Review by: Wendy Guyer The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar As a sixteen-year-old, Nishat already has a lot going on in her life: balancing the demands of her Bangladeshi family, the demands of her Catholic high school, the demands of her social life in her town of Dublin, Ireland, and her own desire to come … Continue reading #INTLYALITMONTH: The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
#MadagascarLitMonth: Johary Ravaloson interviewed by Abhay K.
In this interview, novelist Johary Ravaloson tells Abhay K., the guest editor of Global Literature in Libraries Initiative for #MadagascarLitMonth about his novel Return to the Enchanted Island, translated into English by Allison M. Charette, why did he write the book, how long did it take to write it, surprises he came across while writing … Continue reading #MadagascarLitMonth: Johary Ravaloson interviewed by Abhay K.
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Fighting the Good Fight: Social Justice in Children’s (Translated) Books and Graphic Novels
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
The Booktrekker: Japan
READ One thing I’m enjoying about this reading-the-world project is that it’s nudging me to read international authors I’ve always heard about, but have never read. In the case of Japan, I finally read a book by bestselling author Haruki Murakami – Norwegian Wood, translated by Jay Rubin. As the novel opens, 37-year-old Toru Watanabe is … Continue reading The Booktrekker: Japan
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Trees for the Absentees
Being a teenager is hard enough as it is. Layer in the loss of a beloved grandparent, gossiping relatives, a father who is a political prisoner, and the trauma of centuries of military occupation, and perhaps the only way to make sense of everything is to resort to the fantastical. Trees for the Absentees is … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Trees for the Absentees
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Wonderful Feels Like This
Writing fiction about music can be tricky. Music is sound in time; it speaks to our brains at a pre-verbal level. As a result, using words to describe music can be hard and the literature is littered with near-misses. So it’s a great pleasure as a musician to read a well-written novel centered around music … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Wonderful Feels Like This
#WorldKidLit Wednesday: A Winter’s Promise/ The Missing of Clairdelune
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
#WorldKidLitWednesday: Witch Hat Atelier, v. 1
What if the thing you most yearned to do was an innate ability? And you weren’t one of the lucky ones born with it? That’s the set up for Witch Hat Atelier, a wonderful YA coming-of-age manga series by Kamome Shirahama, translated by Stephen Kohler, the first volume of which just won an Eisner Award for the … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: Witch Hat Atelier, v. 1
#WorldKidLitWednesday: Kiki’s Delivery Service
Make way for Kiki! A beloved children’s classic in Japan ever since it was originally published in 1985, Kiki’s Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono has been out of print in English translation for over a decade, despite its continuing fame via Hayao Miyazaki’s animated adaptation. And adaptation it is: there are significant differences between the book and the movie. … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: Kiki’s Delivery Service
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 