When we interviewed the authors and illustrators of the books chosen for the Spirit of PaperTigers‘ 2010 Book Set, there was one question we asked everybody: “If you were to pick a place anywhere in the world to send your book, where would it be and why?”

We thought it would be great to bring all the different answers together here on the blog, so here is the first of two parts in which we highlight each person’s response…

Bolormaa Baasansuren, author and illustrator of My Little Round House, adapted by Helen Mixter (Groundwood Books, House of Anansi Press, 2009):

I would like to send it to every country in the world! But right now, I would like to send it to Haiti, most of all. Now, after the earthquake, its people, especially the children, are going through very hard times. I like to imagine the children of Haiti forgetting their current hardships even just for a moment, by immersing themselves in a picture book.

Claire A. Nivola, author and illustrator of Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008):

I would think that the most important places to send the books would be to areas most affected by deforestation. Southeast Asia and South America are areas of enormous concern. But the list of countries is long: the countries of Central America, Brazil, Madagascar, Haiti, Mexico, India, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Bangladesh, China, Sri Lanka, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Guinea, Ghana, Cote d’ Ivoire. Too many! And unless there are translations provided, the books are useless to children who don’t read English. So, I would choose any of the above countries where English is spoken or taught in the schools. However, any country where children are in need would have my blessings. The Wangari Maathai story is not just about deforestation, it is about any misuse of the environment, and the environment is in need of help all around this globe!

Lynne Barasch, author and illustrator of First Come the Zebra (Lee & Low, 2009):

I would send First Come the Zebra to Kenya, where the story takes place. Of course conflict exists in many parts of the world. I would say Israel and neighboring Arab countries could benefit from this story too.

Grace Lin, author and illustrator of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (Little, Brown & Co.,2009):

I’d like to send the book to myself when I was 10 years old. Partly because it is the kind of book that I wanted and needed and didn’t have when I was a child, and partly to tell my younger self, “Have faith, you will someday accomplish your dream.”

Hmm, all over the world is a bit tricky – but we are doing our best to find homes in some of the specific places mentioned. And what about you? If you could choose anywhere in the world to send special books like these, where would it be?

One of the books selected for the Spirit of PaperTigers 2010 Book Set is My Little Round House by Bolormaa Baasansuren (Groundwood Books/House of Anansi press, 2009). In a Personal View for PaperTigers, Helen Mixter describes the book’s journey from its creation in Mongolia to Japan, and her adaptation of the Japanese edition for publication in English, after being asked by Groundwood to provide a rough translation of the Japanese text:

The rough translation was very useful for its factual content. It explained what was happening in the pictures and also conveyed the emotional tone of the book. It is a book that expresses very convincingly a baby’s feelings of being loved, of being safe and warm and cozy despite what to many non-Mongolians might seem to be the hard life of a nomad. All the elements of this wonderful story were there except that the text did not really resemble a picture book text that would work for North Americans.

The publisher had told me about [Japanese illustrator] Hideko Nagano’s story of working with Baasansuren on the theme of roundness to give the book its shape. So I decided that I would use this idea as the thematic centre for the English version. And roundness is certainly a dominant presence in this baby’s life – from his mother’s womb, to his ger, to the little basket in which he travels through a snowstorm to the family’s winter quarters. Roundness is there in the turn of the year as the family literally moves through four seasons, each with its own pastures and quarters for the animals. It is there in the family that lovingly surrounds him. Only at the very end, when he runs through the grass with the dogs on his first birthday, do we see the baby breaking out of his small round world into the greater, flatter world of the outdoors – though the sky is still a round canopy over his head.

The fact that the “original text” came through such an unusual route in some ways made the whole process much freer than usual. Whereas usually as a translator I work very hard to keep the voice of the original text intact and to remain as true as possible to the word for word of it, this process wasn’t really possible here. Because the illustrations show the story and the feelings of the book so clearly, and because the rough translation had the same emotional texture, it seemed to be okay to try and re-tell the story rather than to “translate” it. I think it works and that the English book is true in spirit and form to the original.

This book is a personal favourite of mine. It is so true to the emotional world of a baby while showing us such a wonderful and completely different way of life.

You can read the whole article here. I found the notion of translation vs adaptation particularly interesting. It would be interesting to know readers’ views on this too…

This week PaperTigers launched its Spirit of PaperTigers Project (SPT) which involves the donating of book sets for children to libraries and schools in developing countries.   With the recent earthquake in Haiti, people’s hearts and minds are focused on how they can assist this particular developing country in this time of need.  When asked about where author of one of the SPT book set titles, Bolormaa Basaansen, would like her books sent, she said:

I would like to send it to every country in the world! But right now, I would like to send it to Haiti, most of all. Now, after the earthquake, its people, especially the children, are going through very hard times.  I like to imagine the children of Haiti forgetting their current hardships even just for a moment, by immersing themselves in a picture book.

It is true that even ‘just for a moment,’ books can provide a release and so much more.   And the ‘so much more’ part of the equation is what the SPT project is all about.  After all the aid and rescue teams have departed from Haiti, its citizens will have to begin anew the task of rebuilding their society.    Goals like providing a basic education for its children and increasing literacy will become more apparent in the coming months and years of recovery ahead.

Two weeks ago,  I mentioned IBBY’s Fund for Children in Crisis.  They have a project in Haiti with ongoing and current news available on their website.  Other organizations that have come to my attention for their work in Haiti on the educational front are EMAS (Educational Medical Aid Society) and Yéle Haiti.  Perhaps you know of organizations like these that are doing good work in Haiti.  Leave us a link in the comments section to share a website of an organization you know of that promotes education and literacy in developing countries like Haiti.  While it has not yet been determined where the SPT book sets will go — there are considerations of language since the SPT books are in English — places like Haiti will be the target locations.

Giving books to children may seem like a small step but it is a step that PaperTigers feels worth taking through this special Spirit of PaperTigers outreach initiative.

Today we are thrilled to be announcing our Spirit of PaperTigers Project, an initiative of Pacific Rim Voices, whose aim is to promote literacy while raising awareness of our common humanity. The idea is to donate 100 book sets of 7 carefully selected multicultural books to libraries and schools in areas of need across the globe.

The following titles have been selected for inclusion in the 2010 Book Set:

Planting The Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai, by Claire A. Nivola. Frances Foster Books, 2008.

First Come the Zebra, by Lynne Barash. Lee & Low, 2009.
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Little Leap Forward: A Boy in Beijing, by Guo Yue and Clare Farrow, illustrated by Helen Cann. Barefoot Books, 2008.

The Storyteller’s Candle/La velita de los cuentos, by Lucia Gonzalez, illustrated by Lulu Delacre. Children’s Book Press, 2008.

My Little Round House, by Bolormaa Baasansuren, English adaptation by Helen Mixter. Groundwood Books, 2009.

One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference, by Katie Smith Milway, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes. Kids Can Press, 2008.

Where The Mountain Meets The Moon, by Grace Lin. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009.

Our website currently highlights all the authors and illustrators whose books have been selected, as well as other features related to the project. Please note that we will be further exploring the particular reasons for selecting each title, here, on the blog, during the month of February.

One important aspect of the Spirit of PaperTigers project is that we will be receiving feedback from the book set recipients. In the course of the coming months, as feedback comes in, we will be posting it to the blog and the site, so everyone can find out about where the books are going and who they are reaching.

To learn more about the project and enjoy the new features, visit the website. And please help us spread the word on this exciting new venture!…