Life and moral education in Greater China

Abstract

chapters are relevant. The result is a bibliography which not only focuses on sociocultural factors but also provides those new to the field with a comprehensive introduction to seminal and other useful works on children’s spirituality as a whole. Readers of annotated bibliographies can be forgiven for thinking that they are simple to compile. After all, they are effectively a summary of reading in a given field, organised into themes, annotated with the author’s comments. Yet compiling one is not an easy task. Readers may well argue that a certain publication should have been included, or that another should have been excluded, perhaps because it is not sufficiently aligned to the topic. Yet the issue of inclusion and exclusion (applicable to bibliographies irrespective of their subject matter) is compounded when, as in this case, the topic itself is difficult to define, but Eaude is fully cognisant of these circumstances. Although bibliographies differ from book chapters and articles in purpose and format, for example by not making a specific argument and not having a conclusion, they still provide insights into the state of research in the area. Here, Eaude regularly identifies omissions in the field, such as the lack of research: in non-Western cultures; on the effects of gender and ethnicity/race; and on systematically exploring the differences in spirituality across age groups, especially with very young children. In so doing, the work also provides a useful, overarching critique and identification of areas for future research. The fact that articles on different aspects of children’s spirituality are included in the database is welcome, and Eaude’s addition is a valuable one. He has provided a carefully crafted overview of relevant literature, which provides a detailed roadmap for all who are interested in the sociocultural aspects of children’s spirituality – both newcomers to the field and those who are already familiar with it – alongside a critique which identifies future avenues for research. Overall, Eaude’s bibliography certainly aligns with the publisher’s intention of being an authoritative guide to current scholarship.