This book draws on original material and approaches from the developing fields of the history of emotions and childhood studies and brings together scholars from history, literature and cultural studies, to reappraise how the early modern world reacted to the deaths of children. Child death was the great equaliser of the early modern period, affecting people of all ages and conditions. It is well recognised that the deaths of children struck at the heart of early modern families, yet less known is the variety of ways that not only parents, but siblings, communities and even nations, responded to childhood death. The contributors to this volume ask what emotional responses to child death tell us about childhood and the place of children in society. Placing children and their voices at the heart of this investigation, they track how emotional norms, values, and practices shifted across the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries through different religious, legal and national traditions. This collection demonstrates that child death was not just a family matter, but integral to how communities and societies defined themselves. Chapter 5 of this book is available open access under a CC BY 4.0 license at link.springer.com.

Kimberley Reynolds and Nicola Humble here provide a radical revision of Victorian constructions of femininity. Using a wide range of textual examples (including children's literature, sensations fiction, diaries, and autobiography) as well as visual illustrations, Victorian Heroines offers a new look at the representation of women and sexuality in nineteenth-century literature and painting.

Arguing against the conventional dyadic model that interprets Victorian fiction in terms of a rigid distinction between the good and bad, the sexual and asexual woman, the authors suggest a more complex paradigm, simultaneously concealing and revealing contradictory attitudes to Victorian womanhood.

The book explores the highly erotic fantasy elements frequently found in widely disseminated orthodox female images, and effectively demonstrates how both male and female writers used similar techniques to subvert this orthodoxy. Drawing on contemporary critical and cultural theories, "Victorian Heroines" is a lucid and accessible analysis of the depiction of women during this period, challenging the prevalent views of recent decades.

This beautifully illustrated story is an adaptation of the Welsh legend of Cantre'r Gwaelod, the lost area of Wales which disappeared beneath the sea. This drowned land was once a pleasant and prosperous kingdom, its low-lying fields protected from the waves by a high sea wall. But only Mererid, the storm child, knows that the tide-gates are failing and the next storm will breach the wall. As clouds and ravens gather overhead, she must race to save her friends and the kingdom before it's too late... TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the world's best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

The gods have power to transform people into whatever they want in these ancient myths. What will happen when Arachne challenges a goddess to a spinning competition? Talkative Echo is doomed to a life of silence, only able to repeat what others say. Narcissus's good looks get the better of him when he catches sight of his reflection. Baucis and Philemon long to live together forever will the god Jupiter make this happen? The ancient world is brought to life in these vibrant tales. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Peter knows he shouldn't go out of the house alone: his grandfather has told him of the dangers. But children are curious, and don't always do what they are told. Along with his friends the duck, the bird and the cat, Peter ventures out into the snow and encounters a terrifying wolf. He'll need all his courage and brains to make it back in one piece. With haunting illustrations and an explanation of its musical origins, this story will captivate its readers. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Sebastian and Viola cause all sorts of trouble when they switch places in the romantic comedy Twelfth Night. Learn the history of the most famous Roman emperor of all when you enter Julius Caesar's world of treachery and murder. Leontes' jealousy loses him his family and his mind. Can he find his way out of the darkness in The Winter's Tale? Shakespeare Stories allows children to discover the delights of the Bard in these three prose retellings. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

If a shard of the magic mirror enters your eye, you become a servant of the cold-hearted Snow Queen, doomed to a life of ice and snow. At least, that's what the storybook says ... and surely it can't be true? But when her best friend Kai disappears without a trace, Gerda begins to suspect that this mysterious Snow Queen might be to blame. Travelling through the seasons to find him, will Gerda be able to discover the truth and can her warm heart keep her safe in the frozen north? TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

When a father can't decide who should wed his daughter, Jacob makes a dangerous pact to ensure that he can marry Gretchen. Should a father have a favourite child? An African dilemma puts the question another way. A wise judge concocts a plan to reveal who really is guilty in a tale from China. This varied collection from around the word is complemented with fabulous illustrations which children will love. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening. This pack contains six books, one of each of the following titles:Mischief Makers, A Christmas Carol, Who Needs Stories?, Decisions, Decisions, Changing Shape and Peter and the Wolf.

Children's literature takes many forms - works adapted for children in antiquity, picture books and pop-ups - and now includes the latest online games and eBooks. This vast and amorphous subject is both intimately related to other areas of literary and cultural investigation but also has its own set of concerns, issues and challenges. From familiar authors including Beatrix Potter and Roald Dahl, classic books such as Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, and The Secret Garden, to modern works including Harry Potter and the Twilight series, thisVery Short Introduction provides an overview of the history of children's literature as it has developed in English, whilst at the same time introducing key debates, developments, and figures in the field. Raising questions about what shape the future of literature for children should take, and exploring the crossover with adult fiction, Reynolds shows that writing for children - whether on page or screen - has participated in shaping and directing ideas about culture, society and childhood. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Ebenezer Scrooge can't stand Christmas; he thinks it is all a waste of time. All he cares about is working hard and making money. But some ghostly visitors make him look again at his cold, lonely life. Can he change his ways and embrace the festive spirit before it is too late? Charles Dickens's Victorian story is wonderfully adapted with haunting illustrations which bring even the ghosts to life. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

