Challenging and Controversial Picturebooks

Many people assume that picturebooks are for very young readers because of their emphasis on the illustrations and scarcity of text however, there are increasing numbers of picturebooks where the age of the implied reader is questionable. These are picturebooks whose controversial subject matter and unconventional, often unsettling style of illustration challenge the reader, pushing them to question and probe deeper to understand what the book is about. In addition to the book challenging the reader, the reader often challenges the book in an attempt to understand what is being said. These increasingly popular picturebooks work on many different levels, they are truly polysemic and worthy of in-depth analysis. They push the reader to ask questions and in many instances are intrinsically philosophical, dealing with fundamental issues which often form the basis of life.