2018 School Spending Survey Report
40 Outstanding International Books for Children from USBBY. Download the Full List.
Following a devastating year of violence against children, our deepest hope is that these 40 outstanding international titles, and the words within them, can inspire bridges of understanding and peace. Download the full list here.
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Loose Threads. Copyright © 2024 by Isol. Used with permission from Enchanted Lion Books. |
In Ricardo Chávez Castañeda’s The Book of Denial,one of the titles on this year’s United States Board on Books for Young People’s (USBBY) Outstanding International Books list, the narrator’s father writes, “I must write this so that others will care…and so that I will continue to care…So long as it seems that words have some purpose.”
It is USBBY’s view that words do indeed have a purpose, and the 40 titles on this year’s list, chosen by a committee with expertise in and passion for children’s literature from around the world, affirm that.
The purpose of words can be to delight—like the Argentinean tale of a curious young girl untangling a world of magic and mystery (Loose Threads), or the Brazilian classic in which a small child makes up his own words with élan to spare (Marcelo, Martello, Marshmallow).
The purpose of words can be to educate and inform—like a Russian creator’s story of water and its uses (Water), or a book recounting the life of Iceland’s Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, the world’s first democratically elected female president (Vigdís).
The purpose of words can be to share new perspectives (or familiar ones)—like a story of a shared meal with family, neighbors, and friends in a bustling town in southwest China (Grandma’s Roof Garden), or a coming-of-age story navigating queer, Asian identity in Vancouver (Crash Landing).
Words can also be a call to action—like the story of tween activists in Norway who work to save a forest (Save Our Forest!) or The Book of Denial itself. It is a horror tale recounting brutality toward children, and it reminds us that the lives of all children across the globe are precious and must be protected.
Following a devastating year of violence against children, our deepest hope is that these outstanding international titles, and the words within them, can inspire bridges of understanding and peace.
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Each year, USBBY, the United States section of the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), appoints a committee to select its Outstanding International Books (OIB) list, which celebrates children’s literature that U.S. publishers and distributors have brought in from around the world. The list highlights exceptional literature that introduces young people to outstanding authors and illustrators from other countries, helps young people in the United States to see the world from diverse perspectives, promotes literature that is accessible to young people in the United States, addresses topics that may be missing from U.S. children’s and young adult literature, and encourages titles that exhibit distinct cultural flavor. The committee received 447 books published in 2024, of which 40 were chosen as OIB. For additional information and access to all OIB lists, visit www.usbby.org. Note: Country names in parentheses indicate where the book was first or simultaneously published. A second country name in parentheses indicates book setting if it differs meaningfully from country of publication. |
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