Picture books for 0-years-old

An insight from a Japanese researcher In this entry, I’ll resort to a viewpoint expressed by Toshiyuki Shiomi, a Japanese author of pediatric literature. Children from 0 to 1 have become a topic of psychological research relatively recently. Psychology is a science based on feedback. Infants are a category of people unable to provide specific ... Read More

A Research Field Was Born

Today (aug 26th) marks the birthday of my field Children’s Literature Translation Studies. It established itself as a field in 1976 at the 3rd congress of IRCL. The congress was titled Problems of Translation in the Field of Literature for Children and Young People. Children’s Literature scholars and translators gathered in Sweden. They agreed on ... Read More

Children and other talking animals

Have you noticed that picture books and books intended for two-three-year-olds present a child agency as talking animals? Talking animals are a great tool to explain the transition from a somewhat similar to animal existence to a talking little human. Books intended for children from one to three years old usually have no human character. ... Read More

PhDone: Thesis Writing Tips

How I wrote my thesis and felt happy about it This month I’ve submitted my thesis. I was happy and motivated to carry on my research. It turns out I am one of the few people. Most novice PhDs think otherwise. After submitting their dissertations many PhDs-to-be are worn out and burnt out. To make ... Read More

Warabe uta: what kind of song?

How do you define Warabe uta? A song? What kind of song? Some say it is Japanese folklore. Some claim it is a lullaby. Wikipedia defines warabe-uta as a Japanese children’s song, similar to nursery rhymes. Warabe uta is a totally unique type of Japanese vocal storytelling. Presently it is treated like an element of ... Read More