The Center for Children's Books
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Guide to Research

Professional Organizations

American Library Association (ALA)

State Library Associations

For a complete list of websites for every state's library organization, visit ALA.

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General Listservs
  1. CCBC-NET - Cooperative Children's Books Center

    "Encouraging awareness and discussion of ideas and issues critical to literature for children and young adults. CCBC-Net members explore a wide range of topics in contemporary literature for youth, including multicultural literature, translated books, outstanding, and award-winning books, equity themes and topics, the book arts and book publishing, and more."

  2. CHILD_LIT - Children's Literature

    "Engaging and often spirited discussion of topics related to the theory and criticism of literature for young people"

  3. PUBYAC - PUBlic libraries, Young Adults, and Children

    "Concerned with the practical aspects of Children and Young Adult Services in Public Libraries, focusing on programming ideas, outreach and literacy programs for children and caregivers, censorship and policy issues, collection development, administrative considerations, puppetry, job openings, professional development and other pertinent services and issues."

  4. YALSA-BK - Young Adult Library Services Association

    "Discuss specific titles, as well as other issues concerning young adult reading and young adult literature."

  5. GNLIB-L - Graphic Novels in Libraries

    "Young Adult and Adult Librarians share reviews and resources for collection development of their graphic or comic novel section ."

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Listservs for School Librarians
  1. LM_NET - LM_Net

    "Focuses on topics of interest to the school library media community, including the latest on school library media services, operations, and activities. It is a group for practitioners helping practitioners, sharing ideas, solving problems, telling each other about new publications and up-coming conferences, asking for assistance or information, and linking schools through their library media centers."

  2. ISLMANET-L - Illinois School Library Media Association

    "School library media specialists and others interested in what's happening in school library media programs in Illinois come together over the Internet to share ideas, resources, problems, and solutions."

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Locating Resources for Research in Children's and Young Adult Literature

Contents:

Reader's Advisory Sources
Resources to Help with GSLIS Courses
Catalogs
Review Journals
Finding Book Reviews
Information about Authors and Illustrators
Academic Journals
Professional Journals - General
Professional Journals - School Specific
On-line databases
Rare Books
Reading Guides
Folk/Fairy Tales
Criticism
How-to Storytime Sources
Book Talks
Resources to Help with Identifying Font, Point Size, and Binding

To access most of the websites below, you must be a current UIUC student. To make suggestions, please contact the CCB.

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Resources to Help with GSLIS Courses

  1. Guide to Research in Children's and Young Adult Literature
    by the Education and Social Science Library
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/edkclass.htm

    Offers detailed information about how to search the UIUC catalog and certain databases.

  2. Children's Literature Resources and Guides
    by the Education and Social Science Library
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/s-home.htm

    Lists web and print resources for author's & illustrators, awards, bibiographies & guides, bilingual resources, book reviews, catalogs & collections, class guides, cool sites for kids, databases, electronic & print journals, encyclopedias & dictionaries, history & development, other resources, poetry & fairy tales, and storytelling, booktalking, & plays.

  3. Children's Literature: A Guide to Reference Sources
    Margaret W Denman-West
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/go.php?url=http://www.netlibrary.com/summary.asp?ID=1488

    This bibliography of reference sources includes Guides to Award-Winning Books, Recommended Reading, Multicultural Literature, Subject Bibliographies, Reference Books, Biographies, Core Periodicals/Multimedia Reviews, Nonprint Media, Special Collections of Children's Literature, Professional Associations, and The Information Superhighway Via the Internet.

  4. Guides to Collection Development for Children and Young Adults
    by John T. Gillespie and Ralph J. Folcarelli
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/proxy/go.php?url=http://www.netLibrary.com/summary.asp?id=13160

    This annotated bibliography lists books to help librarians choose books.

  5. Children & Books
    by Zena Sutherland
    CCB Reference Collection - 026.1 A667c

    This well respected overview of children's literature is divided into four sections: "Knowing Children and Books," "Exploring the Types of Literature," "Bringing Children and Books Together," and "Areas and Issues."

  6. Children's Literature in the Elementary School
    by Charlotte S. Huck, Susan Hepler, Janet Hickman
    CCB Reference Collection - 026.1 H882c

    This textbook about children's literature is helpful to anyone working with children in elementary school, whether in a school or public library. Similar to Sutherland's Children & Books, it is divided into three sections: "Learning about Books and Children," "Exploring Children's Literature," and "Developing a Literature Program."

