Dr. Pádraic Whyte
Associate Prof in Children's Literature, English
Research Associate, Children's Research Centre
Biography
Pádraic is associate professor in children's literature, Director of Research, and a director of the Children's Literature MPhil programme at the School of English. He spent Spring of 2024 as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa researching the relationship between Ireland and Hawai'i in terms of storytelling, islands, and identities in children's literature. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of The Ark, a cultural centre for children. His current research interests include: Genders and Sexualities in Children's Literature; Children's Cultural Archives and Book Collections; Irish Children's Literature; and Creative Writing and Children's Literature. He is happy to hear from prospective PhD students and Postdoctoral candidates with an interest in these, or related, areas. He is currently PI on the LA-TRAC project - creating Living Archives for Teachers, Researchers, Artists, and Children. His co-edited collection, The Writings of Padraic Colum: `That Queer Thing, Genius' was published by Routledge in 2024. In 2022, he completed a research project funded by the Irish Research Council and the Department of the Taoiseach that explored the use of literature to foster empathy and understanding between various communities on the island of Ireland. He is co-editor of Children's Literature Collections: Approaches to Research (Palgrave, 2017) which won the International Research Society for Children's Literature Edited Book Award, 2019. Pádraic co-established Ireland's first full-time master's programme in children's literature; you can listen to podcasts he created with students from the MPhil programme as part of the International Literature Festival Dublin (2021).
He lectures on a range of topics at undergraduate and postgraduate level including genders and sexualities, children's film, critical approaches to children's literature (which includes Young Adult Literature), and Irish writing. His research focuses on myth and children's literature, genders and sexualities, LGBTQI+ children's literature, children's book collections, archives, theatre for children, and also 19th Century literature for children in Ireland.
He is the former Chair of the KPMG Children's Books Ireland Awards and was curator of the exhibition Upon the Wild Waves: A Journey through Myth in Children's Books which ran from Oct 2014 to Oct 2015 in the Long Room, Trinity Library. With the NCCB team he prepared the exhibition Come Closer: The Darker Side of Children's Books, which ran from Sept to Nov 2015 at Dublin City Library and Archive, Pearse Street. In 2018, he co-curated Story Spinners: Irish Women and Children's Books at Trinity Library's Long Room. He served on the executive committee of the Irish Society for the Study of Children's Literature for a number of years, and worked as curator of the Telling Tall and Tiny Tales literature programme at The Ark. He is a Research Associate at Trinity Research in Childhood Centre (TRICC), a peer reviewer for a number of international children's literature journals and Irish literature journals, an advisor to the Dutch Research Council, and a frequent consultant for the Arts Council of Ireland. He co-organised an event - `Same-Sex Relationships and Literature' - at TCD, which featured a keynote lecture by author Colm Tóibín titled `The Embrace of Love: Being Gay in Ireland Now'.
Publications and Further Research Outputs
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Genders and Sexualities in, editor(s)Keith O'Sullivan Jennifer Mooney Peter Hunt Gabriel Dukels , The Routledge Companion to Young Adult Literature, London and New York, Routledge, 2025, [Padraic Whyte]
Children's Novels After 1960 in, editor(s)Chris Morash , Cambridge History of the Irish Novel, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2025, [Pádraic Whyte]
Introduction in, editor(s)Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan , The Writings of Padraic Colum: 'That Queer Thing Genius', London and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2024, pp1 - 7, [Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan]
Rewriting Buile Suibhne: Storytelling and The Frenzied Prince in, editor(s)Padraic Whyte Keith O'Sullivan , The Writings of Padraic Colum: 'That Queer Thing, Genius', London and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2024, pp142 - 154, [Padraic Whyte]
Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan, The Writings of Padraic Colum: 'That Queer Thing, Genius', London and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2024, 1 - 162pp
House, Land, and Family Life: Children's Fiction and Irish Homes in, editor(s)Liam Harte , The Oxford Handbook of Modern Irish Fiction, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2020, pp387 - 404, [Pádraic Whyte]
Growing Up in Manhattan: Children's Literature and New York City in, editor(s)Ross Wilson , New York: A Literary History, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2020, [Padraic Whyte]
