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What we're missing: Gems of world kid lit #2

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What we're missing: Gems of world kid lit #2

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It is my supreme pleasure to welcome back again to the blog David Jacobson. As you might recall, David began a series on this blog to shine some attention on issues in the field of children's literary translation. His previous post Beyond 3 Percent: Translation Children's Literature in the U.S. came out at the end of last year. Today, his co-authors are Minjie Chen (originally of China), Jongsun Wee (originally of Korea), and Reiko Nakaigawa Lee (originally of Japan).

Many thanks to all four authors for the following piece:

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The Japan-China-Korea Peace Picture Book Project
by David Jacobson, Minjie Chen, Reiko Nakaigawa Lee, and Jongsun Wee
During 2005 and 2006, amidst a sharp deterioration of Japan's relations with her Asian neighbors, four Japanese picture book authors and illustrators called on their colleagues in China and Korea to address their mutual lack of trust-with picture books. Their intent was to "document the past honestly, share today's sorrow, and create a peaceful tomorrow together." The result was the Japan-China-Korea Peace Picture Book Project, comprising 11 titles - 4 from Japan, 3 from China, and 4 from Korea - to be translated and published in all three countries.

The writers and illustrators from each country shared their work prior to publication and made comments on each other's drafts. According to Japanese participant Keiko Hamada, it seemed as if each writer had to rewrite his or her manuscript as many as 10 times!

We will highlight several books from the series, as well as discuss some of the issues that were faced in the three countries in this ambitious and sensitive project.
Korea
The first of the series was Flower Grandma (꽃할머니) by Korean author-illustrator Kwon Yoon-duck. Published in Korean in 2010, it is based on the true-life story of Shim Dal-yeon, who had campaigned for years on behalf of tens of thousands of Korean "comfort women", a euphemism for the young girls forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II. Their plight was not acknowledged by the Japanese government until the 1990s, thanks to Shim Dal-yeon and other survivors. The title refers to Shim's love of flowers, which she also brought to her campaigning.

Initially, Doshinsha, the Japanese publisher that had courageously agreed to release all the titles in the series, said it would "of course" publish a book about a comfort woman, despite knowing that controversy might ensue. But the illustration of Japanese soldiers directly abducting girls proved to be an issue over which Kwon and Doshinsha could not agree. This is something the current Japanese government vehemently denies happened. Doshinsha seems to have worried about being sued and whether it would incur right-wing harassment, and ultimately decided not to publish Flower Grandma.

Doshinsha's concerns are understandable. Publishers have come in the crosshairs of the Japanese government, which has taken an increasingly hard-line stance on the comfort women issue. In 2015, the conservative government of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe even put pressure on U.S. publisher McGraw Hill to remove a passage about comfort women in a textbook used by high schools in California.

Thanks, however, to the determination of the Japanese initiators of the project, Korocolor Publishers, a small publishing house founded by an anti-hate speech activist, agreed to publish Flower Grandma in Japanese. It raised the necessary funds through a successful crowdfunding effort, which brought in 1.88 million yen ($17,226) from only 202 individuals, and the Japanese version was finally released in April 2018. Sadly, Shim Dal-yeon died in 2010, and never saw the book, but her story lives on.

When Shim was thirteen years old, she and her sister were abducted while digging for edible grass in a field. They were forced into a truck, then transported by ship, along with other Korean girls. She did not know where they were being taken, but after several days and nights, she found herself at a "comfort station."

Kwon illustrates Shim's extremely sad historical trauma with soft color tones. She depicts the sexual abuse by the Japanese military by presenting faceless soldiers identified only by their uniforms. Her illustrations include details of the inhumane living conditions of the comfort women, and of their subsequent rejection by Korean society when they returned. In an interview, Kwon disclosed that in a later edition, she had to change her illustrations of the two soldiers who abducted Flower Grandma to make them look like civilians. Kwon's journey to creating Flower Grandma was later made into a documentary film in 2013 titled "The Big Picture" by Kwon Hyo.
China
Out of the 11 titles, 3 are not yet available in Chinese. The exact reasons for the delay are not known, but a Japanese source close to the Project suggests that war-era slogans in Seiichi Tabata's Cherry Blossoms 「さくら」may have been a sticking point for the Chinese publisher - the publisher requested they be removed, but Tabata was not willing to do so. The other two titles, both from Korea and among the last in the series to be completed, might have been affected by China's official policy to reduce the number of imported children's books. The source believes the Chinese publisher has no objections to their content, and that they may still be released.

Like Flower Grandma, the Chinese titles in the Peace Picture Book Series draw heavily upon personal stories to reimagine wartime life. They join a growing body of Chinese children's literature that moves away from idealizing heroic military combat in favor of depicting the civilian experience during World War II.

For example, Blazing City: 1938 (火城：一九三八) is about the destruction of the ancient city of Changsha by fire during the war. The author Cai Gao, a native of Changsha, and a veteran producer of picture books, has blended her grandfather, uncle, and aunt's accounts of the great fire with her own childhood memory of the city and teamed up with her daughter Cai Aozi to illustrate the book.

The year is 1938. Chinese cities have fallen one by one into the grip of the Japanese army. Residents in Changsha are packing and getting ready to evacuate. However, in the dead of night, fire tears through the city, blazing for days before reducing it to a vast expanse of scorched ruins. The story is narrated by a little girl who yearns to reunite with her soldier father but relishes her life in the bustling city. In alignment with the young narrator's limited knowledge, the book does not delve into the cause of the tragic fire (The Chinese army planned the fire itself in a desperate attempt to minimize resources that might be seized by the advancing army, but apparently lost control in execution). Dark brown charcoal drawings present the city in busy panoramic views, capturing the comforting warmth of life before the disaster, the escalating chaos, and the nightmarish, unrecognizable ruin in the aftermath.
Japan
One of the big supporters of publishing Flower Grandma, and the originator of the idea of the Peace Picture Book Series, is Japan's Seizo Tashima. A prominent author-illustrator since the 1960s, Tashima is currently on the short list for the 2020 Hans Christian Andersen Award. [disclosure: David Jacobson helped in the preparation of Tashima's dossier for his 2018 application for the Hans Christian Andersen Award].

Tashima's contribution to the Peace Picture Book Series is Can You Hear My Voice?「ぼくのこえがきこえますか」, which is on the 2018 Hans Christian Andersen Award Committee's recommended list. In contrast to the Korean and Chinese titles, Tashima presents an abstract depiction of an anonymous boy's experience in the war, described in very simple terms. "'Fight for our country!' the people urged. And so I went to war. Only my mother cried." Very early in the text the boy is killed by a bomb, after which his brother goes to war too, fired by a thirst for revenge. He also dies, and the narrator, now a spirit, leaves us with an impassioned plea: "For whom do you kill? For whom are you killed? For what do you die?"

The accompanying watercolor illustrations are abstract and stark; they stand out conspicuously from the others in the series but underline the author's heart-felt message. "I thought that I could make an appeal," Tashima says, "not only to children but adults, to transcend differences of nation and ethnicity in protest of the cruelty of war. I believe it is a work that would not have been possible in any other media than the picture book."

What, truly, is peace? We don't make war. We don't drop bombs. We don't destroy houses and towns. Because we want to be together with our friends and loved ones. We want to be able to sing our favorite songs in front of others. Peace means it was good that I was born. And it was good that you were born. And that you and I can be friends.

