Book co-edited by Dahlen recognized by ChLA

Sarah Park Dahlen
Sarah Park Dahlen, Associate Professor

A book edited by Associate Professor Sarah Park Dahlen and Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, associate professor in the University of Michigan's Marsal Family School of Education, has received the Children's Literature Association (ChLA) Edited Book Award. The annual award recognizes the contributions of an outstanding edited collection of essays to children's literature history, scholarship, and criticism. According to ChLA, eligible titles must "make a distinct or significant contribution to our understanding of children's literature from a literary, cultural, historical, or theoretical perspective."

In Harry Potter and the Other: Race, Justice, and Difference in the Wizarding World (University Press of Mississippi, 2022), Dahlen, Thomas, and 17 other scholars examine how the original Wizarding World in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series depicts diverse identities, social subjectivities, and communities. The collection also received a starred review from School Library Journal and was included in the Professional Reading section of School Library Journal's "34 Standout Titles, Including Books in Translation and the Latest by Malinda Lo & Aida Salazar."

"Ebony and I are thankful that our book received this important recognition," said Dahlen. "We hope visibility for the book continues to push forward important conversations about race, justice, and difference in the wizarding world and beyond."

Dahlen's research addresses transracially adopted Koreans in youth literature, Asian American youth literature, and diversity in children's literature and library education. She is co-editor of the open access journal Research on Diversity in Youth Literature, with Sonia Alejandra Rodríguez. Dahlen received her PhD in library and information science from the iSchool at Illinois. 

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Student award recipients announced

The School of Information Sciences recognized student award recipients at the iSchool Convocation on May 18. Awards are based on academic achievements as well as attributes that contribute to professional success. For more information about each award, including past recipients, visit the Student Awards page. Congratulations to this year's honorees!

Education of Things named a SHARP Book Prize finalist

A book by Associate Professor Elizabeth Hoiem, The Education of Things: Mechanical Literacy in British Children's Literature, 1762-1860, has been named a finalist for the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing (SHARP) Book History Book Prize. 

Elizabeth Hoiem

iSchool alumni and student named 2025 Movers & Shakers

Two iSchool alumni and an MSLIS student are included in Library Journal's 2025 class of Movers & Shakers, an annual list that recognizes 50 professionals who are moving the library field forward as a profession. Leah Gregory (MSLIS '04) was honored in the Advocates category, Billy Tringali (MSLIS '19) was honored in the Innovators category, and University Library Assistant Professor and Digital Humanities Librarian Mary Ton (current MSLIS student) was honored in the Educators category.

Spectrum Scholar Spotlight: Dalia Ortiz Pon

Twelve iSchool master's students were named 2024–2025 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This "Spectrum Scholar Spotlight" series highlights the School's scholars. MSLIS student Dalia Ortiz Pon earned her bachelor's degree in Latina/Latino studies from San Francisco State University. 

Dalia Ortiz Pon