For those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere, it's currently winter, which is my favorite season. Yes, I may have been born in the Caribbean, but I feel more at ease when it is colder outside. I can wear cozy clothes, avoid the sun, and not contend with the oppressive humidity of the southern … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Winter Train
YA fantasy novel The Beast Warrior takes place about a decade after its award-winning prequel, The Beast Player.* In The Beast Warrior, mixed-heritage protagonist Elin is now a full-fledged Beast Player (a field that combines veterinarian with naturalist) and has had a son with her husband, Ialu. As the book opens, their feudal, agrarian nation is … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Beast Warrior
A joyous, gentle picture book for readers 4-8, Every Color of Light paints a paean to the colors of nature and the natural world. While it’s a quiet book in the traditional sense, its pages are filled with noise and motion, from whipping wind and thundering rain to flickering stars. Nature’s poetry springs alive on … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Every Color of Light
“Would you like to come with me on a journey beyond the stars?” So asks a friendly flying whale that young Ida meets when she’s half asleep. Who could resist such an enticing invitation? Not I. Nor Ida. And so we enter a dreamy fantasy world as we join Ida and the whale on their … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Ida and the Whale
This post is published simultaneously on Chinese Books for Young Readers Kirkus reviewer Rachel Yung-Hsin Wang has lived and worked in many parts of the world, and is something of a polyglot. Earlier this year she completed an MFA in Writing for Children at Simmons University, having won a Lee & Low and Simmons Friends … Continue reading Interview with Rachel Yung-Hsin Wang
Can You Hear the Trees Talking?: Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest is a fascinating, informative, nonfiction book about the wonderful ecology of forests. Written by forester and global advocate Peter Wohlleben, it’s full of appealing color illustrations, quizzes, sidebars, and activities. All laid out in two-page spreads perfectly geared to readers age 8-12, … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Can You Hear the Trees Talking?: Discovering the Hidden Life of the Forest
Set in a post-Rupture steampunk world, A Winter’s Promise and The Missing of Clairdelune by Christelle Dabos tell the story of Ophelia, a member of the Anima ark who can animate objects. Unassuming, clumsy, and shy, Ophelia has two major talents and life passions. First, she is a superb object “reader,” i.e., she can view … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: A Winter’s Promise/ The Missing of Clairdelune
In Brown, a spare, quirky, satisfying book for middle grade readers, we meet Rusty, aka superhero Brown, at a rocky time in his life. His grandfather dies soon after his family moves to be nearby. A group of three bullies—including the minister’s son—destroy the fort that Rusty and his friend Jack have been building. Rusty … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: Brown
There was once a town filled with people so wise that a body of Jewish folklore developed around their wisdom. Except, of course, they weren’t wise at all. Indeed, they were absolutely, thigh-slappingly, heart-stoppingly foolish—which is where much of the fun lies in the Chelm stories.* In The Sages of Chelm and the Moon**, Shlomo … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: The Sages of Chelm and the Moon
An epistolary novel. A beautiful story with a strong female protagonist. The stand-alone conclusion to a trilogy. Maresi: Red Mantle by Maria Turtschaninoff is all of these. It’s also the co-winner of the 2020 GLLI Translated YA Book Prize—and deservedly so, as it’s a fabulous read. Set in an agrarian, mostly pre-literate, fantasy world, Red … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: Maresi: Red Mantle
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 