I also need to mention Colby Sharp - I follow him on various social media platforms and watch his YouTube videos. He shares terrific middle grade titles and picture books. I also love to read the 31 lists in 31 days from Betsy Bird each December. Also take a look at the recent CILIP Carnegies award winners announced a few days ago.
Here are links to some of the web sites I mentioned in my presentation:
Role, Value, Impact on Young Readers in Different Countries
I have just spent three very interesting days in Moscow! No just kidding I was not able to be there in person we are in COVID lockdown in my city and country but I did attend virtually putting my toe into the world of online conferences. I will give you a few reflections about this at the end of this post.
Here is the scene at the conference where they had 200 participants in person and others online from 52 countries. The conference was presented in five languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Arabic and Russian.
IBBY Congresses have taken place in Greece, New Zealand, Mexico, Great Britain, China, Norway, USA, Sweden, South Africa, three times in Spain and Germany, twice in Italy, and in other IBBY member countries. Russia joined IBBY in 1968.
Here is Cedric Christian Ninaussi Elong from Cameroon. His session was so inspirational. His bio explains the content of his presentation: Founder of non-commercial organization “Muna Kalati”, promoting the accessibility and visibility of African Children Books, entrepreneur in education, digital learning consultant, educational content expert, tutor and facilitator, researcher of games, mobile learning and African children literature.
This was a dynamic way to get everyone thinking and moving.
Deborah Soria The Power of Silence
Deborah Soria The Silent Book collection and the library at Lampedusa. I wish I had a transcript of this moving presentation. I loved her inspirational idea of little loves turning into projects completed with passion and purpose. Little children, who are deeply suffering, need books. Silent books contain stories that allow the children to take their mind somewhere else - to dream, to imagine. Make sure you look at my link above to read about the camps, the Red suitcase project and the camps they run.
This was, for me, one of two extremely moving and inspirational presentations at the congress. The other was with Zohreh Ghaeni (Iran). Read more about her Read with me program.
When Zohreh shared this image there was a collective gasp from the in person and virtual audience. She asked us to think about the situation in Afghanistan and then read these words from the song "I am woman". Such a powerful way to begin her lecture.
I also hope the session by Bart Moeyaert is published. He shared some very wise words about teachers and reading and the need to fill teachers minds with children's books. Take a look at his ALMA acceptance speech which covers many of the themes he discussed at the Congress.
The concurrent sessions were grouped under the following categories with up to four presenter in each time slot so there were lots of session to choose from and obviously I could only attend a few. Here in Sydney the time zone difference meant I tuned in at 4pm and continued until 1am but there were further sessions through to 4am which I had to miss. There will be a chance for conference delegates to catch up so I am compiling a list of the sessions I would like to hear and also some I want to revisit.
1. Sociology, anthropology and psychology of children's reading
Age and reading. Practices, challenges, solutions
Gender and reading: traditions and novelties
Cognitive approaches to children's reading
Sociology of children's literature and children's reading
The development of creativity in children through reading. Role models in literature
Professional literature on children’s reading (educators, librarians, psychologists)
Representation of diversity in children’s literature
Criteria of “dangerous” and “safe” books
The role of children's literature in the education and development of children: analysis of work experience
Under this heading I attended:
Children and the elderly: literature as demonstrations of developing agency in sociocultural contexts Janelle Mathis, Denton, USA
This session made me think about an old, long out of print book from Australia - A Rabbit named Harris. I have talked previously about The Old Man. Key texts from this presentation:
2. The art of telling stories
Theatre for children and theatrical formats of work to involve children in reading
Storytelling and other interactive forms of work with children
Children’s literature in print and digital formats: preservation and representation of culture and history of different countries for children, parents and educators
Children’s books with augmented reality
Innovative programs on involving children into reading (designed by psychologists, educators, librarians, etc.)
Edutainment. New formats of the educational literature
Wimmelbuchs, toy books, pop-up books, movable books, and other formats
The term Wimmelbuch was a new one for me. Here are two texts from the Silent book collection which demonstrate this idea. It means a panorama, pages where you look closely to follow characters:
3. Modern World and Future World. Non-fiction Literature for Children
Non-fiction books for children of primary school age
Non-fiction and popular science books for teens
“Life learning books” (today and tomorrow)
Problem of veracity in modern non-fiction for children and youth
Old and new formats: how to get children’s attention to reading non-fiction
Popular scientific and educational online resources for children: media, YouTube channels etc.
