Traveling the world in children's books

Join me on our adventure through a diverse range of children's stories from far off lands and different cultures.

I love to travel but due to financial constraints and family needs, that’s not really on the cards for us right now. However, I want to bring the joy of exploring different worldviews into our everyday life. Even though we live in a quiet corner of South Australia, that doesn’t mean we can’t learn about and cherish knowledge from different cultures. I want my children, who are currently 7 and 11, to grow up feeling they are citizens of our world.

So, this year we embarked on a project to read books from a diverse range of authors sharing stories from different countries and cultures around the world. We created a map to mark the places we had visited through literature. Some stories come from real life, others are historical fiction rooted in a location or period in time. We also love fantasies informed by different cultures and reading about mythologies from around the world. All of these can give us understanding and appreciation for the infinite mosaic of cultures our world contains.

BOOK-SCHOOLING (If that’s a thing!)

Four and a half years ago we stepped out of mainstream education, due to school not being a happy or safe place for my son, and began to home educate. I won’t sugar coat it, it’s been a hard journey but definitely the right choice for us. I think often the image conjured in our minds when we think of home education depicts large families sitting harmoniously around a wooden table, with art supplies beautifully arranged in baskets, studiously working together, interspersed with an occasional run barefoot through a meadow or frolic in the woods. That is not our life. Home education is not easy, not for us anyway. Some days it is utterly exhausting and my mind is filled with doubts that I’m screwing my kids up!

One thing that has always worked for us is books. I love children’s books, my son is an avid reader of all things and my daughter is following suit. In the home education world, there is a huge range of different approaches to education. For example, world-schooling which is traveling and learning from the world around you or game-schooling which leans predominantly on learning from playing board games or computer games. I’m not sure if this is a thing but we book-school. Most of our learning is done through reading a broad range of fiction and non-fiction literature. This is what lead us to the idea of traveling the world through stories.

Obviously you don’t need to be a home schooler to read lots of books, that is the awesome thing about books, they are for everyone. I strongly encourage you to get out there and support your public library or independent bookstore, if you have one.

OUR JOURNEY IN BOOKS SO FAR

The books listed below are novels and mostly fit in the 8-12 age range. Some to contain complex issues facing our world including poverty, migration, climate change, colonialism, racism and social injustice. I don’t shy away from these topics with my children, everything is open for discussion in our house, but I encourage you to research any books you choose to read to see if they are suitable for the age of your children.

(Note: In this article I share Amazon affiliate links so you can find the books we read, but if you can, please consider supporting your local bookstore or library.)

EUROPE

UK:

• Spies In The Sky by Beverly McWilliams is the story of a group of pigeons that were used to carry information during WW2. The story is set in Norfolk, UK and a Belgium.

• Storyland: A New Mythology Of Britain by Amy Jeffs is a retelling of ancient stories from the UK.

• Forest Folk Tales by Tom Phillips retells traditional folk tales from the UK.

• A Kind Of Spark by Elle Mc Nicoll is based in Scotland and tells the story of Addie, a neurodivergent girl who campaigns for a memorial when she learns that her small Scottish town used to burn witches simply because they were different.

GREECE:

• Homer’s Iliad and The Odyssey retold by Gillian Cross. A beautifully illustrated retelling of these Greek mythology stories.

• Greek Myths, published by DK.

• Monkey King And The World Of Myths by Maple Lam is a fun graphic novel that brings together Greek and Chinese mythology.

FRANCE:

• Safiyyah’s War by Hiba Noor Khan is inspired by the true story of how the Grand Mosque of Paris saved the lives of hundreds of Jews during World War II.

NORWAY:

• The Last Bear by Hannah Gold is set on an island in the arctic circle near Svalbard where a young girl befriends a lost polar bear. Through her relationship with the bear, she heals some trauma in her past and her relationship with her father. The story also covers climate change.

• Laila And The Blue Fox by Kiran Millwood Hargrave is set in Tromso, Norway and on a boat in the Arctic circle. The book explores themes of migration, climate change and family relationships through the eyes of the two main characters, Leila and Miso the fox.

• Riddle Of The Runes by Jamina Ramirez is a story of mystery and adventure set in Viking times.

• Norse Mythology, published by DK.

A few stories we have read from Europe

AFRICA

SOMALIA:

• When Stars Are Scattered by Omar Mohamed and Victoria Jamieson is a true story told in graphic novel form about a boy named Omar and his brother, Hassan, who live in a refugee camp in Somalia.

NIGER & LIBYA:

• Illegal by Andrew Donkin and Eoin Colfer is the story of Ebo, and undocumented migrant making a dangerous journey from his village in Africa to Europe, told in graphic novel form.

NIGERIA:

• Onyeka And The Academy Of The Sun by Tola Okogwu is a futuristic fantasy set in London and Nigeria about a girl who finds that her Afro hair has psychokinetic powers.