  7. Adventuring with books: A Booklist for Pre-K-Grade 6
    edited by Kathryn Mitchell Pierce
    CCB Reference Collection - 011.62 N213a

    While mostly a book list of books, some discussion of genres and types of books, such as series books, are included.

  8. Children's Literature: An Issues Approach
    by Masha Kabakow Rudman
    CCB Reference Collection - 011.62 R916c

    A discussion of how issues involving family, the life cycle, and society are represented in children's literature, and suggests criteria in which to judge books in these topics.

  9. The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research
    by Stephen D. Krashen
    LIS - 028.9 K864p2004

    A summary of research proving the importance of reading and how reading positively affects student achievement. Includes research on graphic novels.

  10. Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish your Thesis, Book, or Article
    by Howard S. Becker
    Education and LIS Libraries - 808.0663 B388w

    Explains how to get your ideas flowing, how to shape a paper, and how to compress several topics into one paper.

  11. Picture This: How Pictures Work
    by Molly Bang
    CCB Reference Collection - 741.6 B224p

    Using Little Red Riding Hood as an example, Molly Bang explains how composition, shapes, and colors affect illustrations.

  12. Vandergrift's Children's Literature Page
    by Kay E. Vandergrift
    http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/ChildrenLit/

    A Professor Emeritus at Rutgers' School of Communication, Information, and Library Science, Kay's website has lists of professional and children's books under numerous topics such as Female Voices in picture books, Sensitive Issues, and Native American, as well as her own lists, opinions, and theories about children's literature.

  13. Literature on the Web
    by Carolyn McCown
    http://www.netxv.net/pm_attach/78/Literature_on_the_Web.rtf

    This word document has lists of reference sites from ALA, websites for young adult librarians, individual author sites, resources to learn about authors and illustrators, publisher's home pages, and other website for professionals working with children and books.

  14. Baldwin Library of Children's Literature
    University of Florida
    http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/UFDC/UFDC.aspx?c=juv

    This library has many resources for historical children's literature--including over 300 editions of Robinson Crusoe.

  15. Center for Children's Literature and Culture
    University of Florida
    http://www.clas.ufl.edu/cclc/

    This interdisciplinary center has many resources for those working with or creating "works for children in print and other media."

  16. International Children's Digital Library
    http://www.icdlbooks.org/

    As a "Library for the World's Children," the International Children's Digital Library is a good resource for information about many different children's.

  17. Children's Literature Research Collections
    University of Minnesota
    http://special.lib.umn.edu/clrc/

    The "internationally recognized resource in the field of children's literature" has six "core" collections and "several smaller" collections. This is a perfect starting place for those doing research in the history of children's literature.

  18. Kerlan Collection
    University of Minnesota
    http://special.lib.umn.edu/clrc/kerlan/auweblinks.php

    Part of the Children's Literature Research Collection at the University of Minnesota, the Kerlan Collection contains "more than 1,500" authors and illustrators with original work in the collection.

  19. DeGrummond Children's Literature Collection
    University of Southern Mississippi Libraries
    http://www.lib.usm.edu/~degrum/

    This is "one of North America's leading research centers in the field of children's literature." With a focus on American and British children's literature, this collection is a great place to look for historical information in children's literature. The DeGrummond Children's Literature Collection has also pulled together many other web-related sources for Children's Literature Special Collections. This is found at http://www.lib.usm.edu/~degrum/html/relatedsites/rs-cl-webguide.shtml

  20. Cotsen Children's Library
    Princeton University
    http://ccl.princeton.edu/research/e2/index.html

    As a "major historical collection of rare illustrated children's books, magazines, original artwork, prints, and educational toys from the 15th century to the present day," this resource will help with many historical children's book queries.

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Catalogs

  1. UIUC
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/catalog/

    Searches for materials located on the UIUC campus.

  2. LINC Public Library System
    http://www.ltls.org/ipac.html

    Searches the Lincoln Trails Library System, which serves east-central Illinois.

  3. I-Share
    http://i-share.carli.illinois.edu/uc/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?DB=local&PAGE=First

    Searches 65 other Illinois libraries.

