Children’s literature has always had the power to amaze, amuse and inspire. These fantasy lands, however, have for far too long been ruled by archaic tropes of gender roles and conformity. Why can’t the princess be the one who saves the prince? Or better yet, realise her own potential as an individual, and find her happiness not in gowns and diamonds, but friends and her own self? Being graceful really isn’t all there is to one’s life.
Feminist children’s literature also opens up a whole new world, not just for children but for adults alike. They dare you to dream beyond the established and accepted. They tell you to be messy, be creative and have fun. Imagine a world of equality and free-thinking, where there is a whole lot of love to go around, and pass this world down to your children. Here is a list of some books which foster these very ideals.
From the Stars in the Sky to the Fish in the Sea by Kai Cheng Thom
Once upon a time when the moon and the sun were both in the sky, a child was born, who couldn’t decide what they wanted to be. And so, they choose to be everything. Miu Lan, a magical gender variant child changes their tune everyday to sometimes be a boy, sometimes a girl, sometimes a peacock and sometimes even a tree. And through their ever-changing feathers, wings and fur, their mother loved them fiercely, always lulling them to sleep with the refrain, ‘whatever you dream / I believe you can be / from the stars in the sky to the fish in the sea.’
Defying binaries, Miu Lan was never able to understand why anyone would want to be just one thing. Kai Cheng Thom navigates themes of identity formation and acceptance, as she beautifully and vividly imagines the courage of the child, who transforms and brings change to the world around them. Thom tells the story of confusion, anger and pain felt by gender fluid individuals as they seek love, strength and comfort. Set against a bespeckled sky, Thom’s gentle and fantastical narration, along with mesmerising illustrations, assures us that even our world can be enchanted, if only we choose to be accepting of the beauty found in being who we are.
The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch
Caught in the trope of a fairytale love, Princess Elizabeth can’t wait to marry Prince Ronald, until evil strikes and a dragon with fiery breath and phenomenal strength burns down the princess’ castle and kidnaps the beloved prince. Forsaking all for true love, so begins her journey to rescue her prince and bring him home. She dawns a mighty paper bag as her chosen shining suit of armour and outwits the mighty dragon, cleverly defeating him.
The story takes a final twist as her perfectly snobbish prince reprimands her for not looking like a ‘real’ princess, dressed in finery. And so she does what any self-respecting princess would do — she calls him a bum and leaves him of her own accord. Munsch’s language playfully yet powerfully explores themes of gender roles and stereotypes, and subverts and challenges the traditional norms of beauty. Princess Elizabeth presents an alternate reality of fairytales, where the princess lives happily ever after without her half-wit Prince, whom she perhaps never needed in the first place.
Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty
When the moon sits high up in the sky, Rosie’s mind churns and yearns to create gizmos and gadgets. Her efforts, often ridiculed as being trash (who wants helium pants anyway?) are shunned, but only until she stuns her Great-Great-Aunt Rose. All Aunt Rose ever wanted to do was fly but she failed all her tries. So little Rosie takes it upon herself to dream of making Aunt Rose straddle the sky. Losing hope in herself, when her invention fails and crashes, little Rosie only decided to remain undeterred when Great-Great-Aunt Rose laughed and said, ‘the only true failure can come if you quit.’
So little Rosie proves to her friends that you can be anything you want to be, as long as you have a little faith in yourself. Besides, Rosie proves that believing in one’s dreams will most definitely lead to a whole lot of fun. The figure of Aunt Rose is based on Rose the Riveter, whose poster ‘We Can Do It!’ represented women who worked in factories during World War II. Drawing inspiration from the undefeated and headstrong woman of the poster, Beaty presents the unconventional and fearless person, who believes they can be whatever they wish to be, no matter what others may say.
Text Devyani Verma
Date 25-02-2021
