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Appalachian Children's Literature: Defining Appalachian Literature

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Evaluating Appalachian Children's Books

Defining Appalachian Literature

It must:

    come from inside Appalachia or from someone rooted in Appalachian culture         Smith (2002)

Two qualities that distinguish Appalachian literature from other types of literatures:

    Incorporates the mountains
    incorporates a sense of place            Smith (2002)

Appalachian literature usually falls into 3 categories:

    those that cling to old patterns of poverty and reinforce stereotypes
    those that express realism and honesty
    those that grapple with the two (dispels stereotypes)             Herrin (1995)

Look for evidence of stereotyping:

  •  Illustrations should depict characters realistically and should not exaggerate feature in a way that demeans or ridicules
  •  Language should not contain loaded works tha communicate negative connotations e.g. lazy, shack, hillbilly
  •  Consider geography and history when looking for evidence of stereotyping e.g. many areas of Appalachia still use some archaic language
  • Remember that both rural and urban communities exist in Appalachia               

Owens  (2002)

Appalachia is a geographic region
It is an area of the eastern United States covering approximately 205,000 square miles. The spine stretches from New York to Northern Mississippi. Appalachia encompasses all or part of 12 states. Appalachian Regional Commission (2008)
All Appalachian literature does not speak to the culture and customs of all of Appalachia or its ethnic groups – choose works accordingly.
Appalachia is a culture
Appalachia as a culture is an invention or idea.
It was created in 19th century travel sketches or local color literature. While there were some stereotypical writings about Appalachian people prior to the Civil War, they were generally regarded in the same way as people from outside the region. Kentuckians for the most part were considered to be educated and cultured.
A work is representative of a culture when the material presented is based on fact, reproduces the essential feature of the culture and is true to the creator’s cultural spirit. Dresang (1997) 

Quotes from Appalachian Authors

[quote from George Ella Lyon in the forward to Appalachian Children's Literature: An Annotated Bibliography,
[four children laying on their stomachs, reading a book, in the grass outside]