EDUC 535 Literature for Children and Adolescent

Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

Text Set: Critical Content Analysis and Rationales

I. Critical Inquiry Question

What is perspective?

How do different perspectives make differences; whose stories are told/ untold?

II. Story of the Question

In this digital era, people are sometimes drowning and overwhelmed for

instant and quick information. There are news, posts, videos, images that arouse

hatred; some groups or politicians use the power of words to tear down and

separate society. Yet, I believe that literacy is powerful and people can also make

it into good use to advocate understanding and respect among people.

Henceforth, I come up with my inquiry theme of teaching perspectives and

view these perspective-taking skills is an essential element to foster mutual

understanding between people and further build a harmonious society. Mastering

the skill of perspective-taking can help learners develop a sense of empathy and

the respect diversity and difference. When learners know how to grasp other’s

perspectives, they are more likely to anticipate other’s behavior and thoughts and

to be more inclusive and flexible when dealing with conflicts to value difference.

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Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

III. Text set

I develop my analysis by writing a summary of each book followed by the

other paragraph for rationale, which jointly explains why this book could be a good

entry for learners to explore further into my inquiry questions.

1. The True Story of Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka & Lane Smith

The traditional Three Little Pigs story is told

from the point of view of the pigs, but in this book,

the narrator is switched to the wolf. It turns out that

the wolf just wanted to borrow a cup of sugar in

order to make a cake with his granny. Therefore, he

visited his neighbor, the pig’s place that had a house of straw. Unfortunately, the wolf

also had a cold and his sneeze knocked down the pigs’ house. The third pig, who lived

in a brick house, was just downright rude and insulted the wolf’s granny. This made

the wolf so angry that he was banging on the just as the police drove up. The media

then reported this news, depicting the wolf as a bad figure, and spoke ill about him.

This makes readers rethink the definition of truth. Is “truth” what the majority

believes (the wolf is guilty) or should we take the time to assess events from different

points of view?

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The True Story of the Three Little Pigs opens the door for me to view things

from different perspectives, learning that even a single story could be told in a

different way depending on “who” is telling the story and which perspective is the

reader viewing from. I was inspired by it because the book broke certain ideologies

that the wolf was the “bad” guy and revealed the other side of the story. There is also

a break of the “dichotomy” way of thinking: in many books or story settings

(especially fairy tales), there are certain “good and bad” characters. This reminds me

of Nodelman’s (1996) studies about the assumptions in children’s literature, which

contains positive role models: characters who act in acceptable ways and on the

contrary, there are unforgivable evil characters that demand to be punished. However,

in reality, there are various ways to view personalities and hardships in life. There are

good people that do bad things and bad people doing good things; such complexity

reveals how real life could be, which makes this book a good entry of my inquiry

because learners and compare this book to the fairy tale they used to hear. As

educators, rather than sugar-coating what reality is like, it is more important to guide

students to cultivate a sense of agency and guide them to know how different

perspectives shape different stories.

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2. Piggybook by Anthony Browne

Piggybook raises questions about gender

norms, fairness, and stereotypes through a story

by showing the unfairness of gender distribution

of household chores. Mrs. Piggott basically takes

over all the housework; she cooks all the meals,

washes all the dishes, makes all the beds, does

all the ironing, and then goes to her own job. Meanwhile, Mr. Piggott and the two

Piggott boys do nothing but wait around for Mrs. Piggott to feed them. One day, Mr.

Piggott and the boys return home to find that Mrs. Piggott has left them. They three

struggle to cook and clean by themselves, and the house turns into a mess. When Mrs.

Piggott finally returns, Mr. Piggott and the Piggott boys agree to help her with the

cleaning and the cooking.

This book provides a critical lens of different gender perspectives. It started

from an authentic discussion about the distribution of the housework, and such

authenticity could bring students to engage in the discussion. This also challenges

Nodelman’s (1996) assumption on children’s literature, proposing that children like

books that related to their typical childhood experience. “Boys like stories about boys

and girls like stories about girls”; however, this book opens up the discussion about

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gender and the certain stereotype of it. It also invites us to think from woman’s

perspectives, and further analyze that why women have more burden on housework or

taking care of the family. In addition, teachers could also bring into the discussion

about the notion of gender and how the social and cultural aspects affect our

perspective of gender and its’ responsibility.

