Between Modernism and Postmodernism: Greek Literature for Children and Youth in the Last Decades of the Twentieth Century

Placing Greek literature for children and youth between modernism and postmodernism during the last decades of the twentieth century, this article aims to minimize uncertainty about the status of Greek children's literature as an art form and to highlight its ability to both incorporate narrative changes and address the needs of contemporary readers. Following on the heels of European classic authors such as Michel Tournier and Gianni Rodari, contemporary Greek writers–such as Eugene Trivizas, Manos Kontoleon, and Christos Boulotis–provide alternative representations of everyday life, interweaving fantasy and social awareness. Like several other European texts, Greek metafictional literature for children and youth is indicative of a subversive tendency that relies on specific postmodernist techniques, offering readers multiple perspectives and diverse realities.