As an early literacy advocate, I am a huge proponent of graphic novels and comic books. Graphic novels can help hook reluctant readers, build visual literacy, and challenge students to read analytically. Do not let the presence of pictures fool you; as in picture books, there is often more to them that meets the eye. … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Hunt is On (Seekers of the Aweto Book 1)
Books for young readers help shape children’s minds, attitudes, and viewpoints. Hence it’s crucial for young readers to have the opportunity to hear diverse voices from around the world. Today’s impressionable, thoughtful young minds need to be aware of important issues and acts of historical or social justice. Graphic Novels Maus: A Survivor’s Tale From … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Fighting the Good Fight: Social Justice in Children’s (Translated) Books and Graphic Novels
“While countless women throughout history have made enormous contributions to the fields of science and technology, many of them, unfortunately, are not synonymous with the words “discovery” and “invention” in the minds of the general public.”Marie-Sophie Pawlak (President of "Elles bougent," the French society for the promotion of women in science) So reads the foreword … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Women Discoverers: Top Women in Science
In a Nutshell: Half a Lifelong Romance is set in the 1930s, the only clue of when the book is set, is a reference towards the end of the book, to the Battle of Shanghai, which started in August 1937: “the battle of Shanghai began in mid-august and the fighting was intense for three months.” … Continue reading Day 15: 🇨🇳 Half a Lifelong Romance
The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu translated from the Chinese by Ken Liu series: Remembrance of Earth’s Past (Book 1) Tor Books November 11, 2014 400 pages The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu translated from the Chinese by Joel Martinsen series: Remembrance of Earth’s Past (Book 2) Tor Books August 11, 2015 512 pages Death's … Continue reading Speculative Fiction in Translation: The Three-Body Trilogy
Picture books can be a wonderful source of stories and information about life in far-off places. The Moose of Ewenki is set in the mountains of Inner Mongolia, one of the few regions* in Northern Asia inhabited by the Indigenous Ewenki people. There, they lead a semi-nomadic way of life, raising reindeer and hunting in … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: The Moose of Ewenki
My Beijing: Four Stories of Everyday Wonder is a charming, whimsical graphic novel for readers ages 7-11. Illustrated with beautiful watercolors, the book consists of four heartwarming tales about a young disabled girl named Yu’er and her beloved, quirky grandfather by renowned Chinese author-illustrator, Nie Jun. My Beijing introduces English readers to Nie’s East-meets-West art and … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: My Beijing: Four Stories of Everyday Wonder
As I was editing yesterday’s post on Feather, I started to think about picture books I have recently read that have held surprises, either in their format or artwork – or both. At its simplest, the surprise can be the way a book opens: Horizontally or vertically? A magnificent example is A Lion in Paris … Continue reading Five Picture Books That Surprise and Delight
Sunflower is an only child, and when her father is sent to the rural Cadre School, she has to go with him. Her father is an established artist from the city and finds his new life of physical labor and endless meetings exhausting. Sunflower is lonely and longs to play with the local children in … Continue reading GLLI Translated YA Book Prize Shortlist: Bronze and Sunflower by Cao Wenxuan (China)
Andrea Lingenfelter’s translation of Mian Mian’s Candy is like reading Kathy Acker—it’s disgusting but also accessible in the sense that it’s like reading the work of a rock star. It’s unwilling to be understood, but the questions it poses about conformity and overindulgence makes for a rewarding read. Hong, the protagonist, narrates her story with … Continue reading International Banned Book Review: Candy by Mian Mian
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 