That is the message-and a synopsis of much of the text-in Keiko Hamada's What Is Peace? 「へいわってどんなこと？」. The book has sold 110,000 copies in Japan. Originally translated into simplified Chinese script by Yilin Press in 2012, it is not currently available on store shelves in mainland China but is expected to be reprinted. This past December, however, it was re-released in a new translation in traditional Chinese script by Cotton Tree Publishing House in Hong Kong, which felt an urgent need to introduce it to the children of Hong Kong, amidst the ongoing political tumult there.

Interestingly, Hamada edited her piece drastically before final publication, as a result of collaboration with the other members of the Peace Picture Book Project. Initially, she wrote the text in the passive voice, from what she considered to be a child's point of view. Peace is where "Jet fighters don't come. Bombs don't fall" and where "No houses or towns are destroyed," she wrote. But the Korean authors and editors told her that Asian readers wouldn't accept that text, because they would see it as Japan portraying itself, yet again, as the victim of war, not the perpetrator.

Though she knew, of course, the appalling history of Japan's occupation of Asia, Hamada was totally shocked by the comments. But after long and deep consideration, she realized that children are actually more independent than she gave them credit for and can instinctively feel each life as precious and equal. Children could even tell grown-ups not to start wars. So she changed the narration to the active voice.

Hamada selected yellow as the symbol of peace in this book. It is the color of light, the image of hope, she says. Using simple words and images from children's daily lives, she shows us that peace is not just the absence of war, but also the ability to live freely, without discrimination or oppression.

From its inception, the founders of the Peace Picture Book Project have wanted to expand the project beyond Japan, China and Korea. To date, however, only two of the titles have been published in English or outside East Asia: Cai's Blazing City (Xanadu Publishing Ltd, 2016) andUk-Bae Lee's When Spring Comes to the DMZ, translated by Chungyon Won and Aileen Won (Plough Publishing House, 2019). For additional summaries of books included in the project scroll to the end of this post on Chinese Books for Young People, a blog co-hosted by Helen Wang, Minjie Chen, and Anna Gustafsson Chen.

David Jacobson is a writer, Japanese translator, and author of Are You an Echo? The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko. A board member of the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative, he is currently researching the biographies of Beate Sirota Gordon and Jella Lepman.

Minjie Chen is a librarian at Princeton University's Cotsen Children's Library and author of The Sino-Japanese War and Youth Literature: Friends and Foes on the Battlefield. She writes about Chinese children's reading materials at the Cotsen Curatorial Blog.

Reiko Nakaigawa Lee specializes in translating children's literature from English to Japanese. She co-translated Newbery Medal honor recipient Lauren Wolk's Wolf Hollow as well as titles in the popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Wonder series. Now living in Hong Kong, she assisted with the 2019 translation and re-publication of Keiko Hamada's What Is Peace? in Chinese.

Jongsun Wee is associate professor of elementary and early childhood education at Winona State University in Winona, MN. In the summer of 2019, she studied picture books about war as a fellow at the International Youth Library in Munich, Germany.

Next time: A look at a graphic novel about divorce by a prominent Greek political caricaturist, and a novel about an 8-year-old Swiss boy who suffers from a rare condition: having dreams so vivid dreams that they spill into his life.

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Guest Post: What We're Missing: Gems of World Kid Lit #2. - A Fuse #8 Production

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It is my supreme pleasure to welcome back again to the blog David Jacobson. As you might recall, David began a series on this blog to shine some attention on issues in the field of children's literary translation. His previous post Beyond 3 Percent: Translation Children's Literature in the U.S.

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Unite for Literacy provides free digital access to picture books, narrated in many languages. Literacy is at the core of a healthy community, so we unite with partners to enable all families to read with their young children.

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Diversifying our libraries is a beginning, not an end.

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NOTE: This post was originally published and written for Literacy Today, a publication of the International Literacy Association (ILA). Click on the image at the right to download or print a PDF of…

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Picture Book Biographies of Women Who Made History

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Picture Book Biographies of Women Who Made History

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From the New York Times, a definitely multicultural and a little bit international list of picture books about the women who have changed our world.

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Picture Book Biographies of Women Who Made History (Published 2019)

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For Women’s History Month — and all year long — these chronicles of the lives of Pura Belpré, Wilma Mankiller, Leonora Carrington and Anna Atkins are needed reminders of women’s achievements.

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What I love about this site is that you can find traditional tales, in their entirety, from all over the world. Would be useful for any classroom exploring global fairytales.

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Listen to hundreds of fairy tale audiobooks with the Fairytalez audio app. No ads and you can listen offline. Download today!

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Provides background information on Native American traditional tales, including the types of stories. Includes links to websites where you can find tales from specific tribal regions within the United States.

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The tribes who lived in the Western Hemisphere before the coming of the Europeans were as different from each other as the countries that came to claim their lands. The many stories of the people who farmed, hunted, and herded in the plains, forests, deserts, and hills of what we call North America tell how they saw the Universe and the wisdom that they found in Nature.

The writers of Virginia's SOLs (Standards of Learning) have chosen to divide the hundreds of different tribes into groups according to where they lived: the Eastern Woodlands, the Great Plains, the Southwest, the Northwest Coast, and the Arctic region. Our booklist of American Indian folktales has stories from different regions.

CRRL Kids: American Indian Folktales

List created by CRRLKids
Things to Know
Before choosing a story based on a tribe's location, remember that a tribe that lives in the Great Plains today may have been relocated there a century ago.

For example, the Cherokee Indians were pushed out of their lands in Georgia and elsewhere and moved far west to Indian Territory after the Indian Removal Act of 1830. For storytellers, this means that traditional tales might mention animals and places that were important to the hearts and memories of people but were no longer to be seen in their new homes.

American Indian is an interesting way to describe the people who lived here before the coming of the Europeans. There's a story behind all of it, of course. America was named after Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian explorer during the early 1500s. Columbus, looking for the spice-rich land of India, was bound and determined to call the people he found Indians in what he called the Indies. So American Indians, as opposed to the Indians who lived in India, was the name handed down through generations. In recent times, some scholars have found the phrase to be offensive and prefer "Native American," but the adoption of the word Indian by many of the native peoples as part of the rising American Indian Movement (AIM) has put it back into use in textbooks.

When you write or tell of a particular tribe, try to use the tribe's own name for themselves. For example, take the name Eskimo. For most Americans, it conjures up a clear picture of fur-clad people who live in igloos and hunt seals. But the word Eskimo offends some people who believe it comes from another tribe's word for "eaters of raw meat." You will see Inuit used sometimes in place of Eskimo, but that is often not a better name. The Inuit people are only one of the tribes of the Arctic area. However, many of their stories were gathered early in this century. So, your story may indeed by from the Inuit tribe, but it's always better to make sure, simply as a courtesy to the other Arctic peoples.
Types of Stories
In every culture, there are certain kinds of stories that are told over and over again. Here we will look at a few of the popular types found in the American Indian traditions:
Trickster Tales
These are the smart alecks who think they can get a better deal by using their brains instead of their brawn. Sure, sometimes they may end up on the losing end of the bargain when they try to push their luck too far, but somehow they walk away from their adventures in one piece if no wiser-although hopefully, the listener will have learned something. Examples of tricksters are of the Lakota tribe from the Plains and , who can be found in stories from the Pacific Northwest.
Creation Stories
The beginning of the world is the starting place for a tribe's stories. Which gods came first, how the earth and sky came into being, which animals are special to the tribe-all of this unfolds in the creation stories. The Precious Gift (Navajo) and The Woman Who Fell From the Sky (Iroquois) are creation stories.

