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Gendered Reading

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Boys Who Boo Books. Shannon Hale had a great piece about gender and books in the Washington Post, and it had me thinking about something happening in my K-4 school library this week . . .

Boys Who Boo Books

The Scholastic book fair is an annual event in my school. Every year they send an author video so kids can find out about the books in the book fair and the authors and illustrators who made them. My first year when I showed this video, something happened that I didn’t expect – kids booed the books they didn’t like. More accurately, some of the boys booed books that featured girl characters or topics they considered “un-boylike”. I was furious. I decided I should talk with students beforehand – address the issue before it became an issue. So with the next class I talked with students about how we treat each other, and I looked every student in the eye and told them that whatever they like to read is okay.

And it felt good, but more importantly it helped. What are we teaching boys when we discourage them from reading books about girls? I am on book tour for the latest installment in the chapter book series “The Princess in Black.”

What are we teaching boys when we discourage them from reading books about girls?

A woman asks, “So when are you going to write a series like this for boys?” I say, “These books are for boys. And girls. For anyone who likes to read about a monster-battling hero.” The woman looks skeptical. (First Second) I publish the graphic novel “Real Friends,” an autobiographical story of my elementary school friendships. A school librarian introduces me before I give an assembly. At a book signing, a mother looks sadly at my books. A little boy points to one of my books and exclaims, “I want that one!” I have published 30­ books over the past 15 years, and I have heard all this and much more in every one of the 40-plus states I have toured. Don’t divide by gender. Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls, and its more recent male equivalent Stories for Boys Who Dare to Be Different, are among a clutch of bestselling children’s books that supposedly break down gender stereotypes.

Don’t divide by gender

By sharing tales of inspirational women and men who succeeded against the prevailing stereotypes of their time, these books aim to challenge ideas about what it means to be a boy or a girl. But could they actually be reinforcing the problem? While the content of the books – stories of groundbreaking women, or men unafraid to express emotion – is welcome, and no doubt will inspire many children, the use of the words “for girls” and “for boys” in the titles discourages others from reading them.

It’s great to see the achievements of women such as Ada Lovelace celebrated, but why suggest that only girls should be interested in her? However useful the content matter, the branding clearly separates boys and girls into different readership groups. . … we have a small favour to ask. But That’s a Girl Book! The more Joseph McIntyre, Ed.M.'10, Ed.D.'17, read to his baby daughter, the more he realized that most of the books were about boys — to the point that he began to switch the genders of main characters.

But That’s a Girl Book!

“It made me wonder how things looked in children’s literature as a whole,” he says. While a student in the doctoral program, McIntyre began analyzing existing research. Previous studies found ratios of male-to-female central characters in picture books of 1.5:1 to 2:1. However, he realized these studies had treated all books in their samples equally. As he continued his doctoral research, which eventually became his dissertation, he says, “I thought there was room for a new perspective” that took into account the popularity of books. He was right. “That means that almost four out of every five books that kids read have male central characters,” he says. McIntyre wanted to take the study one step further and see who was actually reading what. Illustration by Simone Massoni.

Gender equality in teens’ books. It's March 1st!

Gender equality in teens’ books

We're celebrating Women's History month with 31 days of posts focused on improving the climate for social and gender equality in the children’s and teens’ industry. Join in the conversation here or Twitter #kidlitwomen Kicking off our month is the awesome Shannon Hale, the best selling author of 25 books for children and young adults, who shares the following words: I was presenting an assembly for kids grades 3-8 while on book tour for the third PRINCESS ACADEMY book. Me: "So many teachers have told me the same thing. Me: "'And the boys said—" I gesture and wait. How Disney Stereotypes Hurt Men.

Gendered reading and audiobooks. Reading Along the Gender Continuum.