Fortnight Publications Ltd.

Look Left Look Right! Children's Books for ChristmasReview by: S. MolloyFortnight, No. 159 (Dec., 1977 - Jan., 1978), p. 26Published by: Fortnight Publications Ltd.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25546496 .

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26/Fortnight

LOOK LEFT LOOK RIGHT! CHILDREN'S BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS

If it's not already too late, before you invade

your friendly local children's bookshop

seeking Christmas presents, be warned!

Quite unintentionally you may be stepping into a minefield of sexism, racism and right

wing ideology. Earlier this year Pluto Press

published a two volume critique of child

ren's literature.

Catching Them Young by Bob Dixon

(?1.80 per volume) deals mostly with the

books we read as children, the 'old fav

ourites' and the so called classics. Enid

Blyton emerges as a right villain, guilty of

both racism (remember the nasty golliwogs who stole Noddy's little car and left him

naked in the dark wood?) and sexism

(remember how George, the adventurous

girl in the Famous Five series, had to pretend to be a boy to have any fun?)

The revealing searchlight is also turned on

Eustacia Goes to the Chalet School (pretty dull lower upper middle class stuff really), on

the jingoism of Biggies and on the sex

stereotyping common in most comics and

fairy tales.

Once your eyes have been opened to all this you could of course declare a mor atorium on Christmas or on literacy altogether. Alternatively you could play it

safe, absolve your guilt with book tokens, and let the kids pollute their own tiny minds

with CIA-inspired bionic annuals. In the last resort there is always the possibility of com

promise. Many of the traditional favourites are being reissued with excellent illustrations by Erol le Cain or Jan

Pienkowski. Tell yourself that good art

equals culture, and that culture and fascism are incimpatible. On this basis the following titles merit attention.

Benjamin and Tulip by Rosemary Wells

(Kestrel ?1.50 hardback) is an amusing short

story with illustrations, for 3-5 year olds.

Since anthropomorphising human per versions onto the animal world seems to be an occupational hazard for children's

writers, this author has attempted to

introduce a feminist perspective by having Tulip, a female racoon, as the aggressor.

Some other interesting titles for the

younger age group are; Arrow to the Sun by Gerald McDermott(Kestrel ?2.95), a

brilliantly coloured interpretation of a Pueblo

Indian tale, and Inter-City by Charles

Keeping(Oxford ?2.95), an all picture booki

presenting alternately the views framed by a

railway carriage window and some of the antics of the passengers. Op art, or rather

optical illusion, forms the basis for the magic worked by Woo The Wizard of Op by Ed Emberly(Dent ?1.95). Works best for kids

with 20/20vision.

Lastly, a new dimension for a character

who appeals to all ages, Asterix, the

perennial little anti-imperialist hero, is now

available as a push-out/stand-up figure in a

series of titles published by Gemini Scan.

Each book includes Asterix and Co together with a model of a Gaulish village, a Roman fort or Cleopatra's barge, and war game instructions.

S.Molloy

Big Red Diary m^

1978JW

Tit p^mcs rtfe*

BIG RED DIARY 1978 (Pluto Press, ?150)

i

Having someone like me at the Christmas table makes a bit of a nonsense of the seasonal festivities. This is because I'm a

vegetarian. The sight of one of the celebrants munching a cheese sandwich

while everyone else devours the unfortunate fowl has been known to confuse the most

hospitable of hostesses. Food has religious and cultural

significances. It also has political uses and

effects, in its production, processing, sale and consumption.

The 1978 Big Red Diary is about the politics of food. It's about 472x6 inches, looking more

like( an undernourished

paperback, but the day entries are decorated with illustrations and little paragraphs on the theme. There's also a workmanlike 9-part introduction, all in a distinctly socialist vein.

The intro is hard to read as it's in small type and brown ink. Otherwise it's illuminating, disturbing and useful.

This diary has convenient space for each

day, and would fit most jacket pockets or

handbags. One of the FORTNIGHT workers, a person of strong socialist proclivities, is never seen without her 1977 Big Red Diary (which was about Law and Disorder). She's

always punctual and well organised. What more recommendation do you need, all

youse pinko food freaks?

Robert Johnstone

?1 WAS TO TAK? TH? LiTTLE BOYS TO SAFaTTY. BUT . ^^^f^mm]mmmm' . ..^*. ^^fr^^Sf ^^^H

77ns picture is extracted from a 1969 issue of the children's magazine "June and School Friend". The rubric sets the general background and it is clear that the reader is invited to identify with the sympathetic nurse and brave captain. We need not enquire too closely about the President of Santa Rica, but note that one of the rebels looks exactly like Fidel Castro.

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