International

Swan Sister

Just as fairy-tale magic can transform a loved one into a swan, the contributors to this book have transformed traditional fairy tales and legends into stories that are completely original, yet still tantalizingly familiar. In this book you will find:• a Rapunzel whose most confining prison is her loneliness • a contemporary rendering of the Green Man myth • two different versions of Red Riding Hood • a tale that grew out of a Celtic folk song • Sleeping Beauty’s experience of her enchantment• two works inspired by the Arabian Nights • and morel In the follow-up to A Wolf at the Door, thirteen renowned authors come together with a selection of new and surprising adaptations of the fairy tales we think we know so well. These fresh takes on classic tales will show you sides of each story you never dreamed of.

Tales Told In Tents

Retells folktales from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan, and includes several stories that cross regional lines, proverbs, riddles, and poems.

Why are some carpets magic? What is a wish-tree? And where can the fountain of eternal life be found? The answers to these and many other intriguing questions can be found in Sally Pomme Clayton’s enchanted storytelling journey through Central Asia. On her travels in the region, Sally has accumulated a wealth of folklore and knowledge of nomadic cultures. The 12 exotic retellings of stories related to the author in storytelling tents are linked by a mix of memories spiced with homespun wisdom, as she retraces her steps through Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tadjikistan and Afghanistan. Sophie Herxheimer’s brilliantly-patterned artwork, together with a glossary and brief notes, combine to reveal the richness of these little-known, faraway lands of Central Asia.

Hummingbirds: Fact and Folklore from the Americas

Hummingbirds have fascinated people since ancient times and have inspired native peoples to weave them into folklore. Jeanette larson and Adrienne Yorinks combine hummingbird facts with retellings of hummingbird tales from various peoples of the Americas to give readers an informative and cultural look at these amazing birds. Each folklore story offers a cultural explanation for a specific characteristic of these unique birds.

Books For Children of the World

Presents the life of the founder of the International Youth Library in Munich, Jella Lepman, describing how she was sent by the United States Army to Germany in 1945 to assist German children and decided to build a children’s library.

Snakes!: Strange and Wonderful

Provides a comprehensive look at the world of snakes through a presentation of the many types found around the world–reviewing their similarities, differences, and unique abilities.

My Cold Went On Vacation

Colds travel from person to person, so one little boy imagines all the places his cold might visit after it leaves him. This little cold germ rides the school bus, climbs mountains, sails across the ocean, and visits every continent before it reaches its final destination right across the hall in his sister’s room. Nora Krug’s bright, bold artwork makes for a very colorful travelogue, and Molly Rausch’s funny story of a global expedition also celebrates imaginative thinking.

Scribbling Women

In 1855, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote to his publisher, complaining about the irritating fad of “scribbling women.” Whether they were written by professionals, by women who simply wanted to connect with others, or by those who wanted to leave a record of their lives, those “scribbles” are fascinating, informative, and instructive. Margaret Catchpole was a transported prisoner whose eleven letters provide the earliest record of white settlement in Australia. Writing hundreds of years later, Aboriginal writer Doris Pilkey wrote a novel about another kind of exile in Australia. Young Isabella Beeton, one of twenty-one children and herself the mother of four, managed to write a groundbreaking cookbook before she died at the age of twenty-eight. World traveler and journalist Nelly Bly used her writing to expose terrible injustices. Sei Shonagan left poetry and journal entries that provide a vivid look at the pampered life and intrigues in Japan’s imperial court. Ada Blackjack, sole survivor of a disastrous scientific expedition in the Arctic, fought isolation and fear with her precious Eversharp pencil. Dr. Dang Thuy Tram’s diary, written in a field hospital in the steaming North Vietnamese jungle while American bombs fell, is a heartbreaking record of fear and hope. Many of the women in “Scribbling Women” had eventful lives. They became friends with cannibals, delivered babies, stole horses, and sailed on whaling ships. Others lived quietly, close to home. But each of them illuminated the world through her words.

Gaia Warriors

A book on global warming like no other, merging key concepts with firsthand accounts from people of all ages who have found ways to help. Inspired by the work of outstanding scientist and thinker James Lovelock and written by acclaimed author Nicola Davies, here is a book that takes a clear look at how and why Earth’s climate is changing and the ways we can deal with it.

 

 

Birthdays in Many Cultures (Life Around The World)

From homes and clothes to school and family, life is different all around the world. Culture makes us who we are. Grass-roofed huts, blue jeans, and ceremonial clothing are all a part of culture. Each striking photograph is accompanied by a world map that shows where it was taken.

The Organization of American States

The Organization of American States is an international organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., whose members are the 35 nation-states of the Americas. Its historic goals are to strengthen peace and security, to consolidate representative democracy, to provide for collective defense, to eradicate poverty, and to promote economic, social, and cultural development. The organization is working on a treaty that will establish a hemispheric free-trade area. Though it has often been seen as an arm of U.S. foreign policy, most observers regard the United States’ influence as waning within the organization.