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Day 27: Two gone, two left

I have had a very nice weekend since I last wrote, including a trip to the local shopping centre and a last art gallery trip. The local shopping centre is big and it was busy. As there is no Sunday shopping here I guess everyone has to do their shopping on Saturdays. Things are expensive so not too much money was spent, but it is always interesting looking.  Several people had recommended Lenbachhaus for my last art gallery. It contains a collection from the Blue Rider, and expressionist painting group who included Kandinsky and Gabriele Munter who lives in Munich for some time. Their work is gloriously colourful which was a nice counterpoint to the grey day. http://www.lenbachhaus.de/ausstellungen/sammlungspraesentation/der-blaue-reiter/

Yesterday (Monday) was a day of writing for me. I have three journal articles on the go, and I like to roam from one to the other, a bit like a bee with flowers, I like to think. And, yes, cross pollination does occur! It is wonderful having all the books I need at hand so I can refer to them as needed. After lunch we had a round table discussion so we could all share our work thus far with the people who work here and have a  discussion. Jose from Spain, told us all about his work looking at how scientists are represented in children’s books. Overall, while some stereotypes were present, it wasn’t as limited as he feared, especially for young children’s literature. But in the YA category of illustrated books ( comics and graphic novels), there was a lot more stereotypes of the ‘mad scientist’ which worried him as this is the time period when young people decide what career is for them. He is interested in how scientists are portrayed in children’s literature because he believes this influences children about whether to become a scientist. Yue from Australia told us about the different versions of the Monkey King myth she has found, including picturebooks, graphic novels and novels, and how different aspects of the myth are emphasised for different audiences. That was really interesting. The Monkey King myth is a common one around Asia, and I remember seeing it being acted out many times in Thailand. http://www.visiontimes.com/2016/11/02/famous-chinese-legends-the-story-of-the-monkey-king.html

Jose and his wife Katalina (who is a children’s author) have now left and it feels sad to see them go. They were fun. Yue and I soldier on, but she is leaving today, so I will be keeping myself busy getting ready for my time in Strasbourg, leaving this Friday.

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