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The Caldecott Medal and Honor Books: 1938-1981

1981; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 6; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1353/chq.0.0408

1553-1201

Linda Kauffman Peterson,

Folklore, Mythology, and Literature Studies

The Caldecott Medal and Honor Books: 1938-1981* Linda Kauffman Peterson (bio) The Caldecott Medal, first awarded in 1938 by the American Library Association, remains the most prestigious commendation for illustrators of picture books in the United States. In the past forty-three years, numerous artists have been honored for their excellence in illustrating these books for children. Books of traditional literature, fantasy, biography, fiction, and poetry have found representation in the Caldecott Medal and Honor Book titles, and the artistic interpretations of these one hundred eight-six books are as varied as their literary types. These titles, when categorized by genre and decade, reveal some trends in the choices for the Medal and Honor Book recipients, and it is through this classification that the body of works will be discussed. The decades by which the literary types are classified correspond with those of the Newbery Medal and Honor Books and refer to the following time spans: Decade One, a partial decade, 1938-1941; Decade Two, 1942-1951; Decade Three, 1952-1961; Decade Four, 1962-1971; and Decade Five, 1972-1981. Traditional Literature Traditional literature, including the titles classified as Bible, folk tales, fairy tales, folk sayings, fables, legends, epics, hero stories, and Mother Goose and nursery rhymes, has remained constantly represented throughout the years of the Caldecott Medal, and in contrast to the Newbery list, this category remains one of the major areas of concentration throughout the decades. The first Caldecott Medal recipient in the category of traditional literature was Animals of the Bible (1938),1 also the first book to receive the Medal in 1938. The Bible, in the early two decades of the Caldecott, offered material suitable for young readers, but in latter decades remains represented only by the more secular One Wide River to Cross (1967) and Noah's Ark (1978). The bulk of titles classified under traditional literature are single Mother Goose rhymes or collections and folk tales from all corners of the world. The appeals of Mother Goose stories, the rhyme and rhythm, participation and narration, have continue to hold the attention of young audiences, and titles range from songs, in Sing Mother Goose (1946), to single rhymes, Three Jovial Huntsmen (1974), in addition to numerous collections interspersed throughout the years. The surge of folk tales in the last two decades of the Medal and Honor Books may indicate the concern for fostering early appreciation of cultures different from the backgrounds of the readers, as well as an increased interest in investigating the ancestry of diverse heritages. Though these folk tales originated in the oral form, they have been revived again and again, given new life through the breath of inventive artistic creations by the winners of the Medals. African (A Story, A Story, 1971) American (The Angry Moon, 1971), Armenian (One Fine Day, 1972), English (Tom Tit Tot, 1966), German (Snow-White, 1973), Italian (Strega Nona, 1976), Japanese (The Wave, 1965), Jewish (It Could Always Be Worse, 1979), Russian (The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship, 1969), and Scottish (Always Room for One More, 1966) titles attest to the international interdependence of the world of children's literature. Children are supplied now with greater opportunities and materials which enable them to look beyond themselves and away from the sheltered world represented in earlier books for children. The trends in the traditional literature of the Caldecott titles, as with the works in all of children's literature, appear to be away from the didacticism of early books for children, and the Medal, through its recipients, has fostered and encouraged the child reader to broaden his or her understanding of other peoples through their literature. Fantasy Fantasy remains represented throughout all five decades of the Caldecott Medal, but the occurrence of fantasy in the second, third, and fourth decades is most frequent. Except for a few titles, this genre takes the form of animal fantasy; from lions, monkeys, and bears, to dogs, cats, rabbits, and mice, the characters of animal fantasy range. Even a few "wild things" and imaginary creatures make appearances in this [End Page 28] category. The affinity small children have for animals of all sorts no doubt accounts for the...