Firing for the Hearth: Storytelling, Landscape, and Padraic Colum's The Big Tree of Bunlahy in, editor(s)Keith O'Sullivan, Pádraic Whyte , Children's Literature Collections: Approaches to Research, London and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, pp145 - 161, [Pádraic Whyte]
A Place in the Canon: Padraic Colum's Newbery Books and the Development of American Children's Literature in, editor(s)Timothy Young , Story Time: Essays on the Betsy Reinecke Collection of American Children's Literature, New Haven, Yale University Press, 2017, pp139 - 155, [Pádraic Whyte]
Introduction in, editor(s)Keith O'Sullivan, Pádraic Whyte , Children's Literature Collections: Approaches to Research, London and New York, Palgrave, 2017, pp1 - 11, [Pádraic Whyte, Keith O'Sullivan]
Keith O'Sullivan and Pádraic Whyte, Children's Literature Collections: Approaches to Research, London and New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2017, 1 - 261pp
Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan, ' Website with Catalogue and Database - National Collection of Children's Books', TCD web nccb.tcd.ie, Trinity College Dublin, 2015, 1 - 200
Navigating Adolescence through the Streets of New York; 'I'll Get There. It Better be Worth the Trip' in, editor(s)Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan , Children's Literature and New York City, London and New York, Routledge, 2014, pp45 - 56, [Padraic Whyte]
Introduction in, editor(s)Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan , Children's Literature and New York City, London and New York, Routledge, 2014, pp1 - 5, [Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan]
Padraic Whyte and Keith O'Sullivan, Children's Literature and New York City, London and New York, Routledge, 2014, 1 - 206pp
Children's Literature in, editor(s)James Murphy , The Oxford History of the Irish Book , Vol. IV: The Irish Book in English, 1800-1890, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2011, pp518 - 530, [Padraic Whyte]
Young Adult Fiction and Youth Culture in, editor(s)Valerie Coghlan, Keith O'Sullivan , Irish Children's Literature: New Perspectives on Contemporary Writing, London and New York, Routledge, 2011, pp71 - 84, [Padraic Whyte]
Padraic Whyte, Irish Childhoods: Children's Fiction and Irish History, Newcastle, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2011, 1 - 220pp
Padraic Whyte, Morals and Nations: The Pollard Collection and 19th Century Literature for Children in Ireland', Irish Society for the Study of Children's Literature 2009, Dublin, 2009, 2009
Teenage Tantrums and Territorial Trauma; Mark O'Sullivan's 'Melody for Nora' in, editor(s)Valerie Coghlan and Mary Shine Thompson , Studies in Children's Literature; Divided Worlds, Dublin, Four Courts, 2007, pp120 - 129, [Padraic Whyte]
American Dreams and Irish Myths: John Sayles's 'The Secret of Roan Inish' in, editor(s)John Hill, Kevin Rockett , Studies in Irish Film, Dublin, Four Courts, 2006, [Padraic Whyte]
Escape From Fantasy Ireland; Martin Duffy's 'The Boy From Mercury' in, editor(s)John Hill, Kevin Rockett , Film History and National Cinema , Dublin, Four Courts, 2005, [Padraic Whyte]
Padraic Whyte, Glocalization: The Child Reader as Global Citizen, International Research Society for Children's Literature, 17th Congress, Trinity College Dublin, 2005
Wars of Independence: The Construction of Irish Histories in the Work of Gerard Whelan and Siobhán Parkinson in, editor(s)Celia Keenan, Mary Shine Thompson , Studies in Children's Literature 1500-2000, Dublin, Four Courts, 2004, [Padraic Whyte]
Padraic Whyte, Validating The Veracity: Narrative Voice and the Construction of Authentic Histories in Joan O'Neill's 'Daisy Chain War', New Review of Children's Literature and Librarianship , 10, (1), 2004
Padraic Whyte, History for the Present, Film and Film Culture, 1, (1), 2002, p24 - 35
Non-Peer-Reviewed Publications
Padraic Whyte, Padraic Colum to Aikane: Ireland, Hawai`i, and Retelling Myths for Children, The Center for Biographical Research, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, 14/03/2024, 2024, The Center for Biographical Research, University of Hawai'i at Manoa, 1 - 20pp
Padraic Whyte, 'An Post Irish Book Awards', RTE One, 2024, 1 - 5
Padraic Whyte, Reflecting on Children's Book of the Year Awards, INIS Magazine, 68, 2023, p10 - 11
Padraic Whyte, Keith O'Sullivan, Méabh Ní Choileáin, Jennifer Mooney, 'Padraic Colum: 50th Anniversary Celebration', https://dcu.mused.org/en/, https://dcu.mused.org/en/, Dublin City University, 2022, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, Reading Rooms: Fostering Constructive and Inclusive Dialogue Between Communities, 2022
Padraic Whyte, Curiouser and Curiouser: The Great Children's Book Quiz, International Literature Festival Dublin, Dublin, 24/05/2022, 2022, International Literature Festival Dublin
Sinead Moriarty, Padraic Whyte, Elizabeth Nixon, Reading Rooms: Fostering Constructive and Inclusive Dialogue Between Communities, TARA, August, 2022, p1 - 39
Padraic Whyte, Keith O'Sulivan, Padraic Colum: 50th Anniversary Celebration of his Life and Work, 11/01/2022, 2022, Trinity Long Room Hub
Pádraic Whyte, KPMG Book Awards, Inis Magazine, 2022, p8 - 12
