International Companion Encyclopedia of Children’s Literature

reasonable to expect an information book to have an organic shape—which, again,

will be linked to its purpose and its subject. In some cases the subject suggests the

order of content quite naturally, as in the lifecycle of an animal, the history of a form

of transport. Often an author will proceed from the particular to the general, in line

with the way in which children develop understanding. A concluding section which

summarises what has gone before and helps the reader reflect on the content as a

whole may be helpful.

• The reading level of the text should match that of the expected audience: in some
  cases it may be necessary to use a standard instrument for measuring reading level.
  However, beyond such compatibility, one looks for a text which will encourage the
  reader, for language which has life and vitality, for a personal voice telling of
  something new and interesting. One needs to consider how much information the
  author expects the reader to absorb, and at what pace. It is sometimes helpful for a
  book to have a two-level text, where some information is conveyed simply through
  captions and/or summaries, with more detailed information presented in some
  complementary form.


• Both the style of illustration chosen and the illustrations themselves should advance
  the author’s purpose. For example, diagrams may be required to supplement the
  information which can be drawn from photographs: cartoons can serve to make a
  point or arrest the reader’s attention, but it is unlikely that they can stand alone as
  information carriers. Illustrations can decorate, reinforce or extend a text, so an
  initial task is establishing the purpose they are trying to fulfil. As illustrations have
  tended to occupy a greater proportion of space—a movement linked with advances in
  printing technology—so the need for assessment of their quality and value has
  increased.


• Page layout should encourage the reader and make the search for information easier.
  This implies a page which is not over-crowded, where the typeface is appropriate to the
  readership, captions are clearly related to illustrations, and the organisation of the
  page is quickly apparent.


• The overall physical production should generate a sense of pleasure or excitement.
  Information books come in many different shapes, sizes and textures, and this
  individuality is part of the reader’s enjoyment. The book as object needs to be
  carefully designed to send messages to its anticipated audience.

Readership

Information books are called on to satisfy the needs of two quite different readerships:
the adult, whether librarian, parent or teacher, who is the likely buyer, and the children
who will be reading and using the books.
Children’s librarians recognise that information books have an important role to play
in their stock, serving the recreational interests of library clients, providing a source for
answering reference enquiries, and supporting school work. It would be expected that a
children’s library would have a reference section, containing atlases, dictionaries and
encyclopedias; beyond these categories one finds few quick-reference books produced
entirely for children so, in practice, the section might also contain material designed for

432 TYPES AND GENRES