Editing Children's literature (section)

=== Argentina ===
[[File:Billiken 001 1919.jpg|thumb|Cover of the Argentine children's magazine ''[[Billiken (magazine)|Billiken]]'' N° 1 (1919)]]
The origins of the Argentine children's literature tradition can be traced back to the publication of ''[[Leyendas Argentinas]]'' (''Argentine Legends'') in 1906 by [[Ada María Elflein]], the Argentine daughter of [[German Argentines|German immigrants]]. Public schooling in [[Argentina]] was established in 1884 as free, compulsory and secular. With the [[Bible]] absent from schools, children's literature became an essential tool through which moral values could be taught. School reading books supported the instruction of civic morality, helping to fill the gap left by the displacing of the [[Catholic Church]] from its traditional position of imparting [[Morality|moral values]]. The commercial implications of this persisted into the 2000s, when Argentine publishing houses marketed [[Roald Dahl]] to teachers by highlighting the values which are transmitted by each of his books.

In 1918, [[Uruguay]]an author [[Horacio Quiroga]] published ''[[:es:Cuentos de la selva|Cuentos de la Selva]]'' (''Tales of the Jungle'') in [[Buenos Aires]]. A collection of short stories for children, about survival in the jungle of the Argentine [[Misiones Province|Province of Misiones]], bringing different types of animals into conflict or allegiance with each other and, occasionally, with humans. It was acclaimed due to the previous reputation Quiroga had obtained writing short stories for adults, particularly in ''[[:es:Cuentos de amor de locura y de muerte|Cuentos de amor de locura y de muerte]] (Tales of Love, Madness and Death)''. However, due to the lack of "moral content", the book was not read in schools.
[[File:Maria elena walsh stern.jpg|thumb|Children's books author [[María Elena Walsh|Maria Elena Walsh]] in 1952.]]
On the other hand, [[Constancio C. Vigil]] had much more success in Argentine schools, where his more moralizing stories were frequently read. He also created [[Editorial Atlántida]], an important publishing house and the country's leading magazine publisher and distributor, specially of magazines aimed to children such as ''[[Billiken (magazine)|Billiken]].'' Stories written by Vigil, such as ''[[:es:La hormiguita viajera|La Hormiguita Viajera]] (The Little Travelling Ant)'' and ''[[:es:El mono relojero (cuento)|El Mono Relojero]] (The Clockwork Monkey)'' were also read in schools in other countries of [[Latin America]], such as [[Bolivia]], [[Ecuador]], [[Dominican Republic]] and [[Uruguay]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rea |first=Lauren |date=July 2019 |title=Trajectories in Argentine Children's Literature: Constancio C. Vigil and Horacio Quiroga |url=https://doi.org/10.3366/ircl.2019.0292 |journal=International Research in Children's Literature |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=76–89 |doi=10.3366/ircl.2019.0292 |issn=1755-6198}}</ref><sup>1]</sup>

In the 1960s, [[María Elena Walsh|Maria Elena Walsh]] started publishing children's books, she was the daughter of a railway worker of [[Irish Argentines|Irish descent]], and she had become famous for her poetry and music. After years living in [[Paris]], she came back to Argentina when [[Juan Perón]]'s government was overthrown in the ''[[Revolución Libertadora]]'' (1955). She published the most beloved children's books in Argentina, which are read to this day, such as ''El Reino del Revés (The Upside Down Kingdom), Manuelita ¿dónde vas?'' (''Manuelita, Where Are You Going?'') and ''La Reina Batata (The Sweet Potato Queen).'' She also composed the famous children's song ''[[Manuelita la tortuga|Manuelita]].''