3. A Soldier’s Christmas by Michael Mark

Speaking of Christmas, normally people think of family reunion, love, joy,

present or so. However, there are certain jobs, like soldiers, postmen, pilots and so on

that could not enjoy the holiday with their loved ones. In the poem, there is a strong

comparison between the man and the soldier. The man is with his wife and daughter,

enjoying the company with his family and the cozy house whereas the soldier is

outside in the cold winter, staying far away from his family. The soldier said, “it’s my

duty to stand at the front line that separates you from the darkest of times”. And at the

final line “That we mattered to you as you mattered to us” drew the mutual

understanding and bond between the man and the soldier. There are things that we

take for granted but they are actually from people’s hardship and sacrifice. Even on

the same holiday, if people learn to view their position from different perspectives,

they will have a brand new world view.

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When reading the poem, the students can read it one by one, word by word,

line by line. As the words are touching and inspiring, teachers can pause for a while

and let the students process the lines and think deeper about how different

occupations could have a different perspective. What we feel normal could be a

luxury for others and learners can further develop a sense of empathy. What we take

for granted in our everyday life could be a sacrifice and hard work from others. As

this text is a poem, the aesthetic wording invites various interpretations and

conversation of analysis. After reading this poem, I also suggest that teachers guide

students to think about which occupation are the “hidden figure”; try to think from

their perspective and write a thank-you note or draw a picture for them. Encourage

students to send out the message at the end for I was particularly inspired by what

Cooper (2008) has mentioned, “an image is a metaphor, and metaphor is the language

of myth and fantasy, poetry and song”. The poem could not only echo my inquiry

question but also cast light on social action.

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4. Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement

by Carole Boston Weatherford

Voice of Freedom is an infusion of

Hamer’s own quotes and the colloquial style

that defined her skill as a renowned public

speaker. It introduces key events in Hamer’s

life from growing up in a sharecropping community, getting involved in the struggle

for voting rights, and her run for the Mississippi State Senate. Hamer feels wrong that

the Black people are not being treated fairly, and she sees the effects that racism has

on her family and the people around her. She realizes Blacks have the right to vote.

She goes on to become the spirit and the voice of the civil rights movement and helps

change the country for the better future. Multimodality is also a highlight in this book.

Through poetry, the lyrics to traditional gospel, and collages, Hamer's life and

experiences jump off the page in this picture-book biography. The Author conveys

humanness that's often missing from profiles about civil rights activist. Hamer's

strength and vulnerability are unflinchingly displayed in the book.

I chose this book because it not only brings the reader to revisit the historical

perspective of the civil right movement but also bring in the viewpoints of the

oppressed. I would like to connect this to Marche’s claim about rereading the past. As

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we reread and rewrite the past, it serves the needs of the present. The clarity of history

is a great advantage and it provokes hedging and justification (Marche, 2012). Once

the book brings us into this historical perspective and goes through the same

experience, readers can cultivate a sense of justice and further relate to their real-life

experiences. Even in 2021, there are still numerous people being oppressed, and they

are still fighting for equality and justice. Moreover, literature serves as a platform for

inquiry into our shared histories (Ghiso & Campano, 2012); thus this text also brings

us into a new perspective by learning the story of Hamer and then situating ourselves

in the current world.

5. Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal.

This book poses the deceptively simple

question: "Is it a duck or is it a rabbit?" And it is

followed by conversation and debate. The two

narrations propose their observation and argument

to support their belief. The two unseen voices

each take an opposing viewpoint. In the end, just

as the two unseen narrators are starting to see each other’s' points of view. After that,

the duck/ rabbit is gone, a new ambiguous creature is shown, and the debating starts

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over again. This book is extremely simple in concept but so clever in execution. There

is no “right” answer given but generates different perspectives and arguments.

Compared to other texts, this book is a more playful one. The entire book is

more about the debate of two narrations, which takes on the opposing idea. However,

the simplicity of this book can also generate rich discussion as well. I would

particularly strengthen the text and illustration because words of the text and the

sequence of the illustrations contribute equally to the opportunities they provide for

constructing meaning (Sipe, 1998). And in this book, the narrator has different

interpretations because they view from “the different angles” of the illustration.

