This week, the Family Camp that I organize is following the theme “Around the World.” Here are a few books I recently borrowed from the library that definitely fit right in.
Baba Wague Diakite’s The Hatseller and the Monkeys retells the folktale most Americans recognize from Caps for Sale. In this Malian version, we are given a wonderful glimpse into African village life, as well as a moral for the wacky tale. Ages 2-7.
The Far East is where the graphic novel first became most popular, and in Southeast Asia, one of the most popular authors of this format is Lat. Lat portrays his boyhood in a small village in Malaysia, circa 1950 in Kampung Boy. I adored both the humor and the loving nostagia Lat imbues the book with. Ages 7 through adult.
Many people grew up reading The Little Prince. Joann Sfar recently recreated Saint-Exupery’s French classic in the graphic novel format. The experiences reading the two are very different–why not read both and compare?
Age 9 and up.
Rebecca Klempner 