Australian author Susanne Gervay (visit her website and blog) has had a very busy year this year and social justice has been high on her agenda. She is one of the contributors to Fear Factor: Terror Incognito, an anthology of short stories featuring ten Australian and ten Indian writers, edited by Meenakshi Bharat and Sharon Rundle (Macmillan Australia/ Picador India, 2010). She has been writing about her travels to India and Kiribati, a “Pacific atoll nation drowning under climate change”. She has just launched Always Jack, the third book about Jack, following on from her wonderful I Am Jack and Super Jack. Most recently, Susanne was in South Korea for the Nambook-010 Fesival, the 5th Nami Island International Children’s Book Festival. She was there because she was taking part in Peace Story, a very special project. We are very grateful to Susanne for telling us all about it here. For those of us who couldn’t be there in person, Susanne’s description and photographs are definitely the next best thing!

In these troubled times with North Korea’s military attack on South Korea, the international publication of Peace Story is poignant and important. Twenty-two children’s authors and twenty-two illustrators from twenty-two countries engaged in an international cooperative to create a unique anthology, Peace Story, for young people. Respected academic author on Irish children’s literature Valerie Coghlan and Irish Laureate for children’s literature Siobhán Parkinson were the co-editors of Peace Story.

‘Peace Story’ was part of the Nami Island International Children’s Book Festival, South Korea which was first held in 2005 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen. It is a six-week bi-annual festival of children’s books, the environment and peace, featuring outstanding exhibitions of children’s books and illustrations from all over the world. Much loved Korean illustrator Kang Woo-hyon, President of the Nambook-010 International Committee headed the ‘Peace Story’ project with the support of the Nami Island Minn family who published and translated some of the stories, and hosted the authors and illustrators on Nami Island. It was supported by National YMCA Korea, UNICEF and UNESCO Korea, the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism, and Nami Island the official sponsor of the IBBY Hans Christian Anderson Awards.

My Australian story ‘To East Timor with Love Australia’, illustrated by the award-winning Frané Lessac, opens the anthology Peace Story. Frané Lessac’s vibrant colours of bright pink bougainvillea and yellow-centred frangipanis create a visual representation of loss of homeland through war, but also hope for the future. (more…)

Gracefully floating like a leaf on top of Cheongpyung Lake, 63 kilometers north of the Han River, is the tiny Korean Island of Nami. With a circumference of only 6 kilometers, you can cross the half-moon shaped island in a matter of minutes and, in fact, no cars are permitted on the island. Nami is a popular destination for Korean families on a peaceful day trip or for a weekend retreat. It also offers stunning scenery, flora and fauna: so what better place to host a book festival? The 4th annual Nami Island International Children’s Book Festival – NAMBOOK 008 runs from May 1st to June 30th and this year’s theme is “The Echoes of Picture Books”.

Organized by the Korean Board on Books for Young People (KBBY), NAMBOOK began as an event to celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen, one of the world’s greatest storytellers. The festival continues to grow in size and popularity, with visitors from around the world; and this year’s festival promises to be the best yet! An amazing program of events for all those interested in children’s literature is well underway. Over 75 countries are represented in the World Picture Book Exhibition, the Hans Christian Andersen Award Winners are exhibited, and workshops feature renowned children’s authors and illustrators. KBBY has organized “Guest of Honor Days”, which offer festival goers a fantastic opportunity to taste diverse cultures of the world via their books and artistic performances. Countries featured in 2008 include: Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Serbia, Singapore, Taiwan, Turkey, and Vietnam.

KBBY promotes NAMBOOK 008 as one of the most extraordinary places in the world for children, as well as adults, to encounter books:

“It is a celebration of children’s literature with not just a fantastic array of children’s books on display, but plenty of places – both indoors and out – for people to experience the joy of reading, storytelling, book making and other events.”