6. Flotsam by David Wiener

This book tells the story of a boy who

discovers an underwater camera on the shore

and further finds an intricate underwater

wonderland revealed in film and pictures.

While a boy is digging for crabs, a wave

sweeps him off his feet and deposits an underwater camera. After he recovers, he has

the film developed by adding on his observation and his perspective and is captivated

by what he finds. Ultimately, he tosses the camera back into the sea, where it's carried

away by various creatures until it again washes ashore for a new child to rediscover it

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and then add on his or her angle of observation. The illustrations of this book also

won the 2007 Caldecott Medal. The author is certainly a clever artist and he also calls

this “wordless storytelling”. It is simply captivated but there is so much to explore on

each page and each exploration invites a new perspective. If we view this from

different angles, readers can come up with their new story and interpretation.

Honestly, I struggle for a while when selecting this book as my text set because

this wordless picture book could be a challenge when teaching perspective. However,

I later think that readers can also challenge this notion of reading or even redefine

reading and interpreting. As Freire (1987) has brought up, reading always involves

critical perception, interpretation, and rewriting as we read. The idea of rewriting

requires readers to take on the perspective, the new lens of interpretation. I believe

this book can open up rich discussion and very different interpretations because it

contains different layers. Moreover, since it is a wordless picture book, the creative

illustration also helps cultivate the reader’s imagination. Readers can as a result touch

on more perspectives. And I also believe that such an idea can challenge Sipe’s idea

(1998) because Sipe argues that an illustration is planned from a certain point of view

so that the viewers feel themselves in a certain position relative to the scene in the

illustration. But in Flotsam, the author purposefully opens bout the perspectives of

reading and analyzing the illustration.

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Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

7. They All Saw A Cat by Brendan Wenzel

The book follows a cat as it walks

"through the places, with its whiskers, ears,

and paws." The cat is seen by a dog, then a

fox, a fish, a mouse, a bee, a bird, a flea, a

snake, a skunk, a worm, and a bat, each

providing an opportunity for the cat to show the unique perspective of the animal

that's viewing it. Finally, the cat came close to the water," and the reader is invited to

imagine what it saw when it peered in. The cat is seen by other animals -- some

predator, some prey, each with a distinct point of view. This artful story provides

readers with a powerful meditation on perception.

This book serves as an excellent introduction to the concept that we all see the

world from our own unique perspective. The rhythmic and repetitive text makes for a

mesmerizing read-aloud, and the art varies wildly with each perspective so as to

introduce scientific concepts such as a bee's pixelated mosaic-like vision and a bat's

echolocation. Teachers and learners can discuss how the illustrator uses color and size

and line to show perspective and further think about how the cat sees the other

creatures. Even young children can be very sophisticated as literary critics of a picture

book (Sipe, 1998) so the words and the illustration jointly work to facilitate meaning-

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making. Teachers shall also be mindful that there is no definite right or wrong answer

from a different point of view, which again echoes McNair’s (2003) reminder about

educators or adults shall not oppress or expect learners to take on their views and

perspectives.

8. Wonder by Jack Thorne, Steven Conrad, and Chbosky

Wonder is the novel of a boy named August Pullman,

who has a facial anomaly. He is an ordinary kid who plays

Xbox, obsessed with Star Wars, but despite the 27

operations done for his face, he looks very “different”. The

story is mostly about his school life and family, the joy and

struggle, the ups and downs in his life journey. This book

depicts how August gets bullied and is isolated for being different. This book

demonstrates the theme of intolerance by society towards someone who is rather

different. One more intriguing aspect of this book is that it is told from various

perspectives; the first few chapters are told from August’s point of view, then some

chapters by Via (August’s elder sister). Then there are other incidents that transpire

which are told from various characters’ perspectives, giving the readers a glimpse of

each of the character’s struggles. This book can change the way you look at the world

and make you realize that everyone is fighting their own demons.

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The reason that I picked this book is that learners can easily relate to its setting of

it: school life and interpersonal relationship. Moreover, young readers tend to have

feelings of being different and not fully understood, which is very common in their

own world. Reading this novel also invites learners to rewrite their stories with their

own perspectives. Thus, reading is not merely decoding the written language, but

rather anticipating and extending words into the knowledge of the world (Freire,

1987). Another reason that I chose this book is that this novel shifts the narration in

between chapters. Generally, most novels follow the narration of the protagonist but

Wonder incorporates narrations from different characters, which could be connected

to the idea of counter story-telling. Solorzano and Yosso (2002) define counter-

storytelling as “a method of telling stories of those people whose experiences are not

often told”. In Wonder, the author depicts the perspective of the family of August.