Pourquoi Stories
Like creation stories, pourquoi (French for "Why?") stories tell how things came to be as they are. The Legend of the Bluebonnet is a Comanche (Plains) story of why the land is covered in beautiful blue flowers every spring. The Story of the Milky Way is a Cherokee (Eastern Woodlands) tale of how that glittering path came to be in the night sky.

Hero Journeys
The original action stories have bad guys, good guys, monsters, and a lot of other stuff that may sound familiar from Saturday morning television. The heroes of these tales put aside their fears and their own needs for the good of the people. Monster Birds (Navajo/Southwest) and The Magic Hummingbird (Hopi/Southwest) are hero tales.

Stories of Love and Loss
Stories of undying love are a sweet and sometimes sad part of the storytelling tradition. (Santee Dakota/Plains) tells the story of how (yes, it's a pourquoi tale) the first shy, young warrior showed his love for his girl by playing her beautiful music on a magic flute blessed with the songs of the animals.

Legends on the Web
Eldrbarry's Raven Tales (Pacific Northwest)
Four stories feature clever Raven who often helps humans. This page also has information on the stories' setting and the problem of "ownership" of certain folktales.

The Hunter and the Polar Bear (Arctic)
A very short story from the Inuit about a hunter's meeting with a polar bear.

The Lame Warrior and the Skeleton (Plains)
Sometimes an encounter with a ghost skeleton can be a good thing.

The Legend of the Cedar Tree (Eastern Woodlands)
Learn why the Cherokee consider the cedar tree to be sacred.

Stories the Iroquois Tell Their Children, collected by Mabel Powers (1917)
Mabel Powers was a white woman who went from wigwam to wigwam listening to and recording the stories of the Iroquois. She was even made an honorary member of the Iroquois and given the Indian name, Yeh sen noh wehs, which means "one who carries and tells the stories."

Photo Credits:
"How Morning Star Lost Her Fish", from Stories the Iroquois Tell Their Children by Mabel Powers, 1917 by illustrator unknown (Public Domain)
"The Historian" by E. Irving Couse (Public Domain)

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The tribes who lived in the Western Hemisphere before the coming of the Europeans were as different from each other as the countries that came to claim their lands. The many stories of the people who farmed, hunted, and herded in the plains, forests, deserts, and hills of what we call North America tell how they saw the Universe and the wisdom that they found in Nature.

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Our lives, our cultures, are composed of many overlapping stories. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie tells the story of how she found her authentic cultural voice -- and warns that if we hear only a single story about another person or country, we risk a critical misunderstanding.

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Please [contact us](https://www.ted.com/contact) and let us know what happened.

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The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child's Bookshelf, Grace Lin

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The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child's Bookshelf, Grace Lin

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Author Grace Lin's first person account of the importance of mirrors and windows in children's literature. A great source of inspiration for librarians, teachers, administrators, and students.

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The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child's Bookshelf | Grace Lin | TEDxNatick

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My year reading a book from every country in the world

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My year reading a book from every country in the world

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Trying to bring others on board? Show them this! An inspiring look at the challenges of finding world literature translated into English--and the creative ways a community found to overcome them.

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Ann Morgan: My year reading a book from every country in the world

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Ann Morgan considered herself well read -- until she discovered the "massive blindspot" on her bookshelf. Amid a multitude of English and American authors, there were very few books from beyond the English-speaking world. So she set an ambitious goal: to read one book from every country in the world over the course of a year.

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A guest blog post from international school librarian Jeremy Willette. A heartfelt and compelling articulation of the importance of building a multilingual collection in school libraries.

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My journey as a tenacious lifelong learner in the Teacher Librarian field. Dianne McKenzie, Australia. School Librarian Connection

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SLJ's Diversity & Cultural Literacy Toolkit

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SLJ's Diversity & Cultural Literacy Toolkit

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The perfect place to begin investigating culturally diverse literature. But don't stop here! Continue to explore the rest of School Library Journal's website for great content related to multicultural literature, including reviews and author videos.

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A list of videos, articles, and other resources to help librarians be more culturally literate.

The following is a list of recommended resources, including articles, videos, and other content, used in our various in-person and virtual training sessions and workshops on diversity and cultural literacy for librarians. This list is by no means comprehensive; it represents a starting place for further exploration, reflection, and discussion. And while some of the resources are geared specifically to folks selecting or evaluating material for children and teens, the vast majority of the content is applicable to librarians or educators working with students or patrons of any age-from birth to senior citizens. This list was originally compiled as a supplemental resource for workshop or course participants, but it can also serve as the first step in self-directed learning around issues of cultural competence. We invite our community of readers to add their own go-to resources in the comments section.
THE WHY OF IT Image from Lee & Low's Diversity in Publishing 2015 survey results.
The Danger of a Single Story TED talk by Chimamanda Adichie

Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop's Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors (1990).

Lee & Low Diversity Baseline Survey (2015)

Publishing Statistics on Children's Book about People of Color and First/Native Nations... from the Cooperative Children's Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison

The Diversity Gap in Children's Books by Lee & Low

Picture This: Reflecting Diversity in Children's Book Publishing by Sarah Dahlen Park

Diversity in Publishing Doesn't Exist-But Here's How It Can by Chris Jackson via Literary Hub

Why Publishing Is So White by Rachel Deahl, with reporting by Anisse Gross, Claire Kirch, Diane Patrick, and Judith Rosen via Publishers Weekly

"The Gayest Generation" (2017 GLAAD study shows that 20% of Millennials identify as LGBTQ, the highest of any generation in American history.
KEY CONCEPTS STEREOTYPES & TROPES
When You're Invisible, Every Representation Matters by Native Appropriations

Disability Tropes via Disability in Kidlit blog

Contesting Ideology in Children's Book Reviewing by Dr. Debbie Reese (page 37)

What Are Microaggressions? from Derald Wing Sue

A Visual Representation of Everyday Microaggressions We're a Culture, Not a Costume PSA campaign from Ohio University

Accuracy or Bias? On Prejudicial Characters in Children's Literature and Beyond by Justina Ireland via Book Riot

"Kids Steal a Bike" (YouTube video from "Would Would You Do" episode highlighting how people reacted to young people of different races and genders "stealing" a bicycle in public)
LANGUAGE & TERMINOLOGY National Association of Black Journalists Style Guide National Center on Disability and Journalism Style Guide Writing About Persons with Disabilities National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association Stylebook Society of Professional Journalists Diversity Toolbox EVALUATION & SELECTION
Doing a YA Diversity Audit (Part 1) by Karen Jensen via the Teen Librarian Toolbox blog

Guide for Selecting Anti-Bias Children's Books via Social Justice Books: A Teaching for Change Project

Reviewing Through a Diverse Lens: Keynote Lecture by K.T. Horning The DIG (Diverse and Inclusive Growth) Checklist for evaluating digital media from KIDMAP

Evaluating a Collection for Bias and Stereotypes with Primary Students: A Case Study, Tools, and Tips by Maisha Sport and Liz Phipps Soeiro
Diverse Book Finder (Bates College) ANTI-OPPRESSION, SOCIAL JUSTICE CURRICULA, & ALLYSHIP
Anti-Oppression Guide from Simmons Library, Simmons College, created by Stacy Collins, Research and Instruction Librarian

Anti-Bias Framework for Teaching from Teaching Tolerance

A Collection of Resources for Teaching Social Justice from Cult of Pedagogy

Words Matter: Owning and Learning from Our Mistakes by Jamie Naidoo, from the ALSC blog

See also: Resource Roundup: Teaching and Curriculum Supports on Antibias and Social Justice

Educators Must Mind Tone Policing by Edith Campbell
ACTIVITIES & DISCUSSION GUIDES FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Activity for Exploring the Bennett Model of Cultural Competency from State University of New York, University at Albany, School of Social Welfare

"Identity Signs" from the Safe Zone Project

"Privilege Beads" from Difference Matters

Microaggression Activity from Breaking the Prejudice Habit

Discussing Race With Young Kids by Rachel G. Payne and Jessica Ralli
RECOMMENDED READING
Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work For Racial Justice by Paul Kivel. 4th ed. New Society. ISBN 9780865718654.

