MALVERN HILLS DECORATIVE AND FINE ARTS SOCIETY



"Once upon a Time" - Children's Books Through the Ages by Mrs Elizabeth Merry, MA BA (Hons)

Children's literature has only been recognised as a distinct genre for about two hundred years. As social and historical changes prompted a changing view of childhood, more and more books for children were produced.

Characteristic of even the earliest forms was the accompaniment of pictures to the text. During the 19th century, output grew enormously, culminating in the first "Golden Age" when Lewis Carroll blazed a trail of astonishing originality and nothing was ever the same again.

Elizabeth Merry has twenty years experience lecturing on a range of subjects including classical art and architecture, aspects of the visual arts and literature. She has acted as a co-lecturer on study tours to Rome, Aachen, Cologne, Brittany and the Dordogne.