When Annick, an older teenager living in Amsterdam, learns that the grandmother who has raised her ever since her parents’ death in an accident, needs a bone marrow transplant, it leads her on a journey that will take her across oceans and continents, and almost 70 years into the past. Searching for a perfect match, … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Song of a Blackbird
by Jamie Richards Recently I attended a packed celebration of Simon Hanselmann’s work at the Museum of Modern Art in Los Angeles where he concluded by exhorting everyone to “read more comics!” in order to ensure the continuation of the art form. Despite being one of the only consistently growing sectors in the book industry, … Continue reading #ItalianLitMonth n.13: Italian Graphic Narrative in Translation
If there's one thing that captures the heart and soul of Taiwanese culture, it's the food—and believe me, this is a book that serves it up in style! As a self-confessed food lover (as you might have learned from the bio at the end of each post!), I’ve been eagerly waiting to share this post … Continue reading #TaiwanKidLitMonth: Taiwan Travelogue – A Culinary Journey Through History
It’s not easy moving to a new place away from family and friends and trying to settle into a new home and school. The middle grade graphic novel Ellie in First Position tackles all this, and more. The story opens with 10-year-old Electra, or Ellie for short, relocating to a new city with her mother … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Ellie in First Position
"Up for smashing the patriarchy?" "Yes!""Yeah!""But... What is the patriarchy, exactly?" So goes the opening dialogue in Smash the Patriarchy, a fabulous graphic novel for upper YA readers. The much-deserving winner of this year’s GLLI Translated YA Book Prize, it describes and defines terms such as “the male gaze,” “slut-shaming,” and, yes, “the patriarchy” with … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Smash the Patriarchy
The Bodyguard Unit: Edith Garrud, Women’s Suffrage, and Jujitsu is the engagingly told story of a lesser-known figure from an important part of 20th century history, Edith Garrud. A 2024 GLLI Translated YA Book Prize Honor Book, this superb nonfiction graphic novel connects the dots between women’s suffrage, their personal freedom, and their ability to … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Bodyguard Unit: Edith Garrud, Women’s Suffrage, and Jujitsu
Named to the 2024 Global Literature in Libraries Initiative Translated Young Adult Book Prize shortlist, The Boy from Clearwater tells the story of Tsai Kun-Lin, "an ordinary boy" born in Qingshui District on the western coast of Taiwan. Tsai Kun-Lin's story, however, is nothing short of extraordinary. It is a story of surviving military occupation, … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Boy from Clearwater, Book 1
Review by Susanne Abou Ghaida Note: This review is based on the French translation of this graphic memoir; all translations from French are mine. An English version, translated from Arabic by Nadiyah Abdullatif and Anam Zafar, was published by Balestier Press in 2023 under the title Yoghurt and Jam (or How My Mother Became Lebanese). … Continue reading #IntlYALitMonth Review: Yoghurt and Jam: Or how my mother became Lebanese
For all the hand wringing about young people not liking to read or even reading proficiently, there sure is a lot of gatekeeping by adults around what is and what is not appropriate for young people to read. Bracketing and suspending for a moment current book banning efforts in the United States, there are adults … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Movements and Moments
Myra Garces-Bacsal here. It’s Monday, What are You Reading is a meme hosted by Kellee and Ricki from Unleashing Readers (new host of Monday reading: Kathryn T at Book Date). Last week, I shared the books that found me during the recently concluded Emirates Airline Festival of Literature with the Magrudy's bookshop providing a delectable array of books … Continue reading #UAEReads – Monday Reading: International Comic Creators at the Emirates Lit Festival 2024
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 