Cover of the book (Photo: Vietnam Women's Publishing House) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - A newbilingual picture book that was recently released should appeal to bothVietnamese and expat children.
The bookentitled The Sea Saw is published by Vietnam Women's Publishing House.
The English version byTom Percival was published last year. It is about a long journey of ateddy bear travelling back from a beach with the help of the sea to gather withits owner Sofia, who accidentally lost it during her trip to the coast.
"The book issuitable for children but it also touches mature readers'heart," said Le Thu Ngoc, the book's editor. "The bilingual book willinspire children to learn both English and Vietnamese."
The writer tells ajourney through decades from a little girl to an old woman in the 32-pagebooks with beautiful illustrations.
The teddy bear belongsto little Sofia, the main character. Those two images are always intertwined inthe story although they must be separated in terms of distance and time.
The translator was a14-year-old, Nguyen Le Minh Phung. She won the Best Translator awardfor the Junior Ambassador for Literature in Vietnam in a contest held bythe publishing house, the Irish Embassy and English language teaching centreAmslink.
"It is anextremely lovely story," said Phung. "The plot is not complicated orso unique but somehow still touches the reader's heart as it is like a gentlemelody about a trip back for a reunion.
"The lesson fromthe story is educational especially to children and they will find theirlife more meaningful after reading this. The book itself is a work of art thereader can feel the illustrator's dedication through each page of vivid orgloomy figures.
"I am a littleproud of myself and feel a sense of accomplishment."
Phung is a9th-grade student at Archimedes High School in Hanoi. She likes learning languages and reading books so jumped at the chance to be the translator ofthe book The Sea Saw./.
The bookentitled The Sea Saw is published by Vietnam Women's Publishing House.
The English version byTom Percival was published last year. It is about a long journey of ateddy bear travelling back from a beach with the help of the sea to gather withits owner Sofia, who accidentally lost it during her trip to the coast.
"The book issuitable for children but it also touches mature readers'heart," said Le Thu Ngoc, the book's editor. "The bilingual book willinspire children to learn both English and Vietnamese."
The writer tells ajourney through decades from a little girl to an old woman in the 32-pagebooks with beautiful illustrations.
The teddy bear belongsto little Sofia, the main character. Those two images are always intertwined inthe story although they must be separated in terms of distance and time.
The translator was a14-year-old, Nguyen Le Minh Phung. She won the Best Translator awardfor the Junior Ambassador for Literature in Vietnam in a contest held bythe publishing house, the Irish Embassy and English language teaching centreAmslink.
"It is anextremely lovely story," said Phung. "The plot is not complicated orso unique but somehow still touches the reader's heart as it is like a gentlemelody about a trip back for a reunion.
"The lesson fromthe story is educational especially to children and they will find theirlife more meaningful after reading this. The book itself is a work of art thereader can feel the illustrator's dedication through each page of vivid orgloomy figures.
"I am a littleproud of myself and feel a sense of accomplishment."
Phung is a9th-grade student at Archimedes High School in Hanoi. She likes learning languages and reading books so jumped at the chance to be the translator ofthe book The Sea Saw./.
VNA
