Books Received

Bigotry and Intolerance: The Ultimate
Teen Guide. By Kathlyn Gay. Lanham,
MD: Scarecrow Press, 2013.

Kathlyn Gay covers many forms of prejudice in this book, including homophobia, racism, and religious bigotry. The chapter on censorship deals the most directly with children’s and young adult literature.

Moon City Review 2012: Special
Volume in Contemporary Children’s
Literature. Edited by Joel D. Chaston
and Linda Trinh Moser.

Published as an annual review of poetry, story, art, and criticism, Moon City Review for 2012 is devoted entirely to children’s literature and culture. In addition to numerous short stories and poems, this issue includes several critical essays on topics including Pixar’s Toy Story, Lewis Carroll’s Alice books, Rose O’Neill’s Kewpie dolls, and Roald Dahl’s Fantastic Mr. Fox.

The Stories I Read to the Children:
The Life and Writing of Pura Belpré,
the Legendary Storyteller, Children’s
Author, and New York Public Librarian.
Edited by Lisa Sánchez González.
New York: Center for Puerto Rican
Studies, 2013.

Recognized as a leading authority on Puerto Rican folklore and culture, Pura Belpré (1899–1982) was also a successful children’s author and children’s librarian. Over forty of her stories and essays are reprinted in this volume. Lisa Sáchez González also provides a substantial biographical introduction.

The Water-Babies: A Fairy Tale for
a Land-Baby. By Charles Kingsley.
Edited by Brian Alderson and Robert
Douglas-Fairhurst. Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 2013.

This new critical edition of Charles Kingsley’s classic work features a scholarly introduction in which the editors discuss The Water-Babies’ origins and critical reception. They also provide numerous explanatory notes, a chronology of Kingsley’s life, and a bibliography of scholarly works related to Kingsley and The Water-Babies.