In our capstone essay for WR 150: “Aesthetic Constructions of Childhood,” students were asked to produce a researched academic argument about any aspect related to children’s picture books. With a chance rereading of Curious George, Maya framed her approach to this essay through careful and critical research. One of the key strengths of Maya’s remarkable essay is that she understood the scholarship so intimately that she was able not merely to challenge it, but actually to further it. Her work of contributing to the conversation about racism in Curious George is not only intellectually eye-opening but also gracefully executed. With this essay, Maya crafted a nuanced argument, drawing on the picture book’s history and scholarship, contributing her voice as a certain little monkey’s popularity continues to grow well beyond the confines of that first picture book.
— ANNA PANSZCZYK
WR 150: Aesthetic Constructions of Childhood