As we’re coming to the end of August’s celebration of Women in Translation, my thoughts start to turn to World Kid Lit Month starting in a few short days. Thinking back to last year’s 30 books in 30 days challenge, I want to highlight a few of the children’s books in translation written by women that are still firm favourites in our house one year on from the challenge.
Valdemar’s Peas by Maria Jönsson, translated from Swedish by Julia Marshall (Gecko Press). A charming picture book about Valdemar’s plan to get ice cream without having to eat his peas.
Tomorrow by Nadine Kaadan, translated from Arabic by the author (Lantana Publishing). The story of Yazan who lives in Syria and can no longer go to the park because it’s too dangerous. A great one to introduce the plight of other people to younger children.
Hannah’s Night by Komako Sakai, translated from Japanese by Cathy Hirano (Gecko Press). It’s the illustration in this book that make this so special. It tells of a little girl, Hannah, who wakes in the night to find everyone in her family asleep. She decides to go for a wander around the house accompanied by the family cat, Shiro. It is simply delightful.
Banana Skin Chaos by Lilli l’Arronge, translated from German by Daniela Bernardelle (Bloomsbury). This book takes the notion of a boy dropping a banana skin on the floor and the possible (hilarious)implications this could have. This still makes my daughter giggle her socks off.
Inside the Villains by Clothilde Perrin, translated from French by Daniel Hahn (Gecko Press). A sophisticated picture book presenting three infamous characters from the world of the fairy tale: the Giant, the Witch and the Wolf. The unique design has flaps to look under and strings to pull, revealing intricate details. Fold out the left-hand page to reveal a section entitled “More about me” and a story, displayed as if in a newspaper. This is one I take with me when I want to show people examples of translated children’s books and it hits the mark every time.
The treasure of Barracuda by Llanos Campos, translated from the Spanish by Lawrence Schimel. A side-splitting pirate adventure that elicited belly laughs from my 8-year-old son. Plenty of silliness and adventure as the gang of pirates realise the importance of learning to read.
With World Kid Lit Month nearly upon us, follow me on Twitter and sign up to the World Kid Lit Blog for more reviews, interviews and interesting articles throughout September.
Claire Storey 