CCBC-Net Archives
Samir and Yonatan & Other New Translated Books
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From: Ginny Moore Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Sun, 01 Apr 2001 18:23:01 -0500
Samir and Yonatan is one of the few translated books of substantial length published during the year 2000. By few, I mean a handful. The Batchelder Award is given to the publisher of the most distinguished translated book of the year, because publishing a translated book of substantial length written by someone relatively or completely unknown here represents a publishing risk. We applaud the publishers fine books such as Samir and Yonatan. Thanks for taking the risk.
According to reports, more U.S. adult film fans saw a subtitled film
(Crouching Dragon Hidden Tiger) than usual. The Academy Award ceremony was a global event, not only in terms of viewers, but in terms of the national origins of so many of the nominated films and actors. Evidence of the global environment all around. We don't need proof that kids are growing up within a global environment when we visit the CCBC web site pages about international editions of the Harry Potter books http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/rowling/editions.htm or notice the Harry Potter web sites created by kids in many parts of the world.
Is it possible that in the future the U.S. publishing of substantial books originating first in languages other than English in other nations might become less risky? Perhaps. If we book consumers will buy and read the Batchelder Award winner and other newly published translated books each year, this might help. Having these books in our own reading experiences makes it possible for us to figure out ways to introduce them into the reading or listening experiences of the children and teenagers we know or teach - even if there is a cultural barrier in the voice or vocabularies, such as a couple of you have suggested. I maintain that the kids can handle them, if we can do our parts. If more translated books break even in terms of their publishers' investments, perhaps publishers will risk what it takes to bring translated books to readers in this country more frequently.
The American Library Association's youth division held a competition years ago involving submission of program plans from schools and public libraries wanting to be one of the ten locations where the Batchelder Award winner would be announced on April 2 (International Children's Book Day). At the Brown County Library in Green Bay, Wisconsin, we made such a plan, and we were selected to be one of the ten. We involved children and their elementary school teachers from the area schools. Kids in many schools read the Batchelder books of previous years. They designed original bookplates for Batchelder books in their libraries. The public library auditorium was crowded on the date of the announcement.
We had discovered that it was possible for kids to become excited about the Batchelder books. Not labeling the books "translated" made a difference. So did talking them up and reading them together as really interesting and quite varied reading. The notion of a national moment when ten communities would be able to announce the winner isn't feasible today. But maybe it's possible to think locally - and creatively - about promoting books with global perspectives and voices. Maybe someone can examine the current movement toward enjoying Poetry all year round due, in part, to the promotion of National Poetry Month (April!), and come up with an inviting plan to make reading of the Batchelder books a cool thing to do. Interested? It's there to be done. And it's worth doing! In the meantime, we adults can at least begin by buying - and then reading - the Batchelder winners.
Those of you who contributed to this most recent CCBC-Net discussion were few, but your messages were important, and they were helpful. Thank you! - Ginny
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at education.wisc.edu Director, Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ A Library of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin Madison 4290 Helen C. White Hall, 600 N. Park Street Madison, WI 53706, U.S.A.
Phone: 608&3721 or 720 Fax: 608&2I33
The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) is a noncirculating library for adults with an academic, professional or career interest in contemporary or historical literature for children and young adults.
Received on Sun 01 Apr 2001 06:23:01 PM CDT
Date: Sun, 01 Apr 2001 18:23:01 -0500
Samir and Yonatan is one of the few translated books of substantial length published during the year 2000. By few, I mean a handful. The Batchelder Award is given to the publisher of the most distinguished translated book of the year, because publishing a translated book of substantial length written by someone relatively or completely unknown here represents a publishing risk. We applaud the publishers fine books such as Samir and Yonatan. Thanks for taking the risk.
According to reports, more U.S. adult film fans saw a subtitled film
(Crouching Dragon Hidden Tiger) than usual. The Academy Award ceremony was a global event, not only in terms of viewers, but in terms of the national origins of so many of the nominated films and actors. Evidence of the global environment all around. We don't need proof that kids are growing up within a global environment when we visit the CCBC web site pages about international editions of the Harry Potter books http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/rowling/editions.htm or notice the Harry Potter web sites created by kids in many parts of the world.
Is it possible that in the future the U.S. publishing of substantial books originating first in languages other than English in other nations might become less risky? Perhaps. If we book consumers will buy and read the Batchelder Award winner and other newly published translated books each year, this might help. Having these books in our own reading experiences makes it possible for us to figure out ways to introduce them into the reading or listening experiences of the children and teenagers we know or teach - even if there is a cultural barrier in the voice or vocabularies, such as a couple of you have suggested. I maintain that the kids can handle them, if we can do our parts. If more translated books break even in terms of their publishers' investments, perhaps publishers will risk what it takes to bring translated books to readers in this country more frequently.
The American Library Association's youth division held a competition years ago involving submission of program plans from schools and public libraries wanting to be one of the ten locations where the Batchelder Award winner would be announced on April 2 (International Children's Book Day). At the Brown County Library in Green Bay, Wisconsin, we made such a plan, and we were selected to be one of the ten. We involved children and their elementary school teachers from the area schools. Kids in many schools read the Batchelder books of previous years. They designed original bookplates for Batchelder books in their libraries. The public library auditorium was crowded on the date of the announcement.
We had discovered that it was possible for kids to become excited about the Batchelder books. Not labeling the books "translated" made a difference. So did talking them up and reading them together as really interesting and quite varied reading. The notion of a national moment when ten communities would be able to announce the winner isn't feasible today. But maybe it's possible to think locally - and creatively - about promoting books with global perspectives and voices. Maybe someone can examine the current movement toward enjoying Poetry all year round due, in part, to the promotion of National Poetry Month (April!), and come up with an inviting plan to make reading of the Batchelder books a cool thing to do. Interested? It's there to be done. And it's worth doing! In the meantime, we adults can at least begin by buying - and then reading - the Batchelder winners.
Those of you who contributed to this most recent CCBC-Net discussion were few, but your messages were important, and they were helpful. Thank you! - Ginny
Ginny Moore Kruse gmkruse at education.wisc.edu Director, Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ A Library of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin Madison 4290 Helen C. White Hall, 600 N. Park Street Madison, WI 53706, U.S.A.
Phone: 608&3721 or 720 Fax: 608&2I33
The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) is a noncirculating library for adults with an academic, professional or career interest in contemporary or historical literature for children and young adults.
Received on Sun 01 Apr 2001 06:23:01 PM CDT