Padraic Whyte, 'Award-Winning Books for Children', International Literature Festival Dublin, https://ilfdublin.com/whats-on/festival/strand/storymachine/storymachine-podcast-chapter-4-award-winning-books-for-children/, 2021, 1 - 2
Padraic Whyte, 'Exploring the Urban Jungle: the City in Children's Writing', International Literature Festival Dublin, International Literature Festival Dublin, https://ilfdublin.com/whats-on/festival/strand/storymachine/storymachine-podcast-chapter-3-rambling - 2021, 1 - 2
Padraic Whyte, Eilís Dillon, Eilís Dillon: Centenary Celebration, DLR Lexicon, March 2020, 2020
Pádraic Whyte et al, 'Story Spinners: Irish Women & Children's Literature', Trinity College Dublin, Google Arts & Culture, 2018, -
Padraic Whyte, Bold Girls: A Literary History of Wild Irish Girls, 2018, 2018, Trinity Long Room Hub
Padraic Whyte, Brighid Whyte, Paddy Whyte, 'Video with over 1 million views -Brighid and Paddy, Vote With Us', Vote With Us, https://youtu.be/Bv_FqRzFyXo, New York Times:https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/23/world/europe/for-one-irish-couple-backing-gay-marr, 2015, 1 - 2
Padraic Whyte, 'Same-sex relationships in children's literature', Newstalk Radio - The Right Hook, Newstalk, newstalk.com/Childrens-literature-and-young-adult-novels-that-look-at-samesex-relationshi, 2015, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, 'Upon the Wild Waves: A Journey through Myth in Children's Books - with online catalogue', Book of Kells Exhibition, Long Room, Trinity College Library, Dublin, TCD Library Website, 2015, 2014 - 2015
Padraic Whyte and NCCB Team, 'Come Closer: The Darker Side of Children's Books', National Collection of Children's Books, Dublin City Libraries, https://nccb.tcd.ie/exhibition, 2015, 1 - 20
Padraic Whyte, Are We There Yet? Same-Sex Relationships and Children's Literature, Children's Books Ireland, 2015, p5 - 8
Padraic Whyte, 'Children's TV: Upon the Wild Waves', RTE Television, 2015, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, Critical Theory and Children's Literature, Elphinstone College, Mumbai, February, 2014, TCD Global Relations, 1 - 18pp
Padraic Whyte, Critical Approaches to Children's Literature, St Stephen's College, Delhi, India, February, 2014, TCD Global Relations/ St Stephen's Literary Society, 1 - 18pp
Padraic Whyte, 'Children's Book of the Year Award Announcements', RTE Television, 2014, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, 'TG4 IMEALL - Interview about Upon the Wild Waves', Arts show, TG4 Television, 2014, 1 - 18
Padraic Whyte, Children's Literature in the Classroom, Jesus and Mary College, Delhi, India, February, 2014, TCD Global Relations/ JMC staff, 1 - 18pp
Padraic Whyte, 'Richard Dawkins and Fairytales', RTE Radio 1, Today with Sean O'Rourke, 2014, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, 'Robert Louis Stevenson', Talking Histories, Newstalk Radio, 2013, 1 - 15
Padraic Whyte, Chair of CBI Children's Book of the Year Award: Announcing Winners, 2013, Dublin, 2013, 1 - 10pp
Padraic Whyte, Children's Literature and 19th Century Ireland: An Exploration of the Pollard Collection of Children's Books', Queen's University Belfast, Queen's University Belfast, February 2013, 2013, Dr Crawford Gribben, 1 - 12pp
Padraic Whyte, The Pollard Collection of Children's Books: Constructing a History of Irish Children's Literature', Long Room Hub Library Lecture Series to mark the tercentenary of the Old Library, Trinity College, Trinity College Dublin, 2013, 1 - 40pp
Padraic Whyte, Betsy Beinecke Shirley Lecture on American Children's Literature; 'Children's Literature and New York City: A Whistle-Stop Tour', Betsy Beinecke Shirley Lecture on American Children's Literature;, Yale University, November 2012, 2012, Yale University, 1 - 30pp
Padraic Whyte, 'Telling Tall and Tiny Tales; Children's Books Exhibition - with catalogue', The Ark: A Cultural Centre for Children, catalogue, Dublin, The Ark, 2012, 2012 - 2013
Padraic Whyte, 'Roald Dahl', Talking Histories, Newstalk Radio, 2011, 1 - 12
Padraic Whyte, 'It's not the past that matters, it's the way you see it.' Ireland and children's fiction, National Library of Ireland, Dec 2011, 2011, National Library, 1 - 35pp
Elizabeth Nixon, Padraic Whyte, Joe Buggy, Sheila Greene, Discourses on Sexual Responsibility, Fatherhood and Masculinity Among Young Men from Lower Socio-Economic Groups , Dublin, Crisis Pregnancy Agency, 2010, p1 - 160
Padraic Whyte, James Patterson and Reading for Boys, Inis Magazine, Winter, 2009
Padraic Whyte, Adaptation and Authenticity; Filming Children's Literature, Inis Magazine, Summer, 2004
Research Expertise
Projects
- Title
- Storytelling, Islands, and Identities: Ireland and Hawai"i, 1924-2024
- Summary
- As a Fulbright Scholar, I explored the relationship between Ireland and Hawai"i in terms of storytelling, islands, and identities in children"s literature. I travelled to Hawai"i to mark the centenary of the publication of Padraic Colum"s collection of Hawaiian myths `At the Gateways of the Day" (1924) and spent time in the archives, analysing the complexities and controversies behind this publication.
