Lesbian protagonist? fine with me....

I really enjoyed reading a story with a Lesbian protagonist because I had never read a book like that when I was growing up. I think that now, at a time when there are so many different types of people and lifestyles in our society, it's great to give young people exposure to difference in a positive way. Even then, the point of H.F's story is not that she likes girls, or that her friend Bo likes boys. The most important aspect of her story (and Bo's story) is that she discovers that it is important to be herself and respect herself for who she is, while doing the same for others. She and Bo also realize the importance of friendship. H.F's story is unique because of her sexual orientation, but at the same time, it is a classic hero(or heroine) story of her journey to find herself and to grow into her identity.

Current thoughts on Children/YA lit...

I think that comparing my thoughts about children and YA lit before this semester and now just shows me that I didn't really think about it that much. It has really become an exciting new genre in a way that I wouldn't have put much effort into finding out about before...
Especially in regard to YA novels, I find that now, I am excited to continue reading them and find out about more good authors and titles... Since high school I have been so caught up (like most other people at Agnes Scott, I'm sure) in trying to read the classics and novels that would be considered "high" literature, and then not reading anything but scholarly articles and textbooks. I am realizing now that children's books and YA novels are really opening up a whole new space for me to just read and enjoy good stories and illustrations (something that I am not too often exposed too when reading!)
Compared to what I thought before about children and YA literature, I would say I am developing a much deeper love and respect for this type of literature than I had before. I really believe in what this class is all about: reading, responding to, enjoying, and sharing great children and YA literature. Before this class, I would have thought of it as a thing of my past, or of the future only when and if I have my own children. Now, I know that I can just embrace my inner child or young adult, sit down with a good book and just enjoy.

What would you say to someone who might think of children’s picture books as “lesser” literature?

I think the first thing that I would do would be to hand them a copy of The Invention of Hugo Cabret then see if they still think that!
I would also try to explain to them that in my opinion, to be able to judge whether a work of children's literature is good or not they would have to read it keeping in mind the audience that it is written for. Children's lit is written so that children can understand it and enjoy it, which doesn't necessarily mean that it is not as high quality as a work of classic literature written for adults. To capture the minds of children, to entertain and to teach them is just as important as having a style of writing that is more difficult or complicated to understand. Getting children to read can be extremely challenging, and a great work of children's literature is one that is able to get children excited about reading...This isn't the only thing that makes children's literature good or important, but it is probably the most important thing to me.
I think I would ask that person to think about the books they read growing up, and see if the ones that they read and loved as kids were as important or exciting to them as the great works of literature they might have read as an adult... if so, then that would maybe help them to understand why children's literature is not "lesser" literature.