From Picture to Chapter Books: Literary Portrayals, African American Girls, and the Textual Subtleties of “Growing Up”

• In Event: Roundtable Session 22
  In Roundtable Session: Identity Construction Through Texts

Abstract

This presentation shares findings from research that examined sixteen picture, transitional and chapter books about the lives of African American girls. Minimal scholarship about African American narratives has occurred to examine the developmental depictions of race and gender across storylines. The lens of Black feminism undergirded this study. Content analysis was the main analytic tool used since it allows for the systematic interpretation of non-numerical data. The following a priori codes were applied to the data: (1) female relationships, (2) agency/reliance, and (3) physical appearance. These codes have long standing significance in the children’s literary canon about Black life. Overall, findings suggest that the gender performances of the protagonists do not fit easily into normative understandings of gender.

Author

• Wanda M. Brooks, Temple University