Join the magic and fun at Rutgers University’s Alexander Library on April 2, 2024 when SC&I and the library celebrate International Children’s Book Day by hosting a lively event held virtually and in-person from 4 to 6 p.m. EST. The event is free and open to the Rutgers University community and the public.* 

This year, The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY.org), the non-profit organization that launched the first International Children’s Book Day in 1967, named IBBY Japan as the official sponsor of the event. 

IBBY Japan, IBBY.org shared on its website, “is honored to be the official sponsor of ICBD 2024, under the theme ‘Cross the Seas on the Wing of your Imagination.’ Eiko Kadono, a prominent Japanese author and winner of the 2018 HC Andersen Award for writing, has composed a letter to the children of the world. Nana Furiya, an international-minded Japanese artist living in Slovakia, created a poster.” The English translation of the letter Kadono wrote to children of the world this year appears on the IBBY website.  

“Imagination is the key word for ICBD 2024,” IBBY Japan wrote, because, “JBBY believes that fostering imagination will lead to mutual understanding and a spirit of tolerance.”   

SC&I Associate Professor of Practice, Library and Information Science, Marc Aronson said the event SC&I and Alexander Library are hosting to join the global celebration on April 2 “is created to honor the genre of literature for children and teens. We recognize that the perspectives of adults as well as children can be expanded by reading children’s books. Reading children’s stories from other cultures inspires adults to see the world differently, and provides opportunities to expand ideas surrounding diversity, inclusion, and access. Through this medium of books for children and teenagers, adults can expand their sense of being part of our shared world.” 

 For the first time, Aronson said, Rutgers’ celebration will include performances as well as readings. The Rutgers undergraduate Chinese dance troupe will perform, and Tara McGowen, Ph.D. will perform the Japanese story art of Kamishibai. The well-known librarian and blogger Betsy Bird will virtually present the best of international picture books, and SC&I and Alexander Library will announce a prize to be awarded to the best book for teenagers that has been translated.  

 Aronson added that SC&I graduates working in NJ libraries are also starting to host their own parallel events on April 2, so the concept is spreading.  

 The April 2 event will bring together many departments within Rutgers including the Rutgers Graduate School of Education, The Rutgers English Language Institute (RELI), and language professors including professors of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese. The translation department is also involved in the event.  

The origins of the International Celebration of Children’s books can be traced back to a woman named Jella Lepman, Aronson said. “Jella Lepman was a Jewish journalist and author who fled Nazi Germany to England. But she returned in 1945 with the mission to open the minds of German young people by sharing the world's children's literature,” Aronson said. “She then expanded that idea of using ‘books as bridges’ to encompass the entire world – through IBBY the international board of books for youth.  

 “We at Rutgers participate in this effort through the International Youth Literature Collection we are building at Alexander Library – now over 1,000 books, for all Rutgers to use, in language classes, courses on youth, media, story, culture, education, librarianship, social work, translation, and more."

 “We at Rutgers participate in this effort through the International Youth Literature Collection we are building at Alexander Library – now over 1,000 books, for all Rutgers to use, in language classes, courses on youth, media, story, culture, education, librarianship, social work, translation, and more. We are also expanding our efforts by creating a sample traveling collection of 20 books that any NJ youth library, public or school, can borrow as a group. On April 2 we join libraries around the world in Celebrating the Day of the International Children's Book – extending and advancing Lepman's vision of using books as bridges to understanding.”  

All are invited to register* here to attend online or in person:  https://libcal.rutgers.edu/event/12165776 

*Please note, guests who are not affiliated with Rutgers University are welcome. Per Rutgers Libraries policy, please bring a photo id (not a RUID). Children accompanied by an adult are welcome to attend.  

For more information, email Associate Professor Marc Aronson: marcaron@comminfo.rutgers.edu 

Learn more about the Library and Information Studies Department at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information on the website.  

Image: 2024 ICBD poster created by Nana Furiya. Source: The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY.org)