Wild Things

Bird, Betsy. Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literature. Candlewick Press, 2014.

This book is the combined work of Betsy Bird, Julie Danielson, and the late Peter Sieruta. Chronicling the history of children's literature, the authors draw upon their extensive knowledge as well as exhaustive research (the bibliography itself is over twenty pages long) and present the seldom-seen side of children's literature: subversive messages hidden in books, the censorship/banning process, and what to do when Madonna writes a picture book. This book is a treasure trove of trivia for librarians and bibliophiles, and I was really disappointed when I discovered I was on the last page, so this book is definitely begging a revisit.  I would recommend this book to any current or aspiring children's librarian or literature/language arts teacher.