Children Book Analysis

Introduction

We have all read children's books however sometimes we over look the complexity of it. Good morning everyone the book I am doing for my book review is 'grandpa'. The book is written by John Burningham, who has also written many other children books such as France, Where's Julius and Mr gumpy's Outing. John uses simple pictures and words to bring out the story. Based on this the targeted audiences are kids between the age of 4-9 but it can also appeal to adults with its complex themes such as death. The story I believe is set in Britain judging by the pictures. It is about the friendly relationship between and old man and his grandchild but also focuses on the effects of old age. Unlike other stories this one is unfolds like a conversation in which the grandpa or the child say something and the other one replies.

The Body

The invited reading is about grandpa who is a kind old man but does not let his old age stop him from spending time with his grandchild and how much joy can be had. The intended reading is achieved through many ways firstly the use of intertextuality. During the story the dialogue between the old man and his grandchild refers to things such as the story about Noah, a song to which I not known until Shikara told me and others. There for you had to draw knowledge from other texts to understand parts of the story.

Secondly is the social/cultural context, since the book is written by a British author it is very Euro-centric. The assumed normal behaviors may not apply to other cultures. The book shows that going to the beach, gardening, ice skating and playing with dolls with your grandchild as part of daily life. We would accept this as normal because we grew up in similar situations there we can make a connection with the book and its intended meaning.

Next is the ideology of the book. The set of beliefs about normal behavior based common stereotypes is also very westernized.