Outline for the 1920's, 1930's, and 1940's

1920’s

Historical Events

• End of WWI
• Radical Political movements such as communism and fascism rise during economic and political turmoil after the war.
• The 1920’s were known as the Roaring Twenties and the Jazz Age in U.S., Canada, and the UK. And the “Golden Twenties” in Europe.
• The Lost Generation; flappers the Charleston and bobbed hair was popular in youth culture.
•On October 16, 1923, brothers Walt and Roy Disney founded the Walt Disney Company, animation studio.
• Women are given the right to vote in multiple countries in the 1920s.
• Illiteracy in the United States reached a new low 6% of pop.
• Unemployment 5.2% in the United States.
• Stock Market Crash October 29, 1929 “Black Tuesday”. The beginning of the Depression
• 1924 Restrictions on immigration take affect as a rise of nation wide xenophobia takes affect. It was more lenient towards Eastern and South European nations but further enforced the ban on Asian and African nations.
• 1925 John Logie Baird invents the first working mechanical television system and demonstrates the first color television in 1928.
• Many artists and writers were affected by the war and inserting the feelings and experiences into their works.
• The Algonquin Round Table (aka the Round Table) an informal group of American Literary men and woman who met weekly for lunch at a large round table in the Algonquin Hotel in New York City during the 20’s and 30’s. Among the members were many well-known writers, artists, and journalists in New York.
• 1922 Newbery Awards first awarded. Awarding the most distinguished children’s book


Newbery Award Winners

1922 – The Story of Man Kind by Hendrik Willem van Loon
1923 – The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting
1924 – The Dark Frigate by Charles Hawes
1925 – Tales from Silver Lands by Charles Finger
1926 – Shen of the Sea by Arthur Bowie Chrisman
1927 – Smoky, the Cowhorse by Will James
1928 – Gay Neck, the Story of a Pigeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji
1929 – The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly


1930’s

• The Great Depression
• Unemployment reached a low of 25%
• Public Education in a pinch as many parents were not able to afford needed supplies, clothing and textbooks for school. Taxes went unpaid. School terms were shortened. Teachers salaries cut. Some schools were forced to charge tuition one year which lead to many children dropping out of school for that year.
• The Dick and Jane Books that helped children how to read were first published in 1931.
• Caldecott Medal Awards given for the first time in 1938

Newbery Awards Winners

1930 – Hitty, Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field
1931 – The Cat Who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth
1932 – Waterless Mountain by Laura Adams Armer
1933 – Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Lewis
1934 – Invincible Louisa: The Story of the Author of Little Women by Cornelia Meigs
1935 – Dobry by Monica Shannon
1936 – Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink
1937 – Roller Skates by Ruth Sawyer
1938 – The White Stag by Kate Seredy
1939 – Thimble Summer – Elizabeth Enright

Caldecott Award Winners

1938 – Animals of the Bible by Dorothy P. Lathrop
1939 – Mei Li by Thomas Handforth

1940’s

• WWII 1939-1945
• With Nazi hold over much of Europe, many artists and writings were left to flee for countries such as the United States to escape prosecution, this caused for much of Children’s literature in European countries to fall under Nazi propaganda. Many images found in these books depict children adorning Hitler Youth uniforms.
• First appearance of paperback books, a more inexpensive option for books. Which lead to a rise in book sales.
• With many fathers away at war and mothers working to support families, juvenile delinquency rose as a new phenomenon.
• Teenagers were able to find employment more easily with men away at war, leaving them with more money to spend.
• Advertisements began aiming towards teens.
• During the War rations affected not only food and clothing but also toys for children.
• Little Golden Books published their first series on Oct. 1, 1942.
• When children’s books sold for $2-3, a bit of a luxury for many families Little Golden books sold for 25¢, a durable and affordable book for most American families.
• The men returning from the War lead to the creation of the baby boom.

Newbery Awards

1940 – Daniel Boone by James Daugherty
1941 – Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry
1942 – The Matchlock Gun by Walter Edmonds
1943 – Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Gray
1944 – Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
1945 – Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson
1946 – Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski
1947 – Miss Hickory by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey
1948 – The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pène
1949 – King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry

Caldecott Awards

1940 – Abraham Lincoln by Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire
1941 – They Were Strong and Good by Robert Lawson
1942 – Make Way for Duckling by Robert McCloskey
1943 – The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
1944 – Many Moons by Louis Slobodkin
1945 – Prayer for the Child by Elizabeth Orton Jones
1946 – The Rooster Crows by Maud and Miska Petersham
1947 – The Little Island by Leonard Weisgard
1948 – White Snow, Bright Snow by Roger Duvoisin
1949 – The Big Snow by Berta and Elmer Hader