Design and illustration in non-fiction for children and youth
Under this heading I attended:
Looking at the world through the outstanding international non-fiction books Terrell Young, Provo, USA; Evelyn B. Freeman, USA
Here is a web link to the USBBY list. This session specifically focused on non fiction and biography. If you work in a library you might explore these lists for titles to add to your collection. These books are some of the best in the world.
4. The visual world of children's books
The role of book illustration for initiating family reading. The role of illustration in books for children of different ages (toddlers, preschoolers, primary school children and young adults)
Children's literature in various formats: books, multimedia, Internet
The role of Internet sources. Web-platforms for the popularization of children's literature
Popularization of children's literature with the help of media personalities
Modern and classic illustration in the reading circle of a modern child
Interaction of authors and illustrators in the illustrated books
Comic books, graphic novels, author’s illustrated books (picture books), and other formats of visual books for children and youth
From books to cartoons and back
Under this heading I attended:
When the picture meets the picture: Intervisuality artistic path in the wordless book Artemis Papailia, Alexandroupoli, Greece
Intervisuality is like our term intertextuality except in this case the focus is on illustrations. Here are a few things to look for - images that move between pages; illustrators who include their own books in illustrations (our Bob Graham does this); books within books; Folktale and fairy tale references in the illustrations (Anthony Browne The Tunnel); Architectural installations such as famous bridges (the example was the ANZAC bridge in Mirror by our Jeannie Baker); Monuments and maps; Poster and advertising; images from famous paintings (Anthony Browne does this) and parodies of famous paintings; references to a specific artist such as Anno and Escher; and mixed artistic styles.
Wordless picture books and creative ways to approach “cultural diversity” in education Maria Chatzianastasi, Marina Rodosthenous-Balafa, Agni Stylianou-Georgiou; Frenaros, Cyprus
See my images above under the heading Wimmelbuch.
5. Ethnic culture and multilingualism. Children's literature in national languages
Presentation of publishing projects on children's literature in national languages and dialects
Children's literature in rare languages. The problem of the disappearance of literary languages and literatures
A book as a way of preservation of language and cultural traditions
Multilingualism and the challenge of migration. Children's literature as a tool for the social adaptation of an emigrant child
Rare fairy tale storylines in the languages of ethnical minorities
Under this heading I attended:
The question of nationality in Palestinian children literature Hanada Kharma, Ramallah, Palestine
Immigrant child character from the author’s point of view: re-producing of loneliness Melike Günyüz, Istanbul, Turkey
Building a catalogue of Indigenous texts for youths: reflections in the light of postcolonial theory Jessica Tolentino, Brazil
This presentation highlighted a resource that I think could be a very valuable tool when you are looking for indigenous texts. It is called the Willakuy project. The materials are available in Instagram and in other formats. I was excited to see Australian titles included in their catalogue such as Baby Business by Jasmine Seymour. In the opening pages of the catalogue the authors explain their rigorous selection criteria.
6. Projects to promote reading among children and adolescents (joint projects of museums, libraries, publishing houses, theaters, and other cultural institutions)
Organization of the specialized book festivals and fairs (national and international) for the representation of modern children's book publishing
Outstanding projects for children's books promotion
Literature contests and international campaigns for children and specialists on children’s book and reading
Exhibition interactive projects on children’s illustration and literature
Children’s book museums and theme parks
Information and methodological resources on children's literature for specialists (the problem of promoting children's literature)
Cross-projects for publishers
Volunteer practice - children's and youth reading support initiatives
Under this heading I attended:
Reading changes lives! The Australian Children’s Laureate Foundation and the International Children’s Laureate Movement Robyn Sheahan-Bright, Gladstone, Australia
Prizing balance: An exploration of book award initiatives run by international school librarian networks Katie Day, Singapore
In this presentation (I missed the very beginning) the speakers mentioned the Red Dot Awards and the GLLI Award.
