A tale of fantasy use in children’s picture books

The current study explored the fantasy-oriented content in children's picture books to better understand picture books' role in shaping children's experiences with fantasy. Through a content analysis of 100 picture books, the frequency and use of fantasy were examined in the books' events, illustrations, and text. Trends were also examined by book genre (concept books versus storybooks) to explore the use of fantasy-oriented content when depicting real-world information. Findings revealed that the inclusion and use of fantasy varied across the events, illustrations, and text, creating multiple contexts in which children must evaluate fantasy. The inclusion of fantasy also varied by book genre: Whereas both genres included ample fantasy, storybooks included fantasy that was more central to the events and concept books used fantasy primarily as decorative. Implications for how children process fantasy in picture books are discussed.