Like his sister Via often feels that the parents’ attention is all on August, but she felt a

sense of guilt for saying that because she thought her brother deserves more attention.

This novel really opens up different perspectives so that the story becomes more

engaging and holistic because everyone’s voice is heard.

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Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

9. George by Alex Gino

The novel tells the story of,

Melissa, a fourth-grade girl who is

struggling to be herself to the rest of the

world. In fact, the rest of the world sees

Melissa as George, a boy. Melissa uses

the class play, Charlotte's Web, to show her mom that she is a girl by switching roles

with her best friend and playing the part of Charlotte. The author first published the

novel in 2015 and it has had a mixed reaction due to its LGBT+ content. In 2021,

Gino retitled the novel, Melissa. The novel has received positive feedback from

sources such as the New York Times and the National Public Radio for its inclusion

of transgender experiences. Yet, the book has remained controversial to some parents

and teachers, leading it to be listed on the American Library Association's list of the

10 Most Challenged Books of 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 (topping the list in

2018, 2019, and 2020). Though it is a book that is still controversial, I strongly

believe that it could help me go deeper toward my inquiry questions.

In my opinion, there is an urgent need for a learning space to open up the

discussion of LGBTQ topics because if the education content is silencing this voice

and perspective, I couldn’t think of another space or opportunity that can handle this

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discussion rationally and diversely. Scholars point to the need for the inclusion of

books with LGBTQ characters and content in school to foster an increasingly

welcoming and supportive space for all learners (Crawley, 2017). In addition, with

social critical consciousness, teachers can begin to “see” the hidden curriculum

(McNair, 2003), but inside such a curriculum lies in learners’ struggle and the social

stereotypes. In this book, the author creates characters and plots for readers of how

gender shapes the ways we “shall behave” and how people are “expected” to interact

with each other. The book invites readers to consider what that might mean for

someone who does not fit into binary gender expectations; the book builds new

conceptual and the new perspective to view gender as a spectrum or as an individual’s

freedom of choice.

10. Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn Williams

This book tells the story of two girls, Lina

and Feroza, and their families, who are living in a

refugee camp in Pakistan, having fled the war in

Afghanistan. Two girls become friends when

each finds one sandal from a matching pair. They then decide to share the sandals by

taking turns wearing them. The story describes the girls' lives in the camp, with long

lines for water and the stressful wait for new homes and other resources. Eventually,

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Lina's family receives permission to emigrate to the United States to start a new life.

Feroza then gives the sandals to Lina, saying, "You cannot go barefoot to America."

As she is leaving, Lina gives the shoes back to Feroza, as Lina's mother has saved

money to buy her shoes. Feroza then gives Lina one sandal to keep, and said that "it is

good to remember." The generosity of these two girls also shows the glory of human

nature especially they are both struggling in a very hard time of time.

I chose this book because it also broadens the perspective across borders. In

my teaching context, learners tend to have a rather safe and stable place to live. Yet,

there are still numerous places that are still suffering from wars and dealing with the

issues of poverty and refugees. There is certainly physical and emotional

displacement in this book, which has often been “othered” geographically. Therefore,

if readers are left to contend with profound issues related to ethics and social justice,

they can rethink what it means to live and participate in a democratic society (Ghiso

& Campano, 2012). Frankly, we can read the news about migrants, refugees, and

wars, but people can still feel very distant if we didn’t actually have such an

experience. Yet, literature embedded with related stories can guide us to take on the

narrator’s perspective; this book doesn’t put emphasis on the darkness of humans and

the brutality of wars. Instead, it depicts the kindness and generosity of the two main

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characters, which again uncover the new lens and perspectives of viewing this type of

story.

