Between Swords and Wings: The Fantastic Imaginary and the Valorization of Northeastern Brazilian Childhood in Ana e os piratas do novo mundo

This article explores the children’s novel Ana e os piratas do novo mundo by Lucas Peixoto Dantas through the lenses of myth criticism, fantastic literature, and childhood pedagogy. Drawing upon archetypal storytelling structures, Catholic symbolism, and the orality of Northeastern Brazilian culture, the study reveals how the novel subverts traditional pirate fiction by centering a female, part-fairy protagonist on a magical journey rooted in regional identity and emotional resilience. Blending theory and literary analysis, the article argues that Dantas’s work not only revitalizes the pirate genre, but also provides meaningful pedagogical tools to affirm childhood as a space of hope, agency, and cultural memory. Keywords: children’s literature, fantasy, pirate fiction, Brazilian Northeast, myth, pedagogy, cultural identity