Examination of Can Goknil's children's books in terms of basic principles of children's literature

Children's literature is a vital field in which children are introduced to books from an early age and support the development of their target audience with works of artistic value, in a process that extends to adolescence. In order to develop the love and habit of reading among child readers and to encourage them to adopt the reading culture, it is necessary to introduce children to qualified children's literature and to ensure that books have an important place in their lives. Works of children's literature are oral and written products that appeal to children's developmental characteristics, imagination, emotions, thoughts and aesthetic tastes. In addition to conveying social values, such works play an important role in the process of teaching the riches of the native language and educating children. Can Göknil is a productive artist who is known as a painter and has important works in the field of children's literature. The aim of this study is to evaluate Can Göknil's children's books in terms of the basic principles of children's literature. Document analysis, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the study. Descriptive analysis was performed on the data obtained. The scope of the study consists of nineteen children's books written by the author. The books were analyzed under two main headings in terms of format and content features. In terms of format features, size, paper, cover-binding, page layout, letters, and pictures; in terms of content features, the topics such as subject, theme, heroes, language and expression, message, and environment were emphasized. In the study, evaluations were made based on the basic principles that should be present in children's literature products. According to the results of the review, it was concluded that Can Göknil's children's books generally comply with the basic principles of children's literature in terms of form and content features. In addition, it has been determined that the books have a quality that can help children develop reading habits, have high literary value, and provide artistic and aesthetic pleasure.