Acknowledgements

This book derives from my doctoral dissertation. I wish to thank the European University Institute for providing me with a truly international, interdisciplinary intellectual home during my doctoral studies. The History Department’s expertise in the fields of comparative, global, and transfer history has shaped me as a scholar. My supervisors, Giulia Calvi and Maria Sundkvist, offered great help and guidance during my time at the EUI. Many other professors also offered their insightful comments and support; Steve Smith and Laura Downs deserve special thanks. Fellow doctoral students were a great source of inspiration and support, but Hanne Østhus, in particular stands out as one whose insight into Scandinavian history and historiography made her a valued interlocutor.

During my time as a visiting scholar at the Centre for the Study of Children, Youth and Media in 2010, David Buckingham helped me tremendously, making time for lengthy discussions about theory, methodology, and the history of children’s media. His support has been invaluable.

After completing my dissertation I was happy to be welcomed to the Department of Media, Cognition and Communication at the University of Copenhagen. Now, after three exciting years, I am returning to a History department, this time at Aarhus University. I will miss my colleagues in the Film, Media and Communication Section whose questions and suggestions have influenced the final shape of this book. In particular I want to thank Christa Lykke Christensen for her generosity and overwhelming support for all my projects.

In 2015 I was a Visiting Fellow first at the Department of Childhood Studies at Rutgers University and then at the Graduate Centre for International Research in Childhood: Literature, Culture and Media at the University of Reading. I want to thank wholeheartedly Daniel Thomas Cook (Rutgers) and Karin Lesnik-Oberstein (Reading) for taking excellent care of me during both of these stays. The enthusiasm for this book’s central argument expressed by Sophie Heywood while I was in Reading provided me with a lot of much-needed energy.

As a young scholar I have been fortunate to have many senior academics show a genuine interest in my work. The way they have treated my project as a serious contribution to their fields has given me the courage to pursue new ideas. For their support and interest, I want to give special thanks to Anette Warring, Tora Korsvold, Gary Cross, Bengt Sandin and Lynn Schofield Clark.

The Editors of Children’s Literature, Culture and Cognition series have offered exceptional support for the demanding work of turning the dissertation into a proper manuscript. In particular Nina Christensen and Bettina Kümmerling-Meibauer have always made me believe in the book’s importance. Thanks are also due to the anonymous reviewers whose insightful comments first on the proposal and later on the full draft have helped me improve my argument.

Many friends have made a difference to the project with their support, questions and curiosity, but without the editing provided for the thesis by Katherine Meier and by Catherine McGing for the final draft of this book, there would have been no book in English. I thank them for their friendship, sharp pens and calming words during last minute panics.

I would never have completed my doctoral studies or this book were it not for the love, support and encouragement of my husband, Magnus Qvistgaard, and my son Jonathan. They make my life complete and I dedicate this book to them.