Choice 评论

Ferrall and Jackson (both, Victoria Univ., Wellington, New Zealand) examine an impressive number of British novels and newspapers produced for juveniles between 1850 and 1950, looking at how gender is represented in works before and after WW I. The chapters alternate between boys' and girls' literature. The authors observe that in boys' stories written before the war, male sexuality was sublimated into "blind patriotism and the glorification of death in battle," whereas in girls' stories, adolescence was a continuation of childhood, marked by a sexual innocence that defined their gender. Girls' stories written before the war represented girls as having some independence, but only within the juvenile girl culture, which they would leave on becoming adults. Between the two world wars, boys' fiction was characterized by a marked absence of rhetoric tying blind sacrifice to masculinity, whereas girls' fiction put a greater emphasis on romantic relationships as the core of their being. Those interested in learning about literature and youth will value this addition to study of children's literature. The focus on British youth may limit its appeal in the US. Summing Up: Recommended. With reservations. Upper-division undergraduate through faculty. J. M. Pulliam Louisiana State University