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Literature may not appear as attractive at first sight as video games and television programmes for some children; however, books do give children the space and time to reflect on stories, experiences and emotional ups and downs. Literature allows readers of all ages to reread again and again in depth, to think more deeply and understand better; furthermore, literature helps children to appreciate the joyful, fearful and confusing moments in their lives (Sawyer and Comer, 1991:2). Children, through various types of children’s literature, begin to understand the world around them, make connections with each other and the world and reshape their views of the lives of others.

The most important criteria that a good book can offer to children is enjoyment. It is hard to forget how loud you laughed, as a child, while reading some funny stories. Readers may also read frightening stories with heart trembling excitement or traumatic stories that are so touching they cannot put them down. If a child begins to read at an early age, then he or she may turn these early experiences into a lifetime of reading enjoyment (Tomlinson and Lynch-Brown, 1996:4).

In some traumatic stories, the characters are placed in situations that require them to make moral decisions. These stories help young readers to put themselves into the roles of the characters and consider what they may do in similar situations. Moreover, some moral dilemmas which young children may experience can be recaptured through children’s books to help children

deal with these difficult areas and explore what is appropriate and what is not. Through a character’s decisions and the repercussions of the choices that are made, young readers can begin to consider what they want to do and who they want to be in those stories (Bettelheim, 1976:10). Moral and life experiences that are met through children’s books can help young readers formulate and remodel their own concepts of right and wrong, such as appropriate or inappropriate behaviour, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred and hope and loss (Tomlinson and Lynch-Brown, 1996:4). Walking in someone else’s shoes often helps children resolve problems differently and develop a greater capacity to empathise with others (Tomlinson and Lynch-Brown, 1996:4; Barnet and Barnet, 1998:164). My research will analyse how young readers can deal with traumatic circumstances and how far they might go beyond empathy in order to think creatively about a problem.

Many adults want to build a better world for young people which is more positive, happier, enjoyable and more hopeful than the world they are living in at present. It is important for adults to help young children to build a positive attitude towards difficult issues while facing hardship in life. “Children need to develop positive self-esteem and to see themselves as competent human beings capable of caring and of being loved. They need to develop tolerance for others who may not share their beliefs or who may be different than themselves” (Sawyer and Comer, 1991:3). Wells (1986:206) points out that:

As students of all ages encounter new ideas … it is helpful to illustrate these ideas with stories—with particular contextualized examples—and to support their inner storying by encouraging them to work through the story mode themselves on the way to the expression of a more abstract formulation.

Wells suggests that it is better to introduce new concepts or experiences to children in the form of stories to help them to engage with ideas more easily and thus understand them better. It is undeniable that some children’s literature (such as stories that express readers’ emotions and stories picturing everyday experience) helps young readers to picture themselves in the story. I am thinking particularly of the kind of book that challenges and inspires

readers to think critically about events and thus helps them to build their self- identity, and self-esteem and to gain new insights through their responses.

Guess How Much I Love You (2001) by Sam McBratney for example, has a very positive love message for fathers and sons to help youngsters realise how important love is. Children find themselves in stories and see how others deal with similar problems. Some stories in particular can bring hope or comfort to young readers who are suffering or trying to make sense of certain situations or solve problems. Moreover, characters who share their emotions and thoughts with readers help them to cope with their feelings and understand universal emotions (Burke, 1986:210). However, not all children’s literature has that particular function.

Various types of stories, including stories from multicultural backgrounds, help children learn about and make sense of their own world and the world around them. Some stories represent traumatic experiences in a multicultural context and those stories help to build readers’ understanding of human conditions and difficulties and enhance their multicultural awareness. Diakiw (1990:297) states:

Stories can be a powerful way to transport students to distant countries with cultures and traditions far removed from their own. Children need the bridge that stories provide in order to link their growing understanding of other cultures to their personal experience and background knowledge.

Thus, children bring their own knowledge and experience to bear, and learn to make meaning as they make sense of the story in the light of their own encounters. It is this kind of unique response that I will be exploring in my research. “The more children know about their world, the more they discover about themselves—who they are, what they value, and what they stand for” (Tomlinson and Lynch-Brown, 1996:5). My experience has shown me that introducing young readers to the stories of trauma does not frighten them away from the book or make them sad, but helps them to engage with the story. Young readers, through stories of trauma, may learn to understand more about decision-making from a perspective of morality, to get to know how to

cope with themselves and others’ emotions and in turn to build a positive and caring attitude as they face challenges in their own lives.