In Hunt's thesis, he refers to the "concerns of a culture" by which he means adults and not children since they are the ones who write, publish and purchase children's books. This essay discusses Hunt's statement with reference to Mortal Engines, The Other Side of the Truth, and Junk. Examine what assumptions these books challenge and how the authors use their art to persuade the reader to reevaluate their own assumptions and ideology by changing their idioms in the process. What the books reflect on current theories surrounding concepts of childhood and a discussion of the reasons why the authors choose to challenge cultural concerns. Hunt makes his point with Treasure Island by showing that the conservative plot reflects conventional 19th century idealism but is really about corruption and ambiguity. These same elements are evident in Mortal Engines: with the corrupt adults of Chrome and Valentine, who invert the typical heroic role to a woman contrasted with a comical and ineffectual male protagonist along with the critical position of colonization in the modern format of urban expansion. Reeves parodies Stevenson's Long John Silver (2008) in Chrysler Peavey (Dawson, 2009), the dapper pirate who implores Tom to "make us into a gentleman" (Reeve, 2009, p135). His homage to Stevenson (2008) culminates with a battle of historians disguised as brigands against the engineers but then reverses the brigands' just cause. This reversal highlights Reeve's main challenge to the beliefs and ideas surrounding science and particularly technology (Dawson, 2009). It does so through intertextuality, pastiche and parody by creating animalized cities, which in the true Darwinian tradition evolve through selective consumption (Sambell, 2009...... middle of paper ......(2009) Mortal Engines, Southam, Scholastic Children's Books Sambell, K. (2009) 'Carnivalising the future: Mortal Engines', in Montgomery H and Watson N (eds), Children's Literature Classic Text and Contemporary Trends, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan in association with Open University, pp.374-387 .Stephens, J.(2009) 'And it's so real, versions of reality in Melvin Burgess's Junk' in Montgomery H and Watson N (eds), Children's Literature Classic Text and Contemporary Trends , Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan in association with Open University, pp.320-329.Stevenson, R. (2008) Treasure Island, New York (USA), Oxford PressThe Open University (2009) E300 Children's Literature, 'DVD 1: Children's Literature ', Milton Keynes, The Open UniversityThe Open University ( 2009) E300 Children's Literature, 'DVD 2: Children's Literature', Milton Keynes, The Open University