When Phileas Fogg takes on the challenge to travel around the world in eighty days, he knows that it's a tall order. Little does he know what is waiting for him along the way ... Accompanied by his servant Passepartout, he sets out on the journey of a lifetime. But with a deluded policeman in hot pursuit, and an Indian princess to rescue, how can the dashing Phileas possibly make it back to London in time? TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Children can dream of what it is like to fly in this reworking of Ovid's classic myth, told through the eyes of servant girl Amara. When Daedalus the inventor and his son Icarus are imprisoned by King Minos, escape looks impossible. But with his ingenious talent Daedalus manages to construct wings, enabling the pair to take on the form of birds. Tragedy strikes when Icarus fails to listen to his father's instructions, and the invention that should be his saviour proves to be the opposite. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Three classic English fairy tales from the collection of Joseph Jacobs, beautifully retold and illustrated. Twelve princesses share a love of dancing, to their father's despair. Will anyone be able to uncover their secret night-time escapades? Sisters may be related, but they certainly aren't always alike; Drusilla and Isidora are like chalk and cheese, and receive very different enchantments in the story Diamonds and Toads. Snow White and Rose Red tells of two sisters whose beloved bear turns out to be something quite different ... TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Rip Van Winkle is a kind man with a grumpy wife! One afternoon, he meets a group of old-fashioned men high in the Catskill mountains, and tries an unusual drink which sends him straight to sleep ... When he awakes, Rip has grown a long beard but that isn't the only thing to have changed. What else will he discover when he returns home? Washington Irving's classic story about the man who falls asleep for twenty years will enchant a new generation of readers in this fabulously illustrated retelling. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Elizabeth Laird retells a beautiful set of folk stories from East Africa and the Middle East. These stories in this collection have travelled across countries, survived through centuries, been retold by generations and have found their way into this book. They are stories of tricks and jokes, leopards and goats, heroes and fools, sorrows and joys - each one of them a perfectly formed gem. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the world's best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening. This pack provides 6 copies of the same title.

When a duke's daughter is kidnapped, King Arthur sails across the sea to take on the terrifying giant who lives on Mont-Saint-Michel. When a farmer and his wife wish for a son, they don't expect him to be thumb-sized, but Tom Thumb makes up for his height with his enormous character. A charmingly illustrated retelling of two folk stories set in the time of King Arthur: one about a giant as big as a mountain, and the other about a boy as small as your thumb. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

What are stories for? Well, let the storyteller show you ... the North Wind and the Sun compete to find out who is better, proving that kindness is better than anger. Can a crocodile and a monkey help solve an argument between friends? Allow children to escape into another world and discover the power of stories for themselves. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Henry Fleming just wants to be a hero. So when he gets the chance to fight in the American Civil War he signs up right away. But out on the battlefield it's a long way from home, and the reality of war is not as romantic as he thought. When you're doomed if you fight and doomed if you run, what's a man to do? Henry doesn't want to be a coward, but sometimes courage is the hardest thing to find. Follow him on his journey of discovery, where the boundaries of right and wrong are not so easy to see. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Bukolla is a very beautiful brown cow, so when she goes missing Frida cannot return home without her. But up in the mountains, she discovers that Bukolla isn't only good for making milk ... Can this clever beast use her magical powers to outwit a pair of devious trolls? Children will fall in love with this story with its engaging rhymes and vivid illustrations. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Thumbelina may only be the size of a thumb, but she is brimful of kindness and good nature. Stolen away in the middle of the night, she is forced to take refuge wherever she can find it. Slimy toads, mice and moles all offer her shelter, but it isn't always comfortable. Will she ever find a place that she can truly call her home? Enchanting storytelling and illustrations capture the magic of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

Egill and Thorolfur are brothers who don't see eye to eye. Egill is angry and tough, whilst Thorolfur is pleasant and cheerful. But the two make an unlikely bond when they fight together on a Viking raid. Hallgerdur and Gunnar may be husband and wife, but he is a man of tradition and honour, whereas she will use devious methods to get what she needs. Their differences have disastrous consequences. Then there is Olafur Peacock, who prefers to enjoy brief honour than to live a long life in shame. Taken from Icelandic sagas, these ancient stories conjure up powerful characters from the fierce, cold north. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening. This pack contains 36 books, six of each of the following titles: Mischief Makers, A Christmas Carol, Who Needs Stories?, Decisions, Decisions, Changing Shape and Peter and the Wolf.

In Grimms' fairy tales, things are not always as they seem ... An evil stepmother casts one spell too many in Little Brother and Little Sister. Can the Goose Girl prove her royal heritage and claim her husband? Of three sons, only one truly loves his father, but he must struggle to prove his loyalty in The Water of Life. A king promises his children to animals of the wild but is there more to these creatures than meets the eye? These four fairy tales and their stunning illustrations will capture and enchant children's imaginations. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.

The peaceful town of Hamelin is overrun with rats: they are raiding larders, hiding in cupboards, sneaking into bed linen and driving the locals to despair. Desperate for help, they turn to the mysterious Pied Piper who promises a solution. But when the Piper falls out with the mayor, he takes away more than the townspeople ever expected. A wonderfully vivid interpretation of the story, which tackles trust, pride and revenge. TreeTops Greatest Stories offers children some of the worlds best-loved tales in a collection of timeless classics. Top children's authors and talented illustrators work together to bring to life our literary heritage for a new generation, engaging and delighting children. The books are carefully levelled, making it easy to match every child to the right book. Each book contains inside cover notes to help children explore the content, supporting their reading development. Teaching notes on Oxford Owl offer cross-curricular links and activities to support guided reading, writing, speaking and listening.