‘Realism’ or ‘social realism’ in children’s books refers to the use of themes and characters close to preoccupations in contemporary life and events which could happen. These cover almost every topic including sensitive ones like teenage pregnancy, drugs, assault, terminal illness and abandoned children. Peter Hunt traces the ‘realism or fantasy’ debate to the 1970s when the ‘teenager’ became a ‘distinct cultural category’ (Hunt, 1995, p. 298). Of course there were ‘realistic’ novels for young people before this – Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye (1951) and Paul Zindel’s bleak novel about children betraying their elderly friend – The Pigman (1968).
But what about social realism in books for primary aged children? The book that stands out as an early example of ‘social realism’ for the young is Eve Garnett’s The Family from One-End Street (1937). Children still find it highly entertaining but some have felt it patronised people from a particular social group. By the late 1970s there was much debate about whether social criteria as well as literacy criteria should be used to judge books for children. On the one hand some critics felt concern about sexual, racial or social bias in books for the young while on the other hand others feared this could lead to both censorship and recipe-written books portraying the world as it ought to be rather than as it is. I think it is also a question of looking at the whole book collection in a school library and checking that as a whole there are not too many books about children with nannies and ponies and too few reflecting children from different social groups and communities. This debate is taken up in the chapter on ‘Contemporary children’s literature’ in Hunt (1995).
Perhaps the emphasis in Nina Bawden’s books puts the raw side of life in perspective: social problems arising from divorce, cruelty and poverty are explored but these elements are firmly embedded in a fully realised story. So we have a theme of loneliness in a young child in Squib (1971) and how other children respond to it. Older primary children enjoy her book The Peppermint Pig (1975) which is about an Edwardian family left to cope without the father when he seeks his fortune in America. The story centres on a year in the life of Poll, the youngest of the four Greengrass children. The year in question is also the life span of the piglet, Johnnie, who becomes a pet but meets his end, as pigs tend to, when the year finishes. The story is about a child becoming able to cope with the sad aspects of life. In another of her books, Carrie’s War (1973), events and characters – neither of which are shown in a ‘cosy’ way – are seen very much from the point of view of two young evacuees.
Philippa Pearce tackles the tension between what children want and what their parents find acceptable with a touch of humour in her book The Battle of Bubble and Squeak (1978). Two pet gerbils stretch the mother’s patience to the limits. Another pet story is A Dog So Small (1962) in which Ben longs for a dog – but when dreams come true there is often a price to pay. The book also explores the impact of broken promises by people a child trusts.
Gene Kemp’s book The Turbulent Term of Tyke Tiler (1977) is a humorous school story with a surprising end but as one perceptive ten year old told me ‘it is really about friendship and Tyke really caring about Danny and his learning difficulties’. Jan Mark’s is another distinctive voice in ‘realism’ for older primary children and her books appeal to boys in particular. Thunder and Lightnings (1976) is also about a friendship – between middle class Andrew and the less advantaged Victor. As John Rowe Townsend points out – although we hear things from Andrew’s viewpoint, ‘the book is more about Victor, who is supposed to be backward but who has hidden depths’ (Rowe Townsend, 1995, p. 264). Janni Howker has been writing stories about the North of England since the beginning of the 1980s. Older primary children enjoy the five short stories in Badger on the Barge (1984) which are partly about relationships between the old and the young.
What about books reflecting our diverse multicultural society and what it might be like to join it? For help here I suggest you look at the fiction sections, which are age range presented, in A Multicultural Guide to Children’s Books edited by Rosemary Stones.
Lisa Bruce’s series of books about Jazeera and her family whose roots are in India are sometimes set in London – Jazeera’s Journey (1993) and Nani’s Holiday (1994) – and sometimes in India Jazeera in the Sun (1995) – is enjoyed by independent readers of about eight to ten but can be read out loud to younger children. A favourite collection of short stories, again about the impact of Indian culture in Britain, is Grandpa Chatterji by Jamila Gavin – for children from about five to eight years.
Mary Hoffman’s picture books about Grace, Amazing Grace (1991) and Grace and her Family (1995) some of whose family are still living in the Gambia, have a life-enhancing message – that you can achieve things if you really set your mind to it. In Grace and her Family Grace has to take on a new culture and cope with her ambivalent feelings about her father’s new family. The best books are not recipe written and they share profound things about human nature that transcend class, gender and ethnicity. As we move through the twenty-first century, children seem to prefer fantasy – the work of writers like Roald Dahl, R.L. Stine and J.K. Rowling and, for boys, adventure stories like those of Charlie Higson and Anthony Horowitz. But there will always be a place for those short stories and novels which we term ‘realistic’, the best of which take on those human issues that matter to children.
Hunt, P. (ed.) (1995) Children’s Literature: An Illustrated History Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Hunt, P. (ed.) (2004, second edition) International Companion Encyclopedia Abingdon: Routledge, Vol. 1, chapters 34, 35 and 38.
Stones, Rosemary (ed.) (1999) A Multicultural Guide to Children’s Books 0–16+ London and Reading University: Books for Keeps with The Reading and Language Information Centre.
Townsend, John Rowe (1995) Written for Children London: The Bodley Head.
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