Picturebooks as Counter-Story to Challenge Childhood Erasure

Abstract

Children’s literature can be a form of counter-story to challenge the adultification of children from racialized groups. Many picturebooks fit the criteria of counter-narrative—a qualitative methodology that gives voice to those whose stories have been silenced. They are a material grounding of critical theory and childhood discourse. This paper is a critical content analysis of four picturebooks through a counter-story methodology lens and explores how their authors work to restore childhood to racialized children.

Author

• Dana Raine, University of Utah