This penetrating study of the white supremacy myth in books for the young adds an important dimension to American intellectual history. The study pinpoints an intersecting adult and child culture: it demonstrates that many children's stories had political, literary, and social contexts that paralleled the way adult books, schools, churches, and government institutions similarly maligned black identity, culture, and intelligence. The book reveals how links between the socialization of children and conservative trends in the 19th century foretold 20th century disregard for social justice in American social policy. The author demonstrates that cultural pluralism, an ongoing corrective to white supremacist fabrications, is informed by the insights and historical assessments offered in this study.

Introduction; Part 1 The Antebellum Years; Chapter 1 Ambivalent Abolitionism; Chapter 2 Sociopolitical and Artistic Dimensions of Abolitionist Tales; Personal and Institutional Dimensions; Part 2 The Postbellum Years; Chapter 4 Children's Fiction; Chapter 5 The Social/Political Context; Chapter 6 Literary Lives; Chapter 7 Postwar Institutions; Chapter 8 Literary Methods and Conventions; Chapter 9 Conclusion;