Thursday, February 25, 2010

Follow the Yellow Brick Road


The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Undoubtedly the best-known title of a series (along with Louisa May Alcott's Little Women) is this first offering of the Oz books from the pen of L. Frank Baum. Baum wrote fourteen Oz books between 1900 and his death in 1919; Ruth Plumly Thompson added nineteen more between 1921 and 1939; and numerous others have appeared by various hands since then, including several by Baum's great-grandson.

Although never intended solely for a female audience, the early Oz books centered on the adventures of the young girl Dorothy. The popularity of these books and their many characters has resulted in an "Oz" industry—films, games, toys, and other artifacts.

-Dr. William K. Finley



An Exhibit
Hodges Reading Room
February 15 - May 15, 2010

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Five Little Peppers

and how they grew


Few nineteenth-century series are familiar to readers, young or old, today. One series that is recognized today is the "Little Peppers," twelve titles published from 1880 to 1916. The first book, shown here in facsimile, appeared first in installments in the popular children's magazine Wide Awake in 1880.

The series chronicles the tribulations and triumphs of the five Pepper children and their mother after the untimely death of their father. The "Little Peppers" series is one of a number in the Girls' Books in Series Collection at UNCG that can qualify as both a boys' and a girls' series, both genders being equally represented.

-Dr. William K. Finley


An Exhibit
Hodges Reading Room
February 15 - May 15, 2010

Monday, February 15, 2010

Brave New Worlds

Re-Imaging in Girls' Series Books

From the earliest, highly moralistic examples in the 1840s to the twenty-first century examples echoing the lifestyles and values of today's youth, girls' books in general and girls' series in particular have shown a marked evolution. Many of the most popular series in the nineteenth-century—Jacob Abbott's "Lucy" series, Joanna Mathews' "Bessie" books, and Martha Finley's "Elsie" books, to name but a few—had heavy religious undertones and could much more readily be called fictional "etiquette books" than captivating adventure stories for young readers.

For boys, this scenario changed even before the end of the nineteenth century, with series such as the immensely popular Horatio Alger titles. This change was signaled by Alger sub-series such as "Brave and Bold," "Frank and Fearless" and "Luck and Pluck." For girls, the change would come later and more gradually. The pathway to a more daring literature had perhaps been paved by Louisa May Alcott's timeless Little Women, which in 1868 had presented a new image of an emancipated woman in the character of Jo March. By the end of the century, major publishers of girls' series realized that girls insistently were becoming more liberated and were generally bored with the constant "thou shalt, thou shalt not" instruction of their literature, to the extent of surreptitiously reading their brothers' more exciting adventure stories.

In 1900 L. Frank Baum sent Dorothy, a young girl from Kansas, on a series of exciting adventures in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and on subsequent exploits in the mythical kingdom of Oz. More importantly, Dorothy—bright, resourceful, and above all, essentially independent--provided a new role model for girls. Although not all heroines in new girls' series broke the traditional mold of docility and obedience, many did. Some of the earliest such series were clearly spinoffs from popular boys' series, with essentially the same characters changed from male to female; but the obvious borrowing hardly mattered. Girls now had new role models of their own sex who often demonstrated the same traits—courage, spunk, rational thinking, and quick wits—that characterized the juvenile heroes of boys' books.

The evolution of girls' series books continues today. While some of the most popular early series continue to be written ("Nancy Drew," "Bobbsey Twins," "Oz Stories"), new series appear every year. The number of series created since 1960 is legion. While mystery and adventure stories continue to be popular, many of the old genres have all but disappeared. Today's girls' series seem, on the whole, to be more oriented to romance and group acceptance and popularity.

The books included in this exhibit were chosen to exemplify the many genres of girls' series that have appeared in more than 170 years.

-Dr. William K. Finley



An Exhibit
Hodges Reading Room
February 15 - May 15, 2010

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

The Greensboro Sit-Ins


To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Greensboro Sit-Ins, the Hodges Special Collections and University Archives mounted an exhibit honoring the Bennett College, North Carolina A&T, and Woman's College (now UNCG) students who participated in the protest.



A&T Poster

Bennett College Poster


Woman's College Poster

The exhibit will be on display from February 1 - March 1, 2010 in the Main Foyer of Jackson Library.