Was the Cat in the Hat Black?: The Hidden Racism of Children's Literature, and the Need for Diverse Books by Philip Nel. Oxford Univ. ISBN 9780190635077.

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo. Seal Press. ISBN 9781580056779.

White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Robin DiAngelo. Beacon Pr. June 2018. ISBN 9780807047415.
Recommended Booklists
12 Picture Books That Showcase Native Voices by Debbie Reese

27 Middle Grade and YA Latinx Books... by Shelley Diaz

25 LGBTQIA+ Titles... by Kent Turner
This toolkit is an evolving document. We encourage you to add your own recommended resources in the comments. The editors will periodically update the above list with new content.
Get Print. Get Digital. Get Both!

Libraries are always evolving. Stay ahead. Log In.

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A list of videos, articles, and other resources to help librarians be more culturally literate. The following is a list of recommended resources, including articles, videos, and other content, used in our various in-person and virtual training sessions and workshops on diversity and cultural literacy for librarians.

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Books as Passports to Global Understanding
for Children in the United States

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Books have the potential to create lasting impressions. They have the power to instill empathy, affirm children’s sense of self, teach about others, transport to new places and inspire actions on behalf of social justice.

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ADL's online bibliography of recommended children's and young adult books about bias, bullying, diversity and social justice.

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It's often difficult to find authentic international literature, so in this piece, David Jacobson . . . . suggests ways to find books about Asia that are appropriate for students, written locally by Asians, and available in English.

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Editor's Intro: It's often difficult to find authentic international literature, so in this piece, David Jacobson, the author of "Are You an Echo? The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko" and a board member of the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative (GLLI), suggests ways to find books about Asia that are appropriate for students, written locally by Asians, and available in English. He also spearheaded the GLLI's effort to create a database of children's literature in translation, which so far includes works originally published in Chinese, Korean, Japanese, German, and Polish.
So you want to assign (or recommend) a book to your students about Asia-written by an Asian? Let me guess: You are having a hard time finding one, right? Rest assured, however, that finding "own voices" from Asia is not impossible, and the gleanings are well worth the effort.
Why "Own Voices" Are so Hard to Find
Why is it so difficult to find books for children about Asia? For one thing, the United States doesn't publish very many translations in English. The conventional wisdom is that translations amount to about 3 percent of the total books published every year. And when you are looking for children's books translated from non-European languages, the pickings are even slimmer. According to a survey I conducted that includes tabulation of data from the University of Wisconsin's Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC), nearly 55 percent of all translations published between 2003 and 2016 come from three languages-French (27 percent), German (19 percent), and Spanish (8 percent). By contrast, those from Japanese amounted to only 5 percent; Korean, just under 4 percent; and Chinese, fewer than 1 percent.

This doesn't mean that "own voices" from Asia are not available. Rather, it reflects the fact that we don't do a good job identifying them. The CCBC, I suspect, misses a lot of titles because most translations are published by small U.S. publishers, or by publishers abroad, which don't submit them (the CCBC's data are based on voluntary submission by publishers). Prominent reviewers of children's works, such as the Horn Book, don't review titles published outside the United States. What's more, the most prestigious prizes, such as the Caldecott and Newbery Medals, which flag the best-regarded books, don't even consider works by non-American citizens or residents.

Follow the Translators

So what is a well-meaning (but time-strapped) teacher to do? Let me give you a few general and a few country-specific strategies for finding translations from Asia.

My first suggestion is to follow the translators. Translators probably know more about what's available in translation from a particular language than anyone else. Moreover, since translation of children's literature remains a publishing backwater, there are relatively few translators who specialize in kid literature in each language. If you're interested in a particular country, find the handful of translators that specialize in it and read their work.

Take Chinese, for instance. I learned of Helen Wang after reading her wonderful translation of Bronze and Sunflower (by Hans Christian Andersen Award winner Cao Wenxuan). She has translated at least 11 other picture books and YA novels from Chinese, which you can find listed at the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative database. Along with Minjie Chen and Anna Gustafsson Chen, she is the co-editor of the blog " Chinese Books for Young Readers," which is a font of information about Chinese children's literature. If you want to see a free sample of Helen's work, check out her translation of Cao's short story, "A Very Special Pigeon."

In Japanese children's literature, Cathy Hirano plays a similar role as Helen Wang. She has translated 14 novels and picture books, most notably two series of fantasy titles by Hans Christian Andersen winner Nahoko Uehashi, and three books by Batchelder Award winner Kazumi Yumoto. Another Japanese translator to watch is Avery Fischer Udagawa, who edits the " Ihatov" blog of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Japan Translation Group. The blog publishes reviews of books you might never find in the English-language press (such as this new book by Uehashi) and pieces about authors (such as recent Hans Christian Andersen Award winner Eiko Kadono) who are rarely profiled despite their prominence abroad. Avery also posts widely about Japanese and world kid lit in English translation (for instance, this list of 100 translated children's books from around the world).

Small Publishers Are Responsible for Most Translations

Another strategy would be to identify the few specialized publishers whose releases match your interests. There is a small group of publishers based in different countries that specialize in translated children's literature. They include the U.K.'s Pushkin Children's, New Zealand's Gecko Press, and Canada's Groundwood Books. In the United States, check out Elsewhere Editions, the Yonder imprint of Restless Books, and Enchanted Lion Books. Note, however, that Elsewhere Editions and Yonder have so far only published one title each from Asia: Elsewhere has published a new picture book by Cao Wenxuan, and Yonder has released a beautifully illustrated version of the Ramayana.

If your interest is China, you have it easy, in a way. Nearly 60 percent of the 64 Chinese children's books I identified in the survey linked to above come from just three publishers: Balestier Press in the United Kingdom, Starfish Bay Publishing in Australia, and Candied Plums in the United States. So a glance at their respective websites will give you an overview of what's available in English translation from China. But that does point out just how few translations are available.

Japanese children's books, by contrast, have been published by a broader array of publishers, so there is no similar shortcut. However, there is a small number of publishers that have specialized in works about Japan in English- Tuttle, Stone Bridge Press, Kodansha, and Vertical Inc.-that have all published works for kids, some in translation and some not.

On the other hand, India, which itself is the second largest market for English-language children's books, has its own set of specialized children's publishers, a number of which have made a splash abroad. They include Tara Books (known for its handprinted illustrations), Duckbill Books (co-founded by "India's Dr. Seuss" Anushka Ravishankar), and long-standing Tulika Books and Karadi Tales.

New Prizes Will Highlight Standouts

Thanks to the growing recognition that our children are not getting exposed to enough writing from around the world, a number of new prizes have been established to highlight translated literature. Just recently, the National Book Foundation, which administers the National Book Awards, announced the finalists in a new category honoring translated literature. None was works for children, though several translations from Asian languages were named.

