Japan
My First Book of Haiku Poems: A Picture, a Poem, and a Dream
By Esperanza Ramirez-Christensen (Translator), Tracy Gallup (Illustrator)
My First Book of Haiku Poems: A Picture, a Poem, and a Dream; Classic Poems by Japanese Haiku Masters. Translated by Esperanza Ramirez-Christensen. Illustrated by Tracy Gallup. Tuttle Publishing, 2019. ISBN 9784805315156. 48 p. (Ages 5-9). Picture book.
An introduction to haiku with 20 bilingual haiku, in Japanese text, romaji, and English. An illustration accompanies each, along with commentary, inviting the reader to contemplate each poem more deeply. Winner of 2020 Northern Lights Book Award for Poetry and chosen for 2020 NCTE Notable Poetry Books and Verse Novels List. [all]
India
Girls Want Azadi
By Kamla Bhasin, Shrujana Shridhar (Illustrator)
Girls Want Azadi. Kamla Bhasin. Translated by the author. Illustrated by Shrujana Shridhar. Pratham Books, 2021. Alternative title: Girls Also Want Azadi. Originally published in Hindi, in India. ISBN 9789390968756. 22 p. (Ages 9 and up). Poetry.
Written in a poetic style and illustrated in hand-painted gouache artwork, this book talks about the importance of understanding the fundamental rights granted by the Indian constitution especially to young girls and women. An empowering tale based on the original story, Betiya bhi chahe Azadi, in Hindi written by the author, it touches upon the gender equality for all women. Would pair with Dear Mrs. Naidu by Mathangi Subramanian. Kamla Bhasin is a feminist and development activist, closely linked to the women's movement. She passed away in 2021 in Delhi, India. This is a read-aloud video of the book. [mi]
The Middle East & North Africa
Palestine
The Blue Pool of Questions
By Māyā Abū al-Ḥayyāt, Hanan Awad (Translator), Hassan Manasrah (Illustrator)
The Blue Pool of Questions. Māyā Abū al-Ḥayyāt. Translated by Hanan Awad. Illustrated by Hassan Manasrah. Penny Candy Books, 2017. Originally published in Arabic by Birzeit: Palestine Writing Workshop, in Palestine, in 2016. ISBN 9780997221985. 32 p. (Ages 4 and up). Picture book.
A man asks one question, and another, until his questions begin to fill the busy city that has no time for him. Taking a dive into the pool, he teaches a lesson about curiosity and courage. Educators have paired this poetic book with events on asking obvious or difficult questions, and questions from around the world can be found at #bluepoolofquestions on X (formerly Twitter). Event prompts, directions, prompts and a sample poster can be found at Curious City. Winner of a 2016 Etisalat Award for Arabic Children’s Literature, illustration category. [ea]
Latin America
Chile
Book of Questions
By Pablo Neruda, Sara Lissa Paulson (Translator), Paloma Valdivia (Illustrator)
Book of Questions: Selections/Libro de las preguntas: Selecciones. Pablo Neruda. Translated by Sara Lissa Paulson. Illustrated by Paloma Valdivia. Enchanted Lion Books, 2022. Originally published as Libro de las preguntas in Spanish by Editorial Losada, Buenos Aires, in 1974. ISBN 9781592703227. 80 p. (Ages 6 and up). Poetry.
A lavish, large-format bilingual abridged and illustrated version of Chilean Nobel Prize winner Neruda’s Book of Questions. Newly translated. Sweeping bold, stylized illustrations by Chilean illustrator Valdivia dramatize but do not answer rhetorical questions about the natural world, leaving plenty of room for exploration and wonder. Valdivia has been shortlisted for the Hans Christian Andersen Award for illustration. [ayg]
El Salvador
Guacamole: A Cooking Poem
By Jorge Argueta, Elisa Amado, Margarita Sada (Illustrator)
Guacamole: Un poema para cocinar /A Cooking Poem (Bilingual Cooking Poems). Jorge Argueta. Translated from the Spanish by Elisa Amado. Illustrated by Margarita Sada. Groundwood Books/Libros Tigrillo/House of Anansi Press, 2016, c2012. ISBN 9781554988884. 32 p. (Ages 5-8). Poetry.
A recipe/poem for guacamole that will get kids excited about cooking other foods too! This is the third book in the “Bilingual Cooking Poems” series, which currently numbers five. Recipient of the International Latino Book Award, Jorge Argueta has also won many more awards for his books, which have been placed on the Américas Award Commended List, the USBBY Outstanding International Books List, Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Books, and the Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices. Though Argueta is a Pipil Nahua Indian and spent much of his life in El Salvador, he now lives in California. [jm]