Fantasy Literature for Children and Young Adults: A Comprehensive Guide Fifth Edition (Children's and Young Adult Literature Reference) (Hardcover)

by Ruth Nadelman Lynn (Author)
Key Phrases: ghost fantasy, professional review sources, allegorical fantasy, New York, Horn Book, Twentieth-Century Children's Writers (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
Fantasy literature has been a popular genre for young readers long before the first Harry Potter novel was written. That this reference source is now in its 5th edition is strong support for that notion.

For those not familiar with this title, it is a fine example of a bibliography valuable for both readers' advisory and scholarly purposes. Its division of the genre into 12 very narrow subgenres makes it especially appealing for librarians not intimately familiar with the wide varieties of fantasy literature. It covers novels and story collections for readers in grades 3-12, published in English in the U.S. between 1900 and 2004. Exceptions are made for a few nineteenth-century classics. Adult books that appeal to young readers are also included.

The introduction offers an overview of the literature that is informative and interesting. Core lists of outstanding titles by genre and lists of award-winning titles precede the annotated lists. Each entry gives author and title, grade level, an annotation (for main titles, none for sequels), edition information, and citations for reviews. Each subgenre section begins with the specifics of how the genre is different from the others. Complete author and illustrator, title, series, and subject indexes finish the book.

There is at least one change in this edition that is worthy of comment. The 7,600 titles included in the listings represent a 62 percent increase over the previous edition, necessitating the elimination of the "Research Guide" that had been a large part of the most previous editions. Although this is a loss to scholars, the greater coverage of titles strengthens the readers' advisory and collection development uses of the volume. It would seem wise to retain the previous edition if the "Research Guide" has been useful in the past. Nonetheless, this is an excellent resource, and with its low price and wide applications, the volume should have a place in most school, public, and academic libraries. Danise Hoover
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
“Fantasy Literature for Children and Young Adults remains a useful resource for librarians, teachers, and children's literature scholars.”–Reference Reviews

“[D]efinately a comprehensive annotated guide to fantasy....[a]s a reference guide this book would be very valuable. It would be good to have available for a school system or public library use. Recommended.”–Library Media Connection

“[A] fine example of a bibliography valuable for both readers' advisory and scholarly purposes....[t]his is an excellent resource, and with its low price and wide applications, the volume should have a place in most school, public, and academic libraries.”–Booklist/Youth Reference

“This eminently useful and comprehensive volume deserves a place in every school and public library.”–VOYA

“[I]t's the book's organization which is so unique and makes it such an important tool. For such fantasy synopses are organized under 'Anima', 'Sorcery', 'Time Travel', and the other types of fantasy kids typically ask for, making it easy to cross-reference fantasy novel and story collections published between 1900 and 2004 for kids of all ages. Librarians in particular and any adult reguarly working with kids will find Fantasy Literature for Children and Young Adults: A Comprehensive Guide includes grade levels and review citations as well as notes on recommended titles.”–Internet Bookwatch

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1208 pages
• Publisher: Libraries Unlimited; 5 edition (March 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1591580501
• ISBN-13: 978-1591580508
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,613,696 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Includes grade levels and review citations as well as notes on recommended titles, August 7, 2005

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Well over a thousand pages of Fantasy Literature For Children And Young Adults: A Comprehensive Guide, a bibliographic reference pack in nearly 7,500 titles - almost three thousand of them new to this updated fifth edition - for readers of fantasy in grades 3-12: but it's the book's organization which is so unique and makes it such an important tool. For such fantasy synopses are organized under 'Anima', 'Sorcery', 'Time Travel' and the other types of fantasy kids typically ask for, making it easy to cross-reference fantasy novels and story collections published between 1900 and 2004 for kids of all ages. Librarians in particular and any adult regularly working with kids will find Fantasy Literature For Children And Young Adults: A Comprehensive Guide includes grade levels and review citations as well as notes on recommended titles.