#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Grandma’s Roof Garden

In our big, bustling hometown in southwest China,On the top floor of an apartment tower, lives an old grandma.A weather-worn apron covers her cornflower blue blouse,And she putters about town, lugging her little cart around. In Grandma’s Roof Garden, a delightful, heartwarming picture book for ages 4-8, we meet an eccentric, energetic grandmother. With enviable … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Grandma’s Roof Garden

#IntlYALitMonth Review: Blue Squared

Review by Melitta von Pflug Please be advised that this review includes references to eating disorders and suicide. Silence keeps the structure of us from falling apart.  That was how things worked in the unnamed protagonist’s family in this verse novel from Hong Kong by Luna Orchid, Blue Squared. For readers with experience growing up in an Asian household, … Continue reading #IntlYALitMonth Review: Blue Squared

Welcome to #Veganuary

My name is Abdourahamane Ly, I am a vegan animal rights activist from Guinea and this month I am guest curating #Veganuary for the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative. Veganuary is an annual challenge created by an organization in the UK encouraging people to adopt a vegan lifestyle for the month of January. I will … Continue reading Welcome to #Veganuary

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: ¡Vamos! Let’s Cross the Bridge

Wolf Little Lobo and his rooster sidekick Kooky Dooky are back! Raúl the Third (Raúl Gonzalez) continues his award-winning bilingual ¡Vamos! series with ¡Vamos! Let’s Cross the Bridge. As in the first two volumes for readers age 4-7, the third bustles with cross-cultural Tex-Mex action and zany illustrations. All three books have brought Raúl the … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: ¡Vamos! Let’s Cross the Bridge

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: Sato the Rabbit

A surreal symphony of vibrant colors and images, Sato the Rabbit* is a whimsical trilogy of picture books for readers age 4-8: One day, Haneru Sato became a rabbit. He's been a rabbit ever since. He likes stars, the ocean, and tasty treats. He likes lots of other things, too. What young child hasn’t imagined … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: Sato the Rabbit

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: ¡Vamos! Let’s Go to the Market & ¡Vamos! Let’s Go Eat

Imagine a bilingual Richard Scarry Busytown crossed with The Magic School Bus. Mix in Mexican culture with an old-time comics flair. Add several large tablespoons of zaniness and a quart of cleverness… and you’ll still be missing the secret sauce that makes Raúl the Third’s ¡Vamos! picture book series so fabulous.* The first, ¡Vamos! Let’s Go … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: ¡Vamos! Let’s Go to the Market & ¡Vamos! Let’s Go Eat

#WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Best Meal Ever!

Set in Gugulethu and signalling to the persisting inequalities that define both this Apartheid-era established township and South Africa as a whole, The Best Meal Ever! by Sindiwe Magona is a heart-warming story of hope amidst trying times. Written for children ages 7-9, this picture book features beautiful watercolor illustrations by Paddy Bouma. The story … Continue reading #WorldKidLit Wednesday: The Best Meal Ever!

#WorldKidLitWednesday: Francesco Tirelli's Ice Cream Shop

Very few people have heard of Francesco Tirelli, one of the multitude of unsung heroes and heroines of World War II. Nor have they heard about how this Italian gelato aficionado emigrated to Hungary, opened a successful ice cream parlor in the middle of Budapest, and, years later, quietly saved many of his Jewish friends … Continue reading #WorldKidLitWednesday: Francesco Tirelli's Ice Cream Shop