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Portugal
Natércia Rocha
In Portugal, as in other countries, the first books for children had their roots in the oral
tradition. It is only later that English and French stories were translated. Books
specifically aimed at young readers first appeared during the second half of the nineteenth
century, and their authors all pursued the same ideal: always to teach something. In the
last 150 years one can distinguish three main periods in this world of children’s books:
the early period, from the eighteenth century to the late 1920s; the period of the
dictatorship, from 1928 to 1974, and from then on, when democracy made it possible
for writers to work on topics previously considered as unacceptable.
During the first period, poetry and traditional stories dominated, with translations in a
distant second place. In the second period, the dictatorship made itself felt by imposing
political values and propaganda on the books; short stories on colonial situations were
quite frequent, although they took only the colonialist point of view. The third period can
be seen as allowing new trends to develop, inviting writers to approach real-life situations
such as divorce, war, extreme poverty, death and delinquency; in novels, psychological
problems, adventure, mystery and history play a larger role now: in poetry, well-known
authors attract children by writing specially for them.
From the first period, some names and titles are not completely forgotten although
they can be considered somewhat dated. Famous writers who wrote for children only
occasionally left books that are still read. The best example is O romance da raposa [The
Fox’s Story] (1924), by Aquilino Ribeiro, one of the best Portuguese writers. Bonecos
falantes [Talking Toys] (1925), by Carlos Selvagem, was a great favourite at the time.
Some other books were very popular when they first appeared, such as O mundo dos
meus bonitos [The World of My Toys] (1920), by Augusto de Santa Rita, O tesouro poético
da Infância [Treasures of Children’s Poetry] (1883) by Antero do Quental, a great poet;
and also the poems by João de Deus included in Versos para as crianças e para o povo
[Poems for the Children and the People] (1883). From Jaime Cortesao there is a very
interesting book about the Azores, O romance das ilhas encantadas [The Story of the
Enchanted Islands] (1926); Carlos Amaro wrote a single book, a lovely long poem, S João
subiu ao trono [St John Sat on the Throne] (1927). For children, Afonso Lopes Vieira
wrote a charming book of verses under the title Os animais nossos amigos [Our Friends,
the Animals] (1911). From the long bibliography of Emilia de Sousa Costa, Aventuras da
Carochinha Japonesa [Adventures of the Little Japanese Beetle] (1928) can be selected
as one of the most engaging stories.