The Global Literature in Libraries Initiative is similarly planning to award YA books in translation, in hopes of bringing attention to the noticeable gap in translations of world literature for young adults. The first winners will be announced at the American Library Association's midwinter conference in January 2019.

Starting in 2016, the National Consortium for the Teaching About Asia initiated the Freeman Book Awards, which recognize "quality" children's and young-adult books about East and Southeast Asia. Similarly, the South Asia Book Award has been recognizing top-flight books since 2012. Neither prize, of course, is limited to "own voices" or translated literature.

You should also peruse the winners of the ALA's long-standing Batchelder Prize and the annual USBBY Outstanding International Books list.

There is also a plethora of country-specific book lists that will help your search, as well as worthy sources from abroad. But naming all of them would require another column. In the meantime, happy searching!
Connect with Heather and the Center for Global Education on Twitter. Chart created by and used with permission of the author. Image created on Pablo.

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How to Find Authentic Books About Asia, From Asia (Opinion)

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Editor's Intro: It's often difficult to find authentic international literature, so in this piece, David Jacobson, the author of "Are You an Echo? The Lost Poetry of Misuzu Kaneko" and a board member of the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative (GLLI), suggests ways to find books about Asia that are appropriate for students, written locally by Asians, and available in English.

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The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). Sponsor of the Hans Christian Andersen Awards and publisher of Bookbird.

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Required reading: The books that students read in 28 countries around the world

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Required reading: The books that students read in 28 countries around the world

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"In the US, most students are required to read To Kill a Mockingbird during their school years. . . . Reading Mockingbird is such an integral part of the American educational experience that we wondered: What classic books are assigned to students elsewhere?"

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This compilation of reading assigned to students everywhere will expand your horizons - and your bookshelves.

In the US, most students are required to read To Kill a Mockingbird during their school years. This classic novel combines a moving coming-of-age story with big issues like racism and criminal injustice. Reading Mockingbird is such an integral part of the American educational experience that we wondered: What classic books are assigned to students elsewhere?

We posed this question to our TED-Ed Innovative Educators and members of the TED-Ed community. People all over the globe responded, and we curated our list to focus on local authors. Many respondents made it clear in their countries, as in the US, few books are absolutely mandatory. Take a look at what students in countries from Ireland to Iran, Ghana to Germany, are asked to read and why:

Afghanistan

What it's about: The revelations of God as told to the prophet Muhammad, this is the central religious text of Islam and remains one of the major works of Arabic literature.
Why it's taught: "Overall, there is no culture of reading novels in my country, which is sad," says Farokh Attah. "The only book that must be read in school is the holy Quran, and everyone is encouraged to read it starting from childhood."

Albania

(1971) by Ismail Kadare
What it's about: Known in English as Chronicle in Stone, this novel is told through the eyes of a child and shows how different conquering forces - Italian fascist, Greek and Nazi - ravage a small Albanian city during World War II.
Why it's taught: Kadare is one of the most critically acclaimed Albanian writers, and was nominated several times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. This book "helps you understand vividly what World War II meant for the people who lived through those events," says Vaitson Çumaku. "Because it's from the perspective of a child, it also shows you that there can be optimism during hard times."

Australia

Tomorrow, When the War Began (1993) by John Marsden
What it's about: A teenage girl and her friends return from a camping trip to find that an unidentified foreign military force has invaded Australia.
Why it's taught: This book "speaks to our fear of invasion and our fighting spirit," says Beth James Waters. It also "beautifully portrays the vastness of and abundant natural dangers in our land."

Austria

Bosnia; Serbia

(1945) by Ivo Andrić
What it's about: Known in English as The Bridge on the Drina, this novel sweeps through 300 years in a small town near the Mehmed Pasha Sokolović bridge. Its story begins in the 16th-century Ottoman Empire, when the bridge was built, to World War I, when it was partially destroyed.
Why it's taught: Andrić received a Nobel Prize, and so far he has been the only Nobel Prize winner from Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia. "It is truly a timeless book," says Martin Kondža. "Its themes and stories also apply to humanity today. The bridge acts as a dumb witness to empires being born and crushed, human lives reaching their peaks and depths, and countries being established and destroyed."

Brazil

Morte e vida Severina (1955) by João Cabral de Melo Neto
What it's about: Known in English as The Death of a Severino, this play in verse is about the arduous journey of a man who is fleeing the drought- and poverty-stricken northeastern region of Brazil in search of a better situation and the city.
Why it's taught: "It shows the dual conditions that the country has always presented and still presents - poor lives, inequality, ignorance, and silent people, versus a city population, with all its advantages - and the distance between these two groups," says Andrea Rodrigues.

Bulgaria

(1894) by Ivan Vazov
What it's about: This novel looks at a Bulgarian village under Ottoman rule and depicts a failed insurrection in the 1870s that helped trigger the country's eventual breakaway. The large cast of characters includes villagers on both sides of the rebellion.
Why it's taught: For one thing, Vazov is seen as the father of Bulgarian literature. But, adds Kristine O'Malley, "Being enslaved by the Ottoman Empire and the struggle for independence have shaped the national identity of Bulgarians," making this book a perennially popular read.

Canada

(1977) by Timothy Findley
What it's about: Robert Ross, a 19-year-old Canadian, tries to cope with the death of his sister by enlisting to fight in World War I. Beset by his own demons, he travels to France where he fights in the trenches and sees the worst of warfare - and of humanity.
Why it's taught: "It's an iconic Canadian novel. It's so brutally honest in its depiction of war, sorrow, and coming to terms with an uncaring world in one's own way," says Karen Goepen-Wee.

Chile

China

Colombia

(1967) by Gabriel García Márquez
What it's about: This pioneering fictional work of magical realism - known to English-language readers as 100 Years of Solitude - traces the rise and fall of a fictional Colombian town through five generations of the Buendía family, starting in the early 19th century.
Why it's taught: Márquez is considered one of the most important writers in the Spanish language, and he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1982. This novel depicts the violence that has plagued Colombia for decades, and "shows how much corruption and suffering Colombians have endured," says Daniela Ramirez Barreto. "Yet there is something about us that refuses to give up."

Cyprus

The Murderess (1903) by Alexandros Papadiamantis
What it's about: This novella is about an old woman named Hadoula who lives on the island of Skiathos. She murders poor young girls as a kind of mercy killing, since she views their future prospects to be limited and bleak.
Why it's taught: "It sheds light on the role of women and on gender roles within marriage; these are of great importance in Cyprus and Greece," says Evanthia Poyiatzi. "And it makes students decide whether the woman's behavior is ethical or unethical."

Egypt

The Days (1935) by Taha Hussein
What it's about: This book is the autobiography of intellectual and writer Hussein, who lived from 1889 to 1973. He became blind at the age of 3 but grew up to be the minister of education in his country and is one of the most influential figures in Egyptian literature.
Why it's taught: The book teaches students "the importance of gathering knowledge, the need to rebel against traditions and the negative effects of ignorance upon individuals in a society," says Mahmoud Attalla.

Finland

Seitsemän veljestä (1870) by Aleksis Kivi
What it's about: Known in English as Seven Brothers, this book is about a quarrelsome family of seven brothers and their struggles in rural Finland. They eventually grow and mature into decent members of society.
Why it's taught: It is believed to be the first truly Finnish novel by a Finnish author in the Finnish language about ordinary people. "It's considered the national novel of Finland," says Jaani Länsiö. "It's about Finnish stubbornness."

