About the Center

The Center for Children’s Literature is located on the lower level of the Hedberg Library. With more than 25,000 volumes, the center houses a variety of children’s and young adult books. The center encourages visitors to come to the Library to browse the collection. The collection is open during regular Library hours.

The center also holds workshops, organizes reading programs, and sponsors lectures and seminars by noted authors and illustrators. Its vast collection is available to students, educators, and the community.

The center was officially launched in October 1998 to house the extensive collection of more than 17,000 volumes accumulated by Dr. John Warren Stewig, an author and promoter of children’s literature. Part of this collection was the generous gift from Prof. Bette Peltola, a longtime and highly respected professor of children’s literature at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

In the autumn of 2004, Carthage welcomed the Center for Children’s Literature to campus. Dr. Stewig joined the Carthage faculty as a professor of education and became the center’s director, a position he held until June 2014.

Each year publishers send the center copies of their latest children’s books for review. Each book is donated to the center.

The current director is Marilyn J. Ward, Carthage Professor of Education.