Cirrus@Austlit

'This volume sees the change in Senior Editor announced in the previous number. John Stephens has stepped down after nearly a decade of leading IRCL. In that time he has taken what was little more than a concept and turned it into a highly regarded journal. This seemed a fitting moment to reflect on all that John has done, not just for IRCL, but for children's literature studies in general over a long and distinguished career. This editorial is followed by a personal profile by our Executive Editor, Mark Macleod, who has worked with John in various capacities for many years. Kerry Mallan, another colleague who has also worked closely with John, has assembled an overview of his main publications. For those new to the field, this will be a valuable introduction to the work of a fine scholar, while I am sure that many established scholars will find, as I did, that reading it sends you back to your bookshelves to be excited all over again by John's original and forensic analyses.' (Editorial introduction)

Special issue on 'Curating National Literatures'. 'The articles in this issue showcase problems of curating a national children's literature that adheres to strict boundaries, whether territorial, age-based, aesthetic, racial, or ethnic. As national borders become sites of increasing contention, the most successful future for child readers around the globe may depend on more fluid boundaries in defining how children's literature belongs to and shapes a nation.'

Source: Editorial.