Be it personalised gifts, personalised cosmetics services or personalised shopping recommendations, we have become the centre of the products we use like never before. And the trend is now more and more…
The probability of a frog turning into a prince is small. So small, in fact, that Richard Dawkins recently spoke out against the story and others like it, asserting that we promote supernaturalism by telling…
Over the past few months children’s fiction has hardly been out of the news. Early March saw the launch of the “Let Books be Books” campaign, aimed at persuading publishers against titling or packaging…
It may seem a little strange to some, but currently there are two rival Jungle Book films planned. Idris Elba is to voice Shere Khan in a Disney remake, potentially along with Scarlett Johansson and Lupita…
A furious debate has been raging for some years now between adults. Are you a Kindle lover or a devotee of the good, old-fashioned book? As the e-book spreads into children’s publishing, some look in terror…
What deadly affront would cause a group of conservative booksellers – and a rather attractive golden retriever – to protest by doffing their duds to pose in the buff? The cause was the savaging of a children’s…
Downing Street has withheld the publication of a cross-governmental report on immigration impact. Home Secretary Theresa May has repeatedly cited research by the Migration Advisory Committee that found…
Fantasy is a genre of literature that tends to polarise people. The oft-repeated logic is that “serious” readers prefer realism while fantasy caters primarily to children or those who view reading as a…
What makes a children’s book compelling? Is it a driving, action-centred plot that forces us to turn the page? Is it a puzzle that we solve from clues thrown down by the narrator – or is it a story that…
Kerry Mallan, Queensland University of Technology; Amy Schoonens, Queensland University of Technology, and Cherie Allan, Queensland University of Technology
Australia’s relationship with Asia has always been a focus for heated debate and, often, misunderstanding. What role do books play in moulding this relationship? A research project underway at the Queensland…