- Funding Agency
- Fulbright
- Date From
- 13/01/24
- Date To
- 18/04/24
- Title
- The LA-TRAC Project
- Summary
- The LA"TRAC project is a collaboration between the Ark, a Cultural Centre for Children, and the School of English and seeks to establish a Living Archive for Teachers, Researchers, Artists, and Children. Guided by principles of equality, diversity, and inclusion as well as Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), the research project breaks new ground and asks " how do we go about creating living cultural archives for, about, and with children?
- Funding Agency
- Trinity Research Boost Programme
- Date From
- 1/07/24
- Date To
- 31/06/25
- Title
- The National Collection of Children's Books
- Summary
- He was co-recipient of a major Irish Research Council/Government of Ireland research grant to establish the National Collection of Children"s Books (NCCB) project. Along with Dr Keith O'Sullivan, Pádraic received funding of over €350,000 for an interdisciplinary and inter-institutional project to help establish Dublin as a world centre of children's literature research. Over a period of two years, a team of researchers documented children"s book collections held in Trinity College Library, the National Library of Ireland, the Church of Ireland College of Education Library, the Cregan Library, St Patrick"s College (DCU) and Dublin City Library and Archive, Pearse Street. Trinity"s Research Impact Unit published the NCCB Research Impact Case Study in 2022.
- Funding Agency
- Irish Research Council
- Date From
- 02/12/13
- Date To
- 01/12/15
- Title
- Reading Rooms: Fostering Constructive and Inclusive Dialogue Between Communities
- Summary
- This inter-disciplinary project sought to investigate and advance the potential of shared reading groups to promote purposeful and meaningful dialogue among Northern Ireland interface communities. Trinity College Dublin partnered with Verbal, a voluntary organisation with nearly 30 years" experience working to improve cross-community relations in Northern Ireland. The project aimed to design a new framework and identify suitable literary texts for cross-community groups; conduct a pilot shared reading group; seek feedback from participants on group processes in relation to health and well-being, literary texts, and shared futures; and present findings in a report.
- Funding Agency
- Irish Research Council/ Dept of Taoiseach
- Date From
- 01/12/2021
- Date To
- 31/09/2022
- Title
- Discourses on Sexual Responsibility, Fatherhood and Masculinity Among Young Men from Lower Socio-Economic Groups'
- Summary
- his research set out to explore sexual responsibility, experiences of fatherhood and constructions of masculinity among young men aged 17 to 25 years from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds in Ireland. The study was conducted against a backdrop of research that documents an important social-class dimension to sexual attitudes and behaviours. Lower socio-economic status and lower levels of education have been consistently associated with various indicators of risky sexual behaviour. Closely related to men"s sexual experiences is the possibility for men of becoming a father. Little research in Ireland has examined young men"s constructions of fatherhood, the influences on these constructions, or how men make the transition to fatherhood, especially following an unplanned pregnancy. This study seeks to address this gap.
- Funding Agency
- Crisis Pregnancy Agency
- Date From
- 2007
- Date To
- 2008
Recognition
Representations
Advisor and funding assessor for the Dutch Research Council: Committee member in the SSH Open Competition M 2022 of the Dutch Research Council.
Awards and Honours
Fulbright Scholar Award
International Research Society for Children's Literature Edited Book Award, 2019
Queen's University Institute of Irish Studies Research Fellowship, 2008-2009
Trinity Postgraduate Award
Memberships
International Research Society for Children's Literature
Children's Books Ireland