Raising your kids right : children's literature and American political conservatism
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Raising your kids right : children's literature and American political conservatism
（The Rutgers series in childhood studies）
Rutgers University Press, 2011, c2010
- : pbk
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Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
Dr. Seuss's classic character the Lorax has delighted children for decades while passing along a powerful message about environmental responsibility. The book's young readers, and their parents, would likely be surprised by the emergence of a new character, Truax, a kindly logger created by a longtime employee of the wood products industry, who, not surprisingly, has a far different viewpoint to share. Yet the Truax character, and the book of the same name, is just one example of a growing genre of conservative-themed narratives for young readers spawned by the continuing strength of the American political right.
Highlighting the works of William Bennett, Lynne Cheney, Bill O'Reilly, and others, Michelle Ann Abate brings together such diverse fields as cultural studies, literary criticism, political science, childhood studies, brand marketing, and the cult of celebrity. Raising Your Kids Right dispels lingering societal attitudes that narratives for young readers are unworthy of serious political study by examining a variety of texts that offer information, ideology, and even instructions on how to raise kids right, not just figuratively but politically.
Table of Contents
Introduction. "In Adam's Fall, We Sinned All": The Conservative Tradition in U.S. Children's Literature, Culture, and Politics
1 "Give Me Some of That Old-Time Reading": William Bennett's The Book of Virtues and the Rise of Right-Leaning Literature for Young Readers
2 "I Speak for the National Oak Flooring Manufacturers Association": Truax, the Anti-Green Movement, and the Corporate Production of Children's Literature
3 Not Just Christianity, But the Christian Right: The Battle over Public Education and the American Sunday School Movement in the Left Behind Series for Kids
4 Patriot Acts: Fighting the War on Terror via the Canon Wars in Lynne Cheney's Picture Books
5 Pundit Knows Best: The Self-Help Boom, Brand Marketing, and The O'Reilly Factor for Kids
6 "One State, Two State, Red State, Blue State": Bringing Partisan Politics to Picture Books in Katharine DeBrecht's Help! Mom! Series
Conclusion. "The Gosh-Darnit, Doggone It, You-Betcha Wink Heard 'Round the World": The 2008 Presidential Election, the State of the Conservative Movement, and the Future of Rightist Books for Young Readers
by "Nielsen BookData"