  4. World Cat (OCLC)
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/orr/about.php?resid=43886

    Searches catalogs world-wide.

  5. Bowker's Books in Print
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/orr/about.php?resid=43872

    Searches all forthcoming and currently in print audio, visual, and print materials.

  6. Library of Congress Catalog
    http://catalog.loc.gov/

    Searches 14 million records, from books to audio-visual materials.

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Information about Authors and Illustrators

  1. Guide to Authors and Illustrators
    by the Education and Social Science Library
    http://www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/authors.htm

    Lists web and print resources.

  2. Index to Internet Sites: Children's and Young Adults' Authors and Illustrators
    by the Internet School Library Media Center
    http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/biochildhome.htm

    Lists web resources, including author birthdays, author/illustrator appearances, author online interviews, literary maps, and links to websites about specific authors.

  3. Pronouncing Dictionary of Authors' Names
    by members of LM_Net
    http://mainst.monterey.k12.ca.us/library/libpg/Dictionary/dict.html

    Ever wonder how to say Scieszka? This list tackles this difficult name and many others.

  4. Author and Illustrator Pronunciation Guide and Movies
    by TeachingBooks.net
    http://www.teachingbooks.net/

    Check out original, in-studio movies of authors and illustrators, audio excerpts of professional book readings, guides to thousands of titles and a wealth of multimedia resources on children's and young adult literature. You can even listen to the authors tell you how to pronounce their names themselves.

  5. Something About the Author
    1971-1992
    CCB Reference Collection - 928 SO5

    Facts and pictures about contemporary authors and illustrators of books for young people.

  6. Dictionary of Literary Biography
    Vol. 42: American Writers for Children Before 1900
    Vol. 22: American Writers for Children, 1900-1960
    Vol. 52: American Writers for Children Since 1960: Fiction
    Vol. 61: American Writers for Children Since 1960: Poets, Illustrators, and Nonfiction Authors

    CCB Reference Collection - 810.9 AM358

    Multi-page articles, usually including lists of their work and a long critical piece.

  7. Authors of Books for Young People
    by Martha E. Ward and Dorothy A. Marquardt
    CCB Reference Collection - 809.89282 W25A1971

    Includes short paragraphs about author's and illustrator's personal lives, including lists of published works.

  8. Seventh Book of Authors and Illustrators
    edited by Sally Holmes Holtze
    CCB Reference Collection - 928 K96j

    Contains more than two hundred personal sketches of authors and illustrators.

  9. Authors & Artists for Young Adults
    CCB Reference Collection - 810.9 Au82

    Each volume contains profiles of 18 authors or illustrators. There is information about personal life, career, awards and honors, writings, adaptations, works in progress, and "sidelights" - a long personal description.

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Criticism

  1. Children's Literature

  2. Children's Literature in Education

  3. Children's Literature Association Quarterly

  4. Lion & the Unicorn

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Resources to Help with Identifying Font, Point Size, and Binding

  1. Identifont
    http://www.identifont.com/

    This website will help to identify fonts in books (which is especially helpful in History of Children's Literature).

  2. "What is Point Size?"
    http://nwalsh.com/comp.fonts/FAQ/cf_8.htm

    Here's a webpage that will help you identify your Point Size (and provide further information about fonts).

  3. A Short Course in Book Anatomy
    http://www.burkesbooks.com/anatomy.htm

    From a book dealer's prospective, this short course on Book Anatomy will help to identify the various parts of a book.

  4. The Private Lives of Books: Anatomy of a Book
    http://www.nls.uk/privatelivesofbooks/anatomy.html

    This is another website to help with learning the anatomy of a book--only this website has a UK flavor.

  5. About Bookbinding
    http://www.aboutbookbinding.com/

    This website provides access to a number of fulltext books on bookbinding.

  6. Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: A Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology
    http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/don/don.html

    The Bookbinding and Conservation of Books website will answer every book vocabulary and terminology question you will ever ever have.

  7. Bookbinding: A Tutorial
    http://www.cs.uiowa.edu/~jones/book/#abstract

    The goal of this tutorial is to help the reader rebind a disintegrating paperback, which of course isn't the same as binding a new book, but there is lots of information here, plus a bibliography of other information resources.

  8. Bibliography: Is it a Book?
    http://www.philobiblon.com/isitabook/bib.html

    This website will provide further information about books as physical objects.

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