The provision of home language books in a New Zealand refugee school programme: An IBBY-Yamada funded project Nicola Daly, Libby Limbrick, Frances Plumpton; Hamilton, New Zealand
This is an utterly inspirational program which gives new arrivals access to books in their own language. I am in awe of this wonderful work. Read more here. This program is practical and so important.
7. Literary translation of children's literature
Specifics of work with children’s book translation
The choice of children's literature for translation. What translated children’s literature is popular in different countries?
National or translated foreign literature – what do readers choose?
Translated and non-translated literatures. The literature of which countries is being unfairly overlooked?
Translation, adaptation and localization
Translation of picture books and toddler’s books
Portrait of a country in the mirror of children’s literature
Under this heading I attended
The main trends in contemporary translated English literature for children, popular among Russian readers (3-6, 7-10 years old) Violetta Minina, Saint Petersburg, Russia
It was funny and interesting to see popular authors whose books are found in Australian school libraries translated into Russian by authors such as Sue Bentley; Holly Webb; Harriet Muncaster; Daisy Meadows and series such as Mercy Watson, Mog (Judith Kerr) and the picture book Handa's Surprise. In this presentation I learnt a new word - Inspirational Literature. In some US bookshops this is a whole section. My interpretation was that this might apply to books about mindfulness or perhaps books about famous and not so famous people such as those found in the Little People Big Dreams series.
Similarities meet differences with courage Tuula Pere, Helsinki, Finland
Take a look at these books by Tuula:
In this book - Stella and her spiky friend - the US publisher was concerned children might confuse the pharmacist with a vet. And in another Stella book there were issues about school lunches which are provided free for all children in Finland. This was a fascinating session where the author Anna shared images from her books which were questioned by international publishers. It made me think about the page in Rose Meets Mr Wintergarten where the family enjoy the sunrise from the roof of their house. I remember Bob saying in some markets it was thought this might encourage children to actually climb onto a roof and thus put themselves in danger!
8. History of children's literature. Children's literary criticism
Theory of children's literature in discussions
Children's literature in the national and world history
The question of the children's literature research methods
Children's literature in the mirror of criticism
History of literary genres in the history of childhood
Textual criticism of children's literature
Criticism, PR and advertising
Under this heading I attended:
The Universal and the Unique: literary portrayals of child homelessness in Seven Countries Clara Mikita, Linda T. Parsons; Dublin, USA
I met Roger Mello at the USBBY conference in Austin, Texas. He graciously shared the text for Lemon Butterfly by Cao Wenxuan. You can see here his cover design for Bookbird the IBBY Journal and some art which he talked about in his Keynote. Roger and other HCA winners designed a series of beautiful scarves which IBBY are selling to raise funds for their vital projects around the world.
Bookbird is our IBBY Journal
Here is the cover of their new book which celebrates their 60th anniversary. The cover art is by Russian HCA award winner Igor Oleynikov. Valerie Coghlan shared this beautiful quote from Hans Christian Andersen with the audience.
The conference had a wealth of sessions. Here are some I hope to attend over the coming days:
Chores in Amish-themed children's literature Kana Oyabu, Kanazawa, Japan
Some experiences with shared reading: youth protection centres, prisons, schools, and libraries Marijn Brouckaert, Viana do Castelo, Portugal
Storytelling: by children - for children - about children Patricia Amichi, Sydney, Australia
The effect of image language teaching on improving primary school students' literacy - taking picture books as an example (Yawen Su, Beijing, China
The mythology of nomads in children's and youth literature Adam Kapanov, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Images of the Holocaust in Polish literature for children and youth (since 2007) Katarzyna Slany, Kraków, Poland
Immigration and literature: capturing real-life experiences of immigrants to develop empathy and critical thinking among young Children Thandeka Sibiya, Budapest, Hungary
Veracity in non-fiction books for children of primary school age Linda M. Pavonetti, Candace Fleming, Eric Rohmann; Lake Orion, USA
Implicit reiteration of reading visual texts: revisiting the picture book Wendy Stephens, Huntsville, USA
Role and impact of migration on children's Literature Swati Raje, Pune, India
And David Almond in conversation with other HCA past winners
Attending virtually or attending in person. Both have strengths and weaknesses.
