Let the wild rumpus start: The zoologist Liam Heneghan explores the ecosystem of children's literature [Review of "Beasts at Bedtime: Revealing the environmental wisdom in children's literature"]

Abstract

Those familiar with Tin Woodman in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Ents in The Lord of the Rings or the Once-ler in Dr Seuss’s book The Lorax may well have learnt something about the spiritual and economic value of trees, or at least the deeds of the brave but usually unromantic eco-warriors who protect them. As the zoologist Liam Heneghan argues in his new book Beasts at Bedtime, ecological themes and nature lore have long been deeply embedded in children’s bedtime stories.