I asked myself these following questions when analyzing children’s books:
If the family is introduced in the book…
- Who is the main caretaker?
- How are the mothers’ occupations depicted?
- Do mothers usually wear aprons in books and fathers wear suits?
If the protagonist is a person…
- What is the gender of the protagonist?
- If the protagonist is a boy, did the author picture him with gender stereotypes of boys: outdoorsy, naughty, and dreaming to save the world?
- If the protagonist is a girl, does the author picture her with gender stereotypes of girls: indoorsy and wishing to be a princess?
published in 1970
If the protagonist is an animal…
- Does the author set the pronoun of the animal as “him” even if the gender cannot be distinguished?
- Do the animals have gender markers as well, such as longer eyelashes and fuller lips?
Cladecott Honor Book