Discontent from Within: Hidden Dissent Against Communal Upbringing in Kibbutz Children's Literature of the 1940s & 1950s

The article analyzes the place of kibbutz children's literature in the internal kibbutz discourse during the fervent 1940s and 1950s. During this era, all kibbutz movements implemented the principle of communal sleeping of children and youths, before the gradual erosion and decline of this fundamental principle of Communal Upbringing began. Kibbutz children's literature of this period has often been regarded as a tool for reinforcing collective kibbutz values, as taught by the various institutions of communal upbringing. The article investigates a parallel role that kibbutz children's literature has played, with subversive undercurrents. I demonstrate that alongside the expected glorification of communal ideology, some texts also evoked deliberations and frustrations—at times even piercing criticism—regarding the principles of communal upbringing, especially the marginalization of the family institution. It presents and analyzes several key children's books published in the 1940s and 1950s by the two kibbutz publishing houses: Kibbutz Meuhad and Sifriyat Poalim, all of which have been published in several editions.