Children’s Books in Translation, Middle Grade Book Club Picks, & More Kidlit News
It’s hard to keep up with all the latest news and discussions about children’s books and publishing, so I’m helping out by doing it for you. Here are a few articles that caught my attention, from children’s books in translation to the latest children’s imprint closing.
Children’s Books in Translation
According to Publisher’s Weekly, only 3% of published books each year are translated works, and even fewer than that are children’s books. Emma Kantor interviewed 11 children’s publishing professionals for PW about why so few international children’s books are translated into English. What stood out to me most about the interviews was Eerdmans editorial director Kathleen Merz’s observation that adults often find these books too strange, “too foreign,” and thus it’s difficult to convince American publishers to take the risk and publish translated books. On the other hand, kids are ready to explore and are open to anything.
Word Without Borders compiled a reading list of 15 translated children’s books from Latin America, and I’m surprised to say I’ve only read five of them! Time to start requesting the others from my local library.
Middle Grade Book Club Observations
I love this X thread from middle grade author Carlie Sorosiak, who runs a middle grade book club at her local indie bookstore. She lists ten observations about middle grade reading preferences based on her experiences leading the book club that she hopes will help children’s book professionals. Some of her observations are things I expected: kids love book series, especially longer ones, don’t much care for older “classics,” and tend to get bored by award-winning middle grade (sorry, award judges, y’all aren’t kids). But some of her observations were more surprising. I’m overjoyed to hear her book club kids love novels-in-verse. I’ve been seeing more of those published lately (and adore them), and I’m so glad they’re going to find an audience. She also says they like chunky graphic novels that have a solidly complex storyline, which makes my heart happy. But, while her kids don’t like to be pandered too and enjoy complexity, they’re turned off by too many subplots.
I wonder if this indicative of middle grade reading trends in general, or, if because these are kids in a book club, they’re tastes might be a bit different than the average middle grade reader?
Saying Goodbye to Algonquin Young Readers
Hachette imprint Algonquin Young Readers (AYR) has officially closed as of September 23, 2024. School Library Journal writer Andrew Bauld traces its history in this piece, from its launch in 2011 to its many successes and its ultimate, baffling closure. While it’s the third children’s imprint to close in the last 15 months, AYR was making money for Hachette and seemed like a successful, though small, imprint. Many are confused about its closure. Books published by AYR include The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill, Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez, and one of my child’s favorites, the new chapter books series The Kids in Mrs. Z’s Class. AYR will be folded into Little Brown Young Readers (LBYR), though some authors are worried about becoming lost amid LBYR’s much larger publishing list. While AYR published about 15 books a year, LBYR publishes around 200.
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If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, X @AReaderlyMom, Bluesky @AReaderlyMom, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts, and if you’re a Nashville local, subscribe to my Hey Nashville newsletter. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com.
All the best,
Margaret Kingsbury
