Posted on behalf of the World Kid Lit people Win International Books for your School Library! Do you have a Read the World display anywhere in your school? Have any students (or staff) in your school completed a reading challenge or reading project with an international dimension this year? If either is true, enter the … Continue reading #WorldKidLit: Schools’ International Reading Award 2026
In a dystopian parallel world, all people are governed by their Instincts and subjects of the totalitarian We. The instincts are complementary abilities that keep society running smoothly. There are Makers and Repairers, Helpers and Healers, Calculators and Welcomers, and more. The We’s rules include the principle “All instincts are equal,” but as in George … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: We
WHEW! Co-editing the Focus on Japan posts that appeared throughout September, #WorldKidLit Month, reminded us of the abundance of translations from Japan for young people. We can confirm with surety that if you hope to globalize the youth literature collection in your library, home, classroom, or bookshop, translations from Japan are available to you in … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month Focus on Japan: Keep Reading!
Today's post comes to you from Arthur Reiji Morris: The Forest of Wool and Steel by Natsu Miyashita / Translated by Philip Gabriel (Black Swan Books, 2020) The protagonist of The Forest of Wool and Steel is Toyama, a young man with an unconventional dream: to become a piano tuner. Of course, this isn’t the … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month: Four Japanese Novels About Relationships Suitable for Teen Readers
Today’s post comes to you from Zack Davisson: Every kid in Japan grows up on Shigeru Mizuki. He is the Yokai Hakase—the Yokai Professor—who educates the children of Japan on the folklore that is so elemental to their culture. Nearly every piece of popular Japanese entertainment, from Pokémon to One Piece to Godzilla to whatever … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month Focus on Japan: Shigeru Mizuki—The Yokai Professor
Today's post comes to you from Malavika Nataraj: A few years ago, I attended a concert where I heard an Okinawan all-women’s group sing melodious ballads about the rich, natural beauty of the Ryukyu Islands. The shaman-like lead singer, with her waist-length grey hair, played an ancient snakeskin sanshin. As the beautiful voices rose in … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month Focus on Japan: “The Girl with the White Flag” Opens a Hidden Door
Today’s post comes to you from Pudthila Srisontisuk: On a visit to the ‘recommended’ shelf at most book stores here in Bangkok, there always seems to be a row of translated fictional stories based in shops, cafés, convenience stores or laundromats. In a world where connections, transactions and communication are increasingly curated online, it is … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month Focus on Japan: Coffee, Counters and Cafés–Cozy Fiction for Teens
Today’s post comes to you from Holly Thompson: Not long ago, I was pleased to be in conversation with translator Jocelyne Allen about her translation of the bestselling novel Colorful by Eto Mori. Mori is an acclaimed Japanese author of award-winning children’s and YA books, including the novels Rizumu (Rhythm), Tsuki no fune (Moon Ship), … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month Focus on Japan: Talking about “Colorful: A Novel”
Today’s post comes to you from Alison Fincher: Go and The Color of the Sky Is the Shape of the Heart were not necessarily written for a young adult audience. In fact, Go won Japan’s top award for popular fiction for adults, the Naoki Prize, and The Color of the Sky was short-listed for Japan’s … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Asking “Who Am I?” in Two Novels about Japanese Young Adults
Today's post comes to you from Holly Thompson: The Deer King Vol. 1 Survivors; The Deer King Vol. 2 Returners by Nahoko Uehashi / Translated by Cathy Hirano; cover art by Masaaki Yamamoto; map art by Yui Ohara (Yen Press 2023; 2024) Author Nahoko Uehashi is a giant in Japanese young adult fantasy literature. A … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Month: Two Riveting Duologies from East Asia