In person it is great to network, see and handle the books on display (Silent Books and Disability titles), visit libraries and other venues in the host city, ask questions, meet the presenters, and of course enjoy the hospitality offered. I did ask to see the HCA dinner menu and it all sounded delicious (see below). I should also mention the poster sessions which are always a highlight of an IBBY Congress. In person it is terrific to talk directly with the people about their posters and programs.
Attending virtually I could move between the concurrent sessions without rush between rooms, my conference partner and I were able to chat between our two locked down houses using text messages, and I could use my computer to look up book titles and other programs as they were mentioned. I also enjoyed using the chat function as a way to briefly talk to other attendees.
Some issues - the technology was not always easy to use; shared screens were unfortunately very fuzzy because of the camera position in the break out rooms and many PowerPoint slides contained way too much information in small size text making them impossible to read. It would have been good to have a print friendly version of the program with the hall venues specified.
Overall this was a fabulous three days. I cannot begin to think of all the complexities involved in running a hybrid program like this. Huge congratulations go to the organising committee especially Angela Lebedeva.
I recommend you make a plan now to attend the 38th Congress in 2022:
Or you might consider these future IBBY Congresses in 2024 Trieste, Italy and 2026 Ottawa, Canada.
One more thing - throughout the whole congress I had this song in my head. In 1980 my parents were supposed to attend the Olympic games in Moscow but sadly illness forced them to cancel at the last minute. I know they were so excited at the prospect of visiting Moscow.
In this post I am going to attempt to distill three wonderful conference days into one post. I tend to think in 'dot points' so here are my reactions and thoughts now that I am home from this splendid conference. This is my third post about this event. You can read about all the presenters here and also details of my presentation at the Texas Book Festival.
Meredith Davis Her Own Two Feet
This is the true story of a little girl from Rwanda who comes to Austin for an operation to help her walk.
Carolyn dee FloresThe amazing water color fish
Watch this video of the story. The unique aspect of this book is that it rhymes in both English and Spanish.
There were so many special aspects to the organisation of this conference. One thing I really appreciated was the use of a schedule app. This conference was almost paper free (apart from all the glorious books in the bookshop, the IBBY book displays and the poster sessions). By using the app participants were sent a daily personalised schedule with times and room numbers. The other aspect of the program that I really appreciated was the pace of this conference and they way the organisers at no time had to cajole people into sessions. It seemed to me the delegates were expected to take responsibility for their own program - there were no bells and no one rushing around saying go to this or that session. Here is a list of all the breakout sessions.
My Pre-conference Reading
My reading really paid off. Prior to the conference I tried to read any many books from the range of speakers as I could. On my flight over I completed a few more Middle Grade novels such as The Year of the Dog by Grace Lin, Whale Boy by Nicola Davies and The Turtle of Oman by Naomi Shihab Nye. On the days prior to the conference I visited the Austin Central library. What an amazing space, building, and children's collection. The library was built two years ago and is housed over six floors with an outdoor courtyard garden, central light filled atrium and bright comfortable furniture. While I was there I read several picture books including: Mine Yours illustrated by Qin Leng; The Red thread by Grace Lin; Dim Sum for Everyone by Grace Lin; What can you do with a Rebozo by Carmen Tafolla; The Pond by Nicola Davies, and The Promise also by Nicola Davies;
What do I want to read now?
