From Booklist
Articles vary in length from 500 to 5,000 words and cover topics in such broad areas as history, social sciences, literature, medicine, and law as they relate to the history of childhood and children. Bicycles and tricycles; Cassatt, Mary; Charter schools; Child pornography; Halloween; Infant rulers; Islam; Lindbergh kidnapping; Montessori, Maria; Multiple births; Orphanages; Shyness; Teen drinking; Temple, Shirley; and Theories of play are examples of entries that demonstrate the set's range. The encyclopedia has discussions of literature that has been an important ingredient in the lives of Western children, such as the Bible, ABC books, fairy tales, Nancy Drew, Harry Potter, and comic books. Each entry ends with see also references and a bibliography. A wide variety of black-and-white illustrations, many of them significant representations of children in art, illustrate the text. Volume 3 contains an annotated collection of 50 primary sources identified as essential documents in the field, reproduced in whole or in part. A topical outline appears in volume 1, and volume 3 has an excellent comprehensive index.
Volumes in ABC-CLIO's the American Family series (Adolescence in America, Boyhood in America, Girlhood in America, Infancy in America [all 2001]) cover some of the same topics but are narrower in geographic scope. They are also more centered on the experience of children and youth rather than on childhood as an idea. The Gale Encyclopedia of Childhood and Adolescence (1997) is more concerned with child development. For its worldwide historical scope, Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood in History and Society is a recommended purchase for history collections as well as collections that focus on the study of children and children in families. It is also recommended in the broader sense as a great background tool for any public and academic library with patrons concerned with the study of topics relating to children. RBB
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