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John Newbery opened a bookstore where he published and sold books for children. Up until that time, children had been given chapbooks, battledores (folded sheets of cardboard with the alphabet or Bible verses), and hornbooks (wooden paddles with lesson sheets). His books taught children how to behave without threatening them as did most early literature.
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A Wonder Book for Boys and Girls (1851/1893) is published by author Nathaniel Hawthorne and he is considered the author of the first Ameri- can book written specifically for children
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Most children’s books that came to North America from England were intended for instruction, but the books helped children’s imagination instead. Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865/1992) was soon reprinted in English-speaking countries all over the world.
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The revolutionary quality of Lewis Carroll’s two books, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (1871/1977), derives from the fact that they were written purely to give pleasure to children without any true moral lesson.
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Heidi was published
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Pinocchio was published
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The first child labor laws were passed freeing children to go to school
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The Wonderful Adventures of Nils was published
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the US publishing house Macmillan launched a department devoted entirely to chil- dren’s books.
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Children's picture books began being published
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the John Newbery Award was established by the American Library Association
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two women, Helen Dean Fish and May Massee, became the first children’s books editors, each at a different company.
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The Horn Book Magazine was published by the Bookshop for Boys and Girls in Boston under the guidance of Bertha Mahony and Elinor Whitney
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May Massee moved to open a children’s books department at Viking.
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The Randolph Caldecott Award was established by the American Library Association
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Harriet Rohmer was upset by the lack of picture books that reflected diversity, so he established Children’s Book Press, devoted to the publication of bilingual picture books that reflected a diversity of cultural experiences.
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Just Us Books was founded
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Michael L. Printz Award was established
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The Robert F. Sibert Award for outstanding informational books was created by the American Library Association