Germany

Tagebuch der Anne Frank (1947)
What it's about: Known in English as The Diary of Anne Frank, this journal was kept by a Jewish girl named Anne Frank as she lived with her family in hiding in Amsterdam under Nazi occupation.
Why it's taught: "We should never forget what horrors were unleashed by narrow-thinking people," says Charlotte Böhm.

Ghana; Nigeria

(1958) by Chinua Achebe
What it's about: Set in Nigeria in the 1900s, this novel follows Okonkwo, an Igbo leader and village wrestling champion, his journey to power and glory, and his eventual fall when he fights back against white colonialists.
Why it's taught: "On the surface, it's a celebration of African traditionalism and how those ideals were washed away with the coming of the missionaries," says Ama Y Adi-Dako. "At the heart of it, though, it is a critical look at the concept and drawbacks of African and tribal masculinity."

Indonesia

(2005) by Andrea Hirata
What it's about: Known in English as Rainbow Troops, this novel is based on a true story about ten students from a remote village in Indonesia who, with the help of a pair of inspiring teachers. learn to stand up for themselves and their community.
Why it's taught: It teaches "sacrifice, dedication, hard work, passion, brotherhood, friendship, optimism and perseverance in the face of challenges," says Mahrukh Bashir.

India

Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments With Truth (1927-1929) by Mohandas K. Gandhi
What it's about: The Indian leader's memoir covers his life from his childhood to his early 50s.
Why it's taught: "This book upholds the essence of living a life with dignity, which is possible only through truth and nonviolence," says Bismi Sain.

Iran

Poems by writers such as Hafiz, Sa'Addi, Ferdowsi, Rumi and Khayyam
What they're about: Love, beauty, joy and other themes.
Why they're taught: "In Iran, the novel is a relatively newer form of literature," says Ne Da. "But among our literary classics are abundant poets and poetry. Each poem speaks to a different value."

Ireland

Ice Man: the Adventures of an Irish Antarctic Hero (2010) by Michael Smith
What it's about: It's a biography of Tom Crean, an Irish boy who ran away from home at the age of 15 to join Captain Robert Falcon Scott's Antarctic voyage. He was also a member of Ernest Shackleton's Endurance expedition.
Why it's taught: "It shows that the Irish are ambitious explorers who can triumph over adversity and that through hard work, focus and dedication, everything is possible," says Naoimh Morton.

Italy

(1827) by Alessandro Manzoni
What it's about: Known in English as The Betrothed, this novel takes place in northern Italy in the first half of the 17th century. Italy was not yet a nation, and this book shows the lives of villagers living under repressive Spanish rule as well as the impact of a deadly plague that killed many people.
Why it's taught: " I Promessi Sposi is one of the two pillars of Italian literature," says Sofia Ramundo. "It is considered the blueprint for historical novels," adds Michela Sacchi O'Brien.

Pakistan

The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2007) by Mohsin Hamid
What it's about: An international bestseller, this novel follows the story of a Pakistani man as he reflects on his time in the United States before and after the events of September 11, 2001.
Why it's taught: "These books touch the unique dilemmas faced by modern Pakistanis who are struggling with fundamental ideals and trying to find their own identity," says Vajiha Atiq.

Philippines

(1887) by Jose Rizal
What it's about: Rizal went on to be a hero of the Philippine revolution, and his novel - the English-language title is Touch Me Not - shows life in the Philippines society under cruel, repressive, arbitrary Spanish Catholic rule.
Why it's taught: By combining a dramatic story with an activist message, this novel has been compared to Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It is taught to help students "appreciate the efforts of our forefathers in shaping our independence," says John Eric Uy.

Russia

US

(1960) by Harper Lee
What it's about: A classic novel about the American South in the 1930s that illustrates how racism, sexism and injustice have shaped US history (and still cause harm today).
Why it's taught: "We're still dealing with racism and systematic prejudice, especially in the legal system in the US," says Shaun McGovern.

Vietnam

(1820) by Nguyễn Du
What it's about: It's an epic narrative poem about a young woman named Thuý Kiều who is driven to sacrifice herself to save her family.
Why it's taught: Known in English as The Tale of Kiều, the poem shows "the humanity and the beauty of my country," says Joy Truong, who adds that she likes its positive qualities, a stark contrast to most other stories and poems which "focus on the difficulties of the Vietnamese."

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Required reading: The books that students read in 28 countries around the world

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In the US, most students are required to read To Kill a Mockingbird during their school years. This classic novel combines a moving coming-of-age story with big issues like racism and criminal injustice. Reading Mockingbird is such an integral part of the American educational experience that we wondered: What classic books are assigned to students elsewhere?

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"The NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s Literature, initiated in 2003, aims to enhance the quality of children’s literature by promoting writing that contributes to the quality of their lives." Sponsored by World Literature Today.

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"Children's writers are quite used to being considered second-class citizens in the world of the literati, but at the University of Oklahoma, this was never true." - Katherine Paterson, 2007 NSK Prize Winner

NSK Laureates

Browse through the NSK Prize winners from 2003 to the present.

NSK Jurors

Peruse our list of every author who has served as a juror for the prize.

NSK Finalists

Travel through over a decade of renowned authors who have been nominated for the prize.

2021 NSK Prize Jury

2021 NSK Prize Finalists

"I am overwhelmed by the honor bestowed to me and to my work. . . . No honor has been greater to me than what was given at the University of Oklahoma. The class, the style, the caring that was given to all my family and to me has been so memorable. . . . No award will ever equal the NSK."-Letter from 2003 NSK laureate Mildred D. Taylor to RC Davis-Undiano, December 12, 2004

During her acceptance remarks, Mildred D. Taylor sang lines from a song in her book Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. She said the words came to her as an epiphany while struggling to finish the book.

Naomi Shihab Nye shared that her favorite review of her novel Habibi was delivered in two words from a high school senior at a school in Doha, Qatar. The student said, "Secret Diplomacy." She continued, "That's it. That's what you were doing."

Brian Doyle began writing plays after he and his wife adopted two children. His first book for young readers, Hey Dad!, was written for his daughter.

Vera B. William' s family was deeply devoted to social justice. She wanted a "cause" of her own and saw herself as an "advocate for children."

As a child in Ghana, Meshack Asare 's nearest library was twenty-four miles away! A mobile book unit visited his town every six months.

"It struck me, listening to the passion and eloquence of the Neustadt family at the banquet, that everyone in the hall that night, each of us, is in the same business and has the same objective. We all want our communities to be as literate as we can make them so that they can do justice to us all in an open and free society."-Letter from 2005 NSK laureate Brian Doyle to RC Davis-Undiano (received November 21, 2005)

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The NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature "Children's writers are quite used to being considered second-class citizens in the world of the literati, but at the University of Oklahoma, this was never true." - Katherine Paterson, 2007 NSK Prize Winner 2021 NSK Prize Jury 2021 NSK Prize Finalists Since 2003, the NSK Neustadt Prize for [...]

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CLASSROOM LIBRARY ASSESSMENT: HOW CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE IS YOUR LIBRARY?

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CLASSROOM LIBRARY ASSESSMENT: HOW CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE IS YOUR LIBRARY?

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Want to create a more culturally diverse classroom library? You can start by assessing what you currently have. Publisher Lee & Low provides an assessment tool

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Teachers, let's talk about a popular topic across education blogs and Pinterest: the classroom library. A quick search on the Internet results in numerous tips, tricks, and ideas for different ways to configure and organize your classroom library. It's an intensive and thoughtful process that involves thinking about genre, reading levels, interest levels, grade-level content, categories, and themes.

