Event overview
"Art and medicine: depictions of healthcare in children’s media, and how to make a book during a pandemic" with Dr Sarah Layzell
In the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, a section titled “Second on the right and straight on till morning” intertwines the history of the NHS with UK children’s literature, featuring hospital beds in the shape of the Great Ormond Street Hospital logo, nurses reading bedtime stories to young patients, and an army of Mary Poppinses flying in to ward off nightmares.
Yet the enduring emotive and cultural link between childhood and the UK healthcare system does not guarantee access to appropriate, well-evidenced and timely care for children or their family members, either in fiction or in life. Children’s and YA literature and media offer politically, ethically and aesthetically nuanced depictions of systemic health issues such as access to care. In our new edited collection on healthcare in children’s media, Naomi Lesley and I focus on these issues, and the insights provided by a range of media designed for young audiences.
In addition to the usual challenges of editing an academic collection, we found ourselves immersed in emerging healthcare crises: the Covid-19 pandemic, vaccine misinformation, and the legislative backlash against trans+ healthcare. This seminar will therefore be a reflection on both the content and process of making the book.
Sarah Layzell (they/she/any pronouns) is a writer and editor with a PhD in children’s literature. Sarah is co-editor of Healthcare in Children’s Media with Naomi Lesley; Song of the Land: Celebrating the Works of Mildred D. Taylor with Tammy Mielke and Michelle H. Martin; and the special section of the International Journal of Young Adult Literature on diversity and inclusion in YA sports media with Carla Plieth. Sarah’s debut novel for young readers, Cottonopolis, an LGBTQ+ story set in 1840s Manchester, was published by Northodox in 2024.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Jun 2025 | 6:00pm - 7:00pm |
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