Children are the future architects, clients and users of our buildings. The kinds of architectural worlds they are exposed to in picture books during their formative years may be assumed to influence how they regard such architecture as adults. Contemporary urban environments the world over represent the various stages of modernism in architecture. This book reads that history through picturebooks and considers the kinds of national identities and histories they construct. 12 specialist essays from international scholars address questions such as: Is modern architecture used to construct specific narratives of childhood? Is it taken to support 'negative' narratives of alienation, on the one hand, and 'positive' narratives of happiness, on the other? Do images of modern architecture support ideas of 'community'? reinforce 'family values'? If so, what kinds of architecture, community and family? How is modern architecture placed vis-a-vis the promotion of diversity (ethnic, religious, gender etc.)? How might the use of architecture in comic strips or the presence of specific kinds of building in fiction aimed at younger adults be related to the groundwork laid in picturebooks for younger readers? This book reveals what stories are told about modern architecture and shows how those stories affect future attitudes towards and expectations of the built environment.

Children are the future architects, clients and users of our buildings. The kinds of architectural worlds they are exposed to in picture books during their formative years may be assumed to influence how they regard such architecture as adults. Contemporary urban environments the world over represent the various stages of modernism in architecture. This book reads that history through picturebooks and considers the kinds of national identities and histories they construct. 12 specialist essays from international scholars address questions such as: Is modern architecture used to construct specific narratives of childhood? Is it taken to support 'negative' narratives of alienation, on the one hand, and 'positive' narratives of happiness, on the other? Do images of modern architecture support ideas of 'community'? reinforce 'family values'? If so, what kinds of architecture, community and family? How is modern architecture placed vis-a-vis the promotion of diversity (ethnic, religious, gender etc.)? How might the use of architecture in comic strips or the presence of specific kinds of building in fiction aimed at younger adults be related to the groundwork laid in picturebooks for younger readers? This book reveals what stories are told about modern architecture and shows how those stories affect future attitudes towards and expectations of the built environment.

Known to her contemporaries as a fervent advocate of reform on social, economic, and religious fronts, designated an "optimist reformer" by William Dean Howells, Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) today is celebrated more as a writer of novels and short stories, particularly Herland and The Yellow Wallpaper, than as the author of the many social and political essays that originally made her so prominent. The essayists in this spirited volume return to Gilman's primary focus by reminding us that the main purpose of her writing was reform.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Optimist Reformer looks at Gilman's legacy for women at the end of the twentieth century; in doing so its contributors reassess both her reformist ideas and our own views on fin de siecle feminism. Gilman scholarship has indeed moved on from the much needed recovery of her work to more critical treatments that allow us to acknowledge elements now regarded as unacceptable. As a result, the essayists here reappraise Gilman and her writings in ways that directly address hithertofore overlooked points, such as her racism, her almost willful disregard of issues of class, and her broadly essentialist view of women.

The effect of this collection is thus twofold: Gilman and her works are both reassessed in light of current feminist thought and presented in the context of her own time. A constant theme is the recognition of her unwavering belief that things could be changed for the better; it is this persistent optimism that made her such a forceful voice for reform. Thus the essayists demonstrate that engagement with Gilman's reformist views is still pertinent for feminist debate today.