11. A Different Pond by Bao Phi and Thi Bui

A Different Pond is a story about a son’s

fishing trip with his father. The author delivers a

powerful and real glimpse into a relationship

between father and son - and between cultures,

generations, the old and new perspectives of

viewing things. As a young boy, Bao and his

father awoke early, hours before his father's long workday began, to fish on the shores

of a small pond in Minneapolis. Bao and his father fished for food, not recreation,

which indicates the hardship of life they currently experience. The family relies on a

successful catch meant a fed family. When they are fishing, Bao's father told him

about a different pond in their homeland of Vietnam and he also wonder what life was

like, what the family and the culture were like in his father’s hometown, Vietnam.

This story includes the background of the family being refugees in America

due to the Vietnam War. The fact, the father is unable to speak about, is a powerful

force in the story because at times refugee status is not explicitly stated. Immigrants’

stories are often untold and henceforth, I regard this book as a good way to form

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Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

another perspective of the story of immigrants and more specifically, their life

changes and adjustment. I would like to further connect it to multiculturalism for this

book to guide readers to uncover ideologies of domination and resistance embedded

within the text (Yenika-Agbaw, 1997). Such domination is like the shadow that

blocks the light of new perspectives in literature and I believe literature and this book

serves as a good entry to uncover such domination and then add on new perspectives

of multicultural analysis.

Conclusion:

When picking the text set, I go through the book list and readings again and

again for fear that I might miss any book that can help answer my inquiry question.

But I guess there is no perfect text set of certain inquiry as literature is so dynamic,

flexible, and even organic. For me, teaching literature is about change; it is a way to

guide learners to consider the alternatives for themselves and the perspectives of

others. That’s why the word “perspective” resonates a lot when I generate my inquiry

question. I sincerely hope that by going through the readings above, learners can

understand the challenges and possibilities that exist as we switch perspectives and try

to view things from different angles.

Thank you, Dr. Whitelaw, for this wonderful wonderful learning journey:)

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Ching-Yi, Chang (Kimberly)

Book List Overview

Book Genre Perspective
1. The True Story of Three Picture book Counter story telling
Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka & Media literacy
Lane Smith
2. Piggybook by Anthony Picture book Counter story telling
Browne Gender
3. A Soldier’s Christmas by Poetry Occupation
Michael Marks
4. Voice of Freedom: Fannie Poetry The voice of the oppressed
Lou Hamer: Spirit of the Civil Biography
Rights Movement by Carole
Boston Weatherford
5. Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Picture book Illustration
Krouse Rosenthal. Art work
6. Flotsam by David Wiener Picture book Illustration
Generations
7. They All Saw A Cat by Picture book Illustration
Brendan Wenzel Perspective of different
character
8. Wonder directed by Stephen Novel Special needs
Chbosky and written by Jack School Culture and Family
Thorne, Steven Conrad, and * Different angels of
Chbosky. narration
9. George/ Melssa by Alex Novel Transgender
Gino
10. Four Feet, Two Sandals by Picture book Poverty
Karen Lynn Williams Emigrant
11. A different pond by Bao Phi Picture book Language
and Thi Bui Immigrant

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Reference:

Cooper, S. (2008). Unriddling the world. Horn Book Magazine, May/June 2008, pp.

271-281.

Crawley, S.A. (2017). Be who you are: Exploring representations of transgender

children in picturebooks. Journal of Children’s Literature, 43(2), 28-41.

Freire, P. (1987). The importance of the act of reading. In P. Freire & D. Macedo

(Eds.). Literacy: Reading the word and the world (pp. 5-11). South Hadley, MA:

Bergin & Garvey.

Ghiso, M.P., Campano. H.G. & Hall, T. (2012). Braided histories and experience in

literature for children and adolescents. Journal of Children’s Literature, 38 (2),

14-22.

Marche, S. (2012). How to Read a Racist Book to Your Kids. The New York Times.

McNair, J. C. (2003). "But 'The Five Chinese Brothers' is one of my favorite books!"

Conducting sociopolitical critiques of children's literature with preservice

teachers. Journal of Children's Literature, 29(1), 46-54.

Nieto, S. (1992). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural

education. Longman, 10 Bank Street, White Plains, NY 10606..

Nodelman, P. (1996). The pleasures of children's literature. Longman Publishing

Group.

Sipe, L.R. (1998). Learning the language of picturebooks. Journal of Children’s

Literature, 24 (2), 66-75.

Yenika-Agbaw, V. (1997). Taking children’s literature seriously: Reading for

pleasure and social change. Language Arts, 74, 446-453.

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