Unfortunately, we often see classroom libraries that group diverse books into categories that isolate or limit their use. Simply having a book bin labeled "cultures from around the world" or "black history month books" does not mean your library is culturally responsive. We need to think critically about how these books reflect the diversity of our students, their backgrounds, and the communities in which we live while exposing them to new ideas and concepts. Does your classroom library contain books that include main characters of color or with disabilities? Do your books featuring people of color only focus on issues of race, prejudice, or discrimination? Do they go beyond ethnic heritage months? Do they only focus on cultural traditions and foods?

To help you do so, LEE & LOW BOOKS has created a Classroom Library Questionnaire for you to use as a tool to analyze the books in your library and determine where there are strengths and gaps in diversity. It isn't enough just to have diverse and culturally responsive books, but we also need to think about how and when we use these books in the classroom.

Click here to download the free Classroom Library Questionnaire.
For more information about building a culturally responsive classroom library: Veronicahas a degree from Mount Saint Mary College and joined LEE & LOW in the fall of 2014. She has a background in education and holds a New York State childhood education (1-6) and students with disabilities (1-6) certification. When she's not wandering around New York City, you can find her hiking or hanging out with her dog Milo in her hometown in the Hudson Valley, NY.

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Classroom Library Assessment: How Culturally Responsive is Your Library?

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Teachers, let's talk about a popular topic across education blogs and Pinterest: the classroom library. A quick search on the Internet results in numerous tips, tricks, and ideas for different ways to configure and organize your classroom library. It's an intensive and thoughtful process that involves thinking about genre, reading levels, interest levels, grade-level content, categories, and themes.

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"The library is the physical and metaphorical center of my classroom. . . . Imagine my surprise when one of my students commented about what I thought was a magical space, 'I’m tired of reading about white kids.'"

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Culturally Responsive Teaching

An interaction with a student prompts an elementary teacher to revamp her classroom library to make it more inclusive.

The library is the physical and metaphorical center of my classroom. It is a reading world adorned with a carpet, comfy chairs, a lamp, and bins of neatly organized books. When I remember my own childhood, I picture a colorful tapestry woven by the hundreds of worlds I visited through the pages of books.

Imagine my surprise when one of my students commented about what I thought was a magical space, "I'm tired of reading about white kids."

She followed this with a reminder that I, her teacher, am also not white. I was taken aback. More than 60 percent of my students are individuals of color. My library featured white characters almost exclusively. What schema was I helping to create for my students? I decided to make a change.

Start With What You Have

I began by making bins around the subjects I intended to cover. Make the bins you want to fill, even if they have only one book in them.

I already owned some books about characters from diverse ethnic backgrounds, but they were hidden-mixed in with other chapter books in bins marked with reading levels. I pulled every book out of the bins and made a pile on the floor. I weeded out books about people of color written by white authors and books that reinforce stereotypes, like The Indian in the Cupboard.

Look for topics that can be covered by your existing titles. You might need to start without much in the way of cultural diversity. Examples of such topics include Caring for Others, Be Yourself, Accepting Differences, Standing Up for What's Right, and Girls Are Powerful.

Involve Your Students

One student took the first bin and labeled it Books About Asian Americans. It was followed by Books About African Americans. Per student requests, we made bins for a variety of cultural groups and labeled them Chinese American Girls, Native Americans, and Kids Who Recently Moved to the U.S.

Although the majority of bins were focused on ethnicity, students also made bins for themes and topics such as disabilities, different types of families, foster care, and divorce.

Ask your students to suggest books. Keep a list in your library and have students find books they want to read.

Choose Relatable Stories

We're careful when choosing the books for the bins. I want contemporary books written about contemporary issues. I want students to feel proud and accepted-to see other children who struggle to find a voice, and who have dreams and challenges like their own. I carefully distinguish between realistic fiction and historical fiction.

Imagine if the only time you read a book about someone who looked like you, it was about slavery-and it was the only book in your classroom library to represent you. Or the book was about an internment camp. Yes, we need to remember this history. But these historical accounts should not be the only books that a student sees in the library that reflect his or her background.

Continue the Momentum

Creating a diverse library is an ongoing project. I found many diverse books at library sales and at secondhand stores like Goodwill. When I found multiple copies of the same book, I bought them all, including seven copies of Becoming Naomi Leon.

When it was time to replenish books through PTA or classroom funds, I made a concerted effort to buy culturally inclusive books. My library began slowly shifting. There are many resources to find diverse reading materials.

Make your space reflective of your intentions. In your library, get rid of decorations that do not have a function. Hang posters of African American writers, Native American poets, or Mexican American novelists.

Suggest that the school library start a special section for culturally inclusive books. I had many conversations with our school librarian about ways to build a more diverse collection.

Student Engagement and Self-Esteem

It was a big deal when our diverse classroom library began taking shape. Students took care of our bins and worked to find other books that could be included. Books previously unread- Year of the Dog, for example-were suddenly hot commodities. We had a waitlist for books by Pam Muñoz Ryan and Louise Erdrich.

Students began caring for books-holding each other accountable for returning them properly and for taking care of the organizational systems of our library. The classroom library was "our library." It was a place of pride in our individual and collective stories.

"I think it's good," the student told me later when I interviewed her about our library. "It's good except for..." and she pointed to the one book bin that was empty: Books About Girls From Senegal. That was a bin, she assured me with her bright grin, she was going to fill one day.

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Culturally Responsive Teaching An interaction with a student prompts an elementary teacher to revamp her classroom library to make it more inclusive. The library is the physical and metaphorical center of my classroom. It is a reading world adorned with a carpet, comfy chairs, a lamp, and bins of neatly organized books.

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There is a lot packed into this website, including multicultural book lists and data on representation of people of color in American publishing.

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The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) is a unique and vital gathering place for books, ideas, and expertise in the field of children's and young adult literature.

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Explore the topic of school libraries on the Edutopia website.

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George Lucas Educational Foundation

Bookshelves and study carrels? Digital learning commons? Or something in between? Discover how educators are using and reimagining their school libraries.

A community raised $6 million to construct an innovative 30,000-square-foot facility complete with makerspaces and learning labs.

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George Lucas Educational Foundation Bookshelves and study carrels? Digital learning commons? Or something in between? Discover how educators are using and reimagining their school libraries. A community raised $6 million to construct an innovative 30,000-square-foot facility complete with makerspaces and learning labs.

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Diverse Classroom Libraries for K–6 Students

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Diverse Classroom Libraries for K–6 Students

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"Learn more about books across multiple genres that are representative of the diverse world in which we live, including diversity in race, class, disability, and religion."

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Diverse Classroom Libraries for K–6 Students

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Learn more about books across multiple genres that are representative of the diverse world in which we live, including diversity in race, class, disability, and religion. You’ll also find innovative approaches for bringing children and books together, as well as content analyses and descriptions of…

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A Teaching for Change project. "The best selection of multicultural and social justice books for children, YA, and educators." Check out the guide for selecting anti-bias children's books.

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Multicultural and Social Justice Books - Social Justice Books

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Curated Booklists Carefully selected multicultural and social justice books for children, young adults, and educators on 90+ topics. Reviews of Children's Literature Critical reviews of children's and young adult books from a variety of vetted sources, consolidated here for easy access. Articles & News Articles about selecting children's literature and news about Kid Lit.

