Melvin Burgess has made a powerful name for himself in the world of children's and young adult literature, emerging in the 1990s as the author of over twenty critically acclaimed novels.
This collection of original essays by a team of established and new scholars introduces readers to the key debates surrounding Burgess's most challenging work, including controversial young adult novels Junk and Doing It. Covering a variety of critical and theoretical perspectives, the volume also presents exciting new readings of some of his less familiar fiction for children, and features an interview with the author.
By:
Dr Alison Waller
Imprint: Palgrave Macmillan
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 235mm,
Width: 155mm,
Spine: 14mm
Weight: 272g
ISBN: 9781137262790
ISBN 10: 1137262796
Series: New Casebooks
Pages: 232
Publication Date: 01 October 2013
Audience:
College/higher education
,
A / AS level
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Series Editor's Preface Notes on Contributors Introduction; A.Waller PART I: CONTROVERSY AND THE CULTURAL CONTEXT 1. 'One of the Boys'? Writing Sex for Teenagers in 'Doing It'; Chris Richards 2. 'Keeping it Real': The Debate for Boyhood and its Representations in 'Doing It' and 'Kill All Enemies'; Michele Gill 3. The Girl and the Streets: Postfeminist Identities in 'Junk', 'Doing It', and 'Sara's Face'; Joel Gwynne PART II: FORM, STYLE, GENRE 4. Beyond Face Value: Playing the Game with 'Sara's Face'; Kay Sambell 5. Dystopian Worlds and Ethical Subjectivities in 'Bloodtide' and 'Bloodsong'; Robyn McCallum and John Stephens 6. Transformation, Text and Genre in 'The Birdman'; M.Gibson PART III: HUMAN AND ANIMAL IDENTITIES 7. Borderland: The Animal World of Melvin Burgess; Peter Hollindale 8. 'You Know What I Mean': The Development of Relationships between Socially Isolated Characters in 'An Angel for May, 'Loving April', and 'The Ghost Behind the Wall'; Pat Pinsent 9. Challenging the Paradigm: Examining 'The Baby and Fly Pie' and 'The Earth Giant' through Ecocriticism; Karen Williams PART IV: TELLING STORIES 10. Found Fiction: An Interview with Melvin Burgess; Alison Wallerand Melvin Burgess Further Reading Index.
Alison Waller is Senior Lecturer in Children's Literature in The National Centre for Research in Children's Literature at the University of Roehampton, UK. She convenes the MA in Children's Literature by distance learning and is the author of 'Constructions of Adolescence in Fantastic realism' (2009).
Reviews for Melvin Burgess
The chapters in this collection comprise a thoughtful and thought-provoking analysis of Melvin Burgess's innovative, yet often controversial, fiction. It's a must-read for any serious scholar, teacher or student of young adult literature. - Janet Alsup, Purdue University, USA
