21st Century Religion and Culture in Youth Literature
Fall 2024
Publishers Roundtable: Children’s Literature and Religion
Tuesday, September 24, 9:00 AM CST
Featuring PJ Library, Black Bears and Blueberries, and Shadow Mountain Publishing from 9-10 AM and Lee and Low, Heartdrum, Salaam Reads, and We Need Diverse Books from 10:15-11:15 AM.
Format: Virtual via Zoom.
Description: Two roundtable discussions featuring representatives from various publishing firms who will discuss how religion and culture factor into their work with diverse communities.
Gryphon Lecture: Rethinking the Influence of Religion and Religious Identity in Contemporary US Children’s Literature
Monday, October 21, 12:00 pm CST
Guest Speaker: Anastasia Ulanowicz, Associate Professor of English at the University of Florida
Format: Hybrid (Virtual via Zoom and In-Person)
Isabel Lopez Coelho: “Where the Wild Things Are: North America’s Cultural Influence Over the Brazilian Editorial Market”
November 4, 2024, 12:00 CST
Format: Virtual via Zoom
Description: Isabel Lopez Coelho is the author of The Representation of the Child in Children’s Literature (2020). For twelve years, Coelho ran the Children’s and Young Adult Literature division at Cosac Naify publishing house in Brazil. She is currently a postdoctoral student at PUC-SP and publisher at FTD Educação.
Spring 2025
Religion and Culture in Fantasy
Tuesday, February 18, 12:00 PM CST
Featuring authors Aden Polydoros, Kwame Mbalia, and Radiya Hafzia
Format: Virtual via Zoom.
Description: Exploring how the fantasy genre allows space exploration of new religious sensibilities and how children’s culture can be a surprising source of creativity.
Religion and Culture in Fantasy
Wednesday, February 19, 12:00 PM CST
Featuring scholars Taylor Driggers (Tutor in English Literature, School of Critical Studies, University of Glasgow), Michelle Chan (Associate Professor of English Language and Literature, Hong Kong Shue Yan University), and Sarah Winters (Associate Professor of English Studies, Nipissing University).
Format: Virtual via Zoom
Description: Exploring how the fantasy genre allows space exploration of new religious sensibilities and how children’s culture can be a surprising source of creativity.
ALA and Communities of Faith
April 2025, 12:00 pm CST
Participants: Cara Bertram (Archives Program Officer, University Archives and American Library Association Archives, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
Format: Virtual via Zoom
Description: An exploration of religions and religious identities in the American Library Association.