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"Kitaabworld advocates for representation of South Asian children’s literature in the mainstream. We work to spread awareness about South Asian culture, and provide resources for educators, librarians and parents." Includes fantastic booklists and lesson plans.

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KitaabWorld: Exploring South Asia Through Children’s Literature

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Welcome to KitaabWorld, where we celebrate diverse children’s books, especially those with a focus on South Asia. Check out our Book Lists, read up on Author Interviews and look up Lesson Plans. Read more about our Counter Islamophobia Through Stories campaign.

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Navigating Asian and American Identities

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Navigating Asian and American Identities

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"To provide mirrors and windows on the Asian Pacific American experience, I’d like to recommend several books that reflect these cultures and feature children who navigate Asian and American identities.

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Navigating Asian and American Identities

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Eight books with Asian Pacific American protagonists can help foster rich dialogues in our diverse elementary schools.

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From CUNY-NYS Initiative on Emergent Bilinguals.

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Resources in this section include a guide to Latino literature, as well as lists of books and resources featuring characters from a range of other cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

The CUNY-NYSIEB Guide to Translanguaging in Latino/a Literature: This guide offers analysis of language use in 32 works of Latino/a literature that are appropriate for Grades PreK-12, analyzing 17 books for grades PreK-6 and 15 books for grades 7-12. The analysis of each book includes lexile level, themes, author biography and website, a list of supplemental resources, a summary of the book, and an analysis of the way that the author uses translanguaging, the flexible use of linguistic resources, in literature.

Relevant Literature on Latino/a Culture and Language - Elementary Schools - Updated November 2019: This list contains a variety of children's literature where the characters reflect the diversity of the Latino community. These books are relevant for Latino/a students in the elementary grades but also for any other student.

Relevant Literature on Latino/a Culture and Language - Middle School and High School - Updated October 2019: This list contains a variety of children's literature where the characters reflect the diversity of the Latino community. These books are relevant for Latino/a students, and any other student in middle and high schools.

Relevant Culturally Relevant Literature (Non-Latino/a Culture) - All Grades - Updated October 2019: This list contains a variety of children's literature where the characters reflect the diversity of cultures and languages of students in our classrooms. Some of the books are for students in elementary grades and others for those in middle and high school grades.

Social Issues Book club list: This list contains children's literature that addresses a variety of social issues. The list is organized by reading level. The list was created with 4th and 5th grade in mind , though some of the books can also be used with younger children and the higher reading level books are also appropriate for middle school.

Recommended Children's Books and Music for Early Childhood: This list contains children's literature, music, and oral traditions for children in early childhood classes.

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Resources in this section include a guide to Latino literature, as well as lists of books and resources featuring characters from a range of other cultural and linguistic backgrounds. The CUNY-NYSIEB Guide to Translanguaging in Latino/a Literature: This guide offers analysis of language use in 32 works of Latino/a literature that are appropriate for Grades PreK-12, analyzing 17 books for grades PreK-6 and 15 books for grades 7-12.

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"We Need Diverse Books™ is a grassroots organization of children’s book lovers that advocates essential changes in the publishing industry to produce and promote literature that reflects and honors the lives of all young people." Under Resources, you'll find lots of links to other like-minded organizations and fantastic booklists.

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A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, WNDB aims to create a world where every reader can find themselves in the pages of a book. To reach this goal, we've created programs to mentor diverse writers and illustrators, support diverse publishing professionals, and provide books to classrooms nationwide.

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"The mission of the International Children's Digital Library Foundation is to support the world's children in becoming effective members of the global community . . . by making the best in children's literature available online free of charge."

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ICDL - International Children’s Digital Library

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A title discovery treasure arranged by continent.

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Pearltrees lets you organize everything you’re interested in

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This is amazing!

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Global Lit. in Libraries Initiative Translation Database

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative: Resources

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative: Resources

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative

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BOOK LISTS GLLI Hispanic Heritage Month List International Children's and Young Adult Public Access Catalog PUBLISHERS Adult Fiction Adult Nonfiction Adult Poetry Picture Books Children's & Middle Grade Fiction YA Fiction Graphic Novels International Literature Journals (electronic & print) International Literature Blogs International Literature TED Talks International Literature Podcasts Recommendations for Purchasing World Languages (Non-Anglophone)...

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Children's literature companion to arablit.org.

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A fresh view on contemporary Arabic children's literature, in Arabic and in translation

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative

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Facebook group

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative

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Global Literature in Libraries Initiative. 3,086 likes · 41 talking about this. We are a group of librarians, authors, translators, and publishers whose goal is to raise the visibility of...

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A resource for discovering the world of children's literature in translation.

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A resource for discovering the world of children's literature in translation.

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"[C]hildren do hunger for stories about new and different worlds. . . . It’s we adults who need to look harder for great children’s books from around the world."

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An excellent resource for teachers and librarians seeking to globalize their curriculum and students' reading. The Resources tab is a great place to start.

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An excellent resource for teachers and librarians seeking to globalize their curriculum and students' reading. The Resources tab is a great place to start.

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Worlds of Words Brings Global Literature to Educators and Youth

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Open a book. Open a mind. Open the World! Worlds of Words builds bridges across global cultures through children’s and adolescent literature.

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Globalized list of fiction and nonfiction books by grade level bands and measures of complexity.

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Globalized list of fiction and nonfiction books by grade level bands and measures of complexity.

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Our students live in a global world. The opportunities we offer through literature in our classrooms can invite them into the richness of cultural diversity and global communities. To globalize the text exemplar lists included in standards documents that guide instruction in many states and countries, we developed global book lists of recommended fiction and nonfiction books organized by themes within K-12 grade level bands. Plot descriptions and complexity information are provided for each book. We update these lists on an annual basis to include new books and to remove books that are out of print. Our goal is to provide a valuable resource for educators searching for books they can access to globalize their classrooms and libraries.

Updated July 2022.
Worlds of Words created this project with funding from CERCLL.
Table of Contents
A Brief User's Guide: Global Reading Lists for K-12 Classrooms and Libraries
Globalizing Reading and Standards in K-12 Classrooms and Libraries
Grade K-1 Global Lists
Grade 2-3 Global Lists
Grade 4-5 Global Lists
Grade 6-8 Global Lists
Grade 9-10 Global Lists
Grade 11-12 Global Lists
Other Global Lists

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Globalizing K-12 Reading Lists of Children's and Young Adult Literature * Worlds of Words

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Our students live in a global world. The opportunities we offer through literature in our classrooms can invite them into the richness of cultural diversity and global communities. To globalize the text exemplar lists included in standards documents that guide instruction in many states and countries, we developed global book lists of recommended fiction and nonfiction books organized by themes within K-12 grade level bands.

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Children's Refugee Experiences in Picture Books for ages 5 and up

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Children's Refugee Experiences in Picture Books for ages 5 and up

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A booklist from Vancouver Public Library

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Recent Activity | Vancouver Public Library | BiblioCommons

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Explore Vancouver Public Library. New titles, recently rated, and recently tagged by the library community.

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Pihl, Joron. “Can Library Use Enhance Intercultural Education?” Issues in Educational Research 22 (January 2, 2012): 79–90.

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Doyle, Kevin. “Appealing to Their Interests.” Literacy Today (2411-7862) 33, no. 1 (August 7, 2015): 28–29.

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Leveled reading: The making of a literacy myth

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Leveled reading: The making of a literacy myth

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Conversations about school and classroom libraries will probably include at least some discussion on leveled reading. Here is a collection of thinking that argues for the inclusion of multiple levels of texts within the classroom.