Over the past two decades children’s picture books dealing with the
Australian experience during the First World War have sought to balance a number
of thematic imperatives. The increasingly sentimentalised construct of the Australian
soldier as a victim of trauma, the challenge of providing a moral lesson that
reflects both modern ideological assumptions and the historical record, and the
traditional use of Australian war literature as an exercise in nation building have all
exerted an influence on the literary output of a range of authors and illustrators. The
number of publications over this period is proof of the enduring fascination with war
as a topic as well as the widespread acceptance that this conflict has been profoundly
significant in shaping Australian public and political culture and
perceptions about national character and identity (Beaumont, 1995, p. xvii).

EB00000002511K

Available

• And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda: Australian Picture Books (1999–2016) and the First World War