one hundred and sixty selections, she presents folktales, folk rhymes, folk plays, fantasy, fiction, poetry, essays, mythology, fables, drama, biography, and biblical writing. Far from being a comprehensive book that tries to cover the field or present a microcosm of the child's experience, or the human experience, or experience of the universe, and so on, Sharing Literature with Children is only the beginning of a great experience that opens out into the almost limitless potential of the world of great literature for children, or for that matter, of all literature.