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P A R T I :
Entering the World of Children’s Literature
books are so ubiquitous that a majority of parents surveyed in twenty-two states 
said these were the types of books they read to their preschool children on a regular 
basis (Warren, Prater, & Griswold, 1990). Books about Care Bears, Smurfs, and Star 
Wars were often named in the survey. 
There is no doubt these books are popular. Golden Press (publisher of Lit-
tle Golden Books) published five of the top eight books on the list of all-time 
best-selling children’s hardcover books (Roback, 2001). These best-sellers are 
The Poky Little Puppy (Lowrey), Tootle (Crampton), Pat the Bunny (Kunhardt), 
Saggy Baggy Elephant (Jackson & Jackson), and Scuffy the Tugboat (Crampton). 
Perhaps you remember reading these books as a child. They represent some of the 
better stories published by Golden Press. They do not have cartoon characters, 
and their purpose is to entertain rather than to sell something (other than books, 
of course). When I was a child, my mother bought these books at the grocery store 
for 25 cents. They cost much more now, but when you compare their format to 
that of a regular hardcover book, you can see the differences in quality. The edges 
of the cardboard cover are exposed, and the cover is stapled to the pages, rather 
than being sewn and attached by endpapers. More importantly, I hope you will 
notice the differences in the quality of story and illustrations as you begin to read 
the books introduced in this textbook. 
Why do these merchandise books sell so well? Perhaps it is because they are 
readily accessible; most families include someone who goes shopping each week. 
In addition, these books are relatively inexpensive—partly because of the way they 
are constructed, but also because of the mediocre quality of the content. There is no 
doubt they appeal to young children, especially when their characters are familiar 
faces from Saturday morning cartoon shows or the latest Disney movie. 
May (1980) provides a harsh criticism of Disney books. She believes that 
Disney’s greatest contributions to American popular culture lie in his use of total 
merchandising techniques to promote cute, stereotyped characters, his use of familiar 
children’s literature titles, and his misuse of those books’ plots, themes, and charac-
terization in order to create a product. (p. 213 )
My adult students often complain when I tell them they cannot use merchandise 
books for their assignments in my literature or reading courses. To help them under-
stand my reasoning, I use the following analogy. 
Imagine that when you were a young child, every evening after supper (or din-
ner, if you lived in the South), your parents gave you a chocolate cupcake with white 
frosting that they bought at the grocery store. It was delicious! Each evening you 
could hardly wait to finish your peas and carrots so you could get your cupcake. It 
was something you could count on 365 days a year, and you loved those chocolate 
cupcakes with white frosting. 
Now imagine that when you started school, you went to the cafeteria to get your 
lunch on the first day, and when you got your tray, you found spice cake for des-
sert. Every day there was something different. One day it was banana pudding and 
another day cherry pie. Once, when your class went on a field trip to the mall, you 
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