EGYPT:

• Egyptian Myths, published by DK.

I would love to read more stories based in Africa or by African authors, please give me your recommendations in the comments below:

A selection of stories from Africa, India and Pakistan

ASIA

INDIA:

• Nush And The Stolen Emerald by Jasbinder Bilan is set in colonial India and London. Nush travels to London to retreve a precious emerald that was stolen from her family by the East India Company. This book is a great for introducing destructive effects of colonialism to young readers.

• Asha And The Spirit Bird by Jasbinder Bilan is the story of a girl, Asha, and her friend who travel through the Himalayas to find her lost farther.

• Tamarind And The Star Of Ishta by Jasbinder Bilan is a sad but beautiful mystery infused with magic about a girl who returns to her mothers ancestral home in India after growing up in the UK.

• Ash Mistry And The Savage Fortress by Sarwat Chadda; think Percy Jackson but based in Indian culture.

• Tales From India by Bali Rai

PAKISTAN:

• Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed is based in Pakistan and calls attention to contemporary global inequities, exploring themes of social injustice and education. The story tells of one girl's courage as Amal struggles to regain her freedom and become a force of change for her village.

THAILAND:

• A Wish In The Dark by Christina Soontornvat is fantasy novel and retelling of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo with elements inspired by Thai culture.

VIETNAM:

• Inside Out And Back Again by Thanhha Lai is a story told in verse about a 10-year-old girl, Kim Ha, escaping the Vietnam War in 1975 to move to a new town in Alabama.

SOUTH KOREA:

• When You Trap A Tiger by Tae Keller is based in the US and tells the story of a biracial girl, Lily, who learns about her heritage when her family moves in with Lily's Korean grandmother.

CHINA:

• Where The Mountain Meets The Moon by Grace Lin is a fantasy-adventure novel inspired by Chinese folklore. In the story, Minli makes friends with a flightless dragon, a talking goldfish, a King, and a boy with a buffalo. The characters she meets all play a role in helping her find her way to the Old Man in the Moon. Throughout her journey Minli learns lessons about happiness and true wealth.

• A Ghost In My Suitcase by Gabrielle Wang is the story of Celeste, a 13-year-old Australian girl of Chinese decent. When she travels to China to visit her grandmother, she uncovers an incredible family secret. The story explores Chinese mythology and culture.

• Guardians Of The New Moon series by Eric Huang explores the Chinese Lunar New Year myths and stories in fun and exciting adventures.

• Myths of China, published by DK

JAPAN:

• Peach Boy and Urashima Taro published by Tutle is a selection of traditional Japanese children’s stories.

INDONESIA:

• Berani by Michelle Kadarusman is set on the island of Java in Indonesia and follows Malia, Ari, and a captive orangutan named Ginger Juice in a story about environmental activism.

PAPA NEW GUINEA:

• The Shark Caller by Zillah Bethall is a spell-binding adventure of friendship, forgiveness and bravery, set on the shores of Papua New Guinea.

A secection of books with Asian stories

AUSTRALIA

• Runt by Craig Silvey set in outback Australia tells the story of Annie and Runt, a stray dog, who enter a dog show to try and raise money to save her families farm.

• Blueback by Tim Winton is an achingly beautiful story about family, belonging, and living a life in tune with the environment.

• Magic For Tigers by Michelle Kadarusman is set in the forests of Tasmania and is an environmental story about protecting the forest and searching for the now extinct Thylacine ( Tasmanian Tiger).

• The Song Walker by Zillah Bethall is fantastic tale which meshes modern life with ancient folklore to create a gripping, emotional adventure set in outback Australia.

NORTH & CENTRAL AMERICA

USA:

• The Lost Whale by Hannah Gold is the story of Rio, who moves from the UK to California to stay with is grandmother when his mother is unwell. In his search for a lost whale, Rio heals his relationship with his grandmother and tries to save his mother. This story touches on mental health issues in a beautiful and sensitive way.

• The League Of Secret Heroes series by Kate Hannigan is an action-packed adventure trilogy about a trio of young superheroes fighting for justice during World War II.

MEXICO:

• Folktales of Mexico edited by Neil Philip is a retelling of traditional folktales from Mexico.

COSTA RICA:

• Turtle Moon by Hannah Gold is an environmental adventure based in the jungles of Costa Rica where Kaia fights to protect a rare turtle nesting site and inturn heals her relationship with her parents.

We haven’t traveled very far through the Americas yet, please give me some recommendations of stories from North, Central & South America:

OUR ADVENTURE CONTINUES

Our map of the world in stories is an ever-unfolding atlas of awe and adventure which we plan to continue throughout the year. If you have any story recommendations, please leave them in the comments below and I will share an updated list of books later in the year.

Help me fill our house with more awesome books!