Aunt Pearl illustrated by Irene Luxbacher Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson Black is a rainbow color by Ekula Holmes Just in case you want to fly illustrated by Christian Robinson A time to Dance Padma Venktraman Deep Underwater illustrated by Irene Luxbacher Nerdy Book Club blog post by Padma Venkatraman about colonisation and the depiction of people from India in books like The Secret Garden. A place at the table by Laura Shovan and Saadi Faruqi Lucy and the string by Vanessa Roeder
References to Australian books
Florette by Anna Walker The Bone Sparrow by Zana Fraillon Every Child a Song by Nicola Davies illustrated by Marc Martin (Australia) Sophie Scott goes South by Alison Lester (poster session) The Patchwork Bike by Maxine Beneba Clarke (poster session) Bob the Railway dog by Corinne Fenton illustrated by Andrew Maclean (poster session)
Some memorable quotes (paraphrased)
"Poetry is a party we're all invited to" Jacqueline Woodson
"We never know how our words go out into the universe" Naomi Shihab Nye
"We are always looking for answers but really it is curiosity that unites us." Paige Britt
On Hope:
"Hope is generosity - to give something away that is unexpected." Ekua Holmes
"Hope - there is no other way. ... Find that book for that child. Words matter. We need to be hopeful for a better tomorrow." Baptiste Paul
"You're not supposed to have an agenda! NO I have an agenda. I want to re connect the child with the natural world, I want to open up conversations, I want children to be empowered not powerless." Nicola Davies
"Picture books are extraordinary, powerful and unique." Nicola Davies
"The story space allows us to imagine a new world - dreams become action." Nicola Davies
Poster Session highlights
Spark wonder in Green Literacy - Jen Cullerton Johnson
Representations of food insecurity and hunger in children's literature - Maria V Acevendo-Aquino and Estela Ipina
Student-created book trailers on motivation and comprehension - Jared Crossley
Map it - using maps and digital collection to teach information books - Bindy Fleischman
Discoveries
Grace Lin was inspired by Ezra Jack Keats and his book Snowy day and this lead to her books about Little Snow.
Many years ago Allen Say was asked a very serious question by a Grade 4 child - "To be an artist can I be one by working hard or do I need talent?" This question lingered with Allen and led to his newest book - Almond
Christian Robinson dedicated one of his books to his high school art teacher who not only encouraged him she organised for him to enter competitions. I think he said she paid for them.
Elise Gravel has wonderful cartoons on her web site which explain concepts such as empathy, diversity and racism. Her book What is a Refugee was developed when a publisher saw one of her cartoons.
The second pre conference tour was to the Harry Ransom Center which is which
is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin. There
we viewed a range of items by Arthur Rackham. I was interested to discover there are many other archival collections like this in America such as the Children's Literature Research Collection at the University of Minnesota. At this conference I met librarian Lisa von Drasek. I would love to spend time in her library and possibly others like it some time in the future. The common bird in Austin Texas is the Grackle. I think they drive the locals crazy but I found them fascinating. This sculpture can be seen in the Austin Central library - it's a cuckoo clock with no hands.
no one leaves home unless
home is the mouth of a shark.
you only run for the border
when you see the whole city
running as well.
your neighbours running faster
than you, the boy you went to school with
who kissed you dizzy behind
the old tin factory is
holding a gun bigger than his body,
you only leave home
when home won't let you stay.
no one would leave home unless home
chased you, fire under feet,
hot blood in your belly.
it's not something you ever thought about
doing, and so when you did -
you carried the anthem under your breath,
waiting until the airport toilet
to tear up the passport and swallow,
each mouthful of paper making it clear that
you would not be going back.
you have to understand,
no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land.
who would choose to spend days
and nights in the stomach of a truck
unless the miles travelled
meant something more than journey.
no one would choose to crawl under fences,
be beaten until your shadow leaves you,
raped, then drowned, forced to the bottom of
the boat because you are darker, be sold,
starved, shot at the border like a sick animal,
be pitied, lose your name, lose your family,
make a refugee camp a home for a year or two or ten,
stripped and searched, find prison everywhere
and if you survive and you are greeted on the other side
with go home blacks, refugees
dirty immigrants, asylum seekers
sucking our country dry of milk,
dark, with their hands out
smell strange, savage -
look what they've done to their own countries,
what will they do to ours?
the dirty looks in the street
softer than a limb torn off,
the indignity of everyday life
more tender than fourteen men who
look like your father, between
your legs, insults easier to swallow
than rubble, than your child's body
in pieces - for now, forget about pride
your survival is more important.
i want to go home, but home is the mouth of a shark
home is the barrel of the gun
and no one would leave home
unless home chased you to the shore
unless home tells you to
leave what you could not behind,
even if it was human.
no one leaves home until home
is a damp voice in your ear saying
leave, run now, i don't know what
i've become.
Silent Auction raising funds for IBBY projects
The silent auction was fabulous and I picked up a signed copy of the new Rosemary Wells book Twin Trouble. This linked beautifully with the display at the Austin Central library from the Rosemary Wells book about Yoko.
Mural in the children's section of the Austin Central Library
One piece of art from Yoko's Show and Tell on display in the Central Library in Austin
