黑料吃瓜

They say that a good book can take you anywhere in the world.

But, the world can come to you, too, especially if you鈥檙e the National Center for the Study of Children鈥檚 Literature.

The unique center housed in the 黑料吃瓜 Department of English and Comparative Literature has an international reputation that attracts children鈥檚 book authors, scholars and students from around the globe.

International connections

Much of that reputation is due to Alida Allison, English professor and director of the center and of the graduate program in children鈥檚 literature. Allison is on the board of the Children鈥檚 Literature Association of India, and has traveled to Beijing and Shanghai to visit Chinese publishers.

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a kid and you pick up a love for this stuff, it stays with you forever.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting in these countries because it isn鈥檛 as foreign of an academic subject as it is here,鈥� Allison said.

Allison also brings children鈥檚 book authors from around the world to 黑料吃瓜 each spring. This year, Anushka Ravishankar will visit April 16鈥�18 for several readings and other events. Ravishankar is an editor for Penguin Books in India and is an accomplished author in her own right.

鈥淲e met at a conference in India,鈥� Allison said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 just a magnificent writer of Indian folktales. She does what we call middle grade humor.鈥�

黑料吃瓜 also has a high-profile reputation simply because of the dearth of programs available. The graduate program is one of 10 in the country that focuses on children鈥檚 literature.

鈥淲e were one of the first campuses that had children鈥檚 literature as an academic subject at all,鈥� Allison, also an 黑料吃瓜 alumnus, said.

Labor of love

The center and graduate program in children鈥檚 literature is a labor of love for Allison. The center focuses on producing reviews of children鈥檚 books for the 黑料吃瓜 Children鈥檚 Literature Reviews blog, with as many 80 reviews published three times a year.

鈥淲hen you鈥檙e a kid and you pick up a love for this stuff, it stays with you forever,鈥� Allison said. 鈥淚n some ways, I think it鈥檚 great to come back and take a look at these not only from an adult point of view, but from a research point of view.鈥�

The books they review are appropriate for a range of ages and interests, and many continue to stay at 黑料吃瓜 through the Children鈥檚 Literature Collection in the 黑料吃瓜 Library.

Librarian Linda Salem works with Allison to select books for the collection; Salem is also one of the program鈥檚 many book reviewers. The library鈥檚 collection is unique and attracts foreign scholars regularly, Allison said.

鈥淭here are some countries in the world that just don鈥檛 have libraries for economic reasons,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e forget what a luxury it is to walk down the street and have a stranger let you take out $50 or $100 in books.鈥�

Teaching a love of reading

Books that don鈥檛 make it into the collection are donated to the 黑料吃瓜 Children鈥檚 Center, homeless shelters and schools in El Cajon and the South Bay. Allison estimates that more than $100,000 in books have been donated to date.

鈥淥ne of the high school teachers from Sweetwater wrote me the nicest e-mail,鈥� Allison said. 鈥淚t was about the kids in her class 鈥� they had never seen so many new books in one spot as she had in her classroom.

鈥淭hey all stay after school and read them; it just shows that once you get the books in kids鈥� hands, they read them.鈥