The festival is a very prominent event to promote IBBY’s missions. In March this year, IBBY president Patsy Aldana announced that Nami Island Inc. of South Korea has generously agreed to sponsor the Hans Christian Andersen Awards (perhaps the most prestigious awards in the world of children’s books). In a press release, MS. Aldana said

“The annual NAMBOOK festival that attracts children’s books, performers, and artists from around the world; the Centre for Environmental Studies; the Artists’ Centre and residential cottages where artisans and artists can come to work and live with nature; the UNICEF pavilion; the outdoor sculpture garden; and most especially, the numerous little nature libraries scattered throughout the island, make this one of the most extraordinary places in the world for children, as well as adults, to encounter books”.

Have you attended NAMBOOK? If so, we would love to hear from you!

(Click on event name for more information)

23rd World Book Fair 2008~ May 30 – Jun 8, Singapore

4th Nami Island International Book Festival~ ongoing until Jun 30, Korea

Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference~ Jun 5-7, Singapore

Antioch University First Annual Children’s Literature Conference~ Jun 7, Los Angeles, CA, USA

6th Annual Feria del Libro: A Family Book Fair~ Jun 7, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Storylines Festival of New Zealand Children’s Writers and Illustrators~ Jun 8-15, New Zealand

Montana New Zealand Book Award Finalists Announced~ Jun 10, New Zealand

35th Annual Children’s Literature Association Conference~ Jun 12-15, Normal, IL, USA

Book Expo Canada~ Jun 13-16, Toronto, ON, Canada

“Princess Shawl” book launch and reading by Shirley Lim~ Jun 14, Kuala Lumpur

Cape Town Book Fair~ Jun 14-17, South Africa

CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Children’s Book Awards Winners Announced ~Jun 26, United Kingdom

Sunthorn Phu Day (celebrated poet)~ Jun 26, Thailand

American Library Association Annual Conference and Exhibition~ Jun 26 – Jul 2, Anaheim, CA, USA

Canadian Multiculturalism Day~ Jun 27, Canada

Jakarta Book Fair~ Jun 28 – Jul 6, Jakarta, Indonesia

American Indian Youth Literature Awards Presentations~ Jun 30, Anaheim, CA, USA

While searching for events to add to our Eventful World calendar, I came across this article entitled “A Nation Brought To Book: The literary festivals boom” by Cahal Milmo and Rob Sharp. In it the authors state:

“Literary festivals used to be humble gatherings of authors and fans. But now they are undergoing a boom, with new events opening and everyone from politicians to pop stars getting in on the act.

“Gordon Brown believes they are a sign of a new seriousness in Britain. Publishers believe they raise their writers’ profiles in a notoriously overcrowded market. And, most importantly, readers flock to them in ever-growing numbers with inquiring minds and open wallets.

“The literary festival scene is undergoing a boom akin to that in the music industry, with new events mushrooming around the country to compete with venerable annual showcases like Hay-on-Wye, Oxford and Cheltenham…Mr Browne said: “You might begin to ask whether the market is there to sustain so many literary events. I think as long as they are well organized and professional the demand is there.” ”

We at PaperTigers couldn’t agree more! The more literary events the better – especially those that feature events for children and young adults. What better way to turn children and young adults onto reading then by taking them to a literary festival? Big or small, it’s not the size of the event that matters but the excitement for reading that it generates.

I would love to know if any of our readers have attended NAMBOOK-007 The Nami Island International Children’s Book Festival. This annual, two-month festival takes place in Korea and will end on July 1, 2007. When I told my two children (ages 6 and 10) about Nambook-007 they were ready to catch the next flight to Korea. My son commented “it sounds like Disneyland for book lovers!”

There are lots of literary events happening throughout the summer, so check our calendar and see what catches your eye. Many of the festivals are held outside during summer months and have activities that will appeal to all ages. We always welcome your feedback, so let us know what the literary festival scene is like in your city. Do you have any events that are geared specifically towards children and their families? What festivals have you attended? Will you be attending something exciting this summer that we should all know about?