Sangita Swechcha
Laura is a small business copywriter, translator of French into English and mother of two young children. Originally from the UK, she moved to Australia in 2008 and now lives on the shores of Lake Macquarie, 1.5 hours’ north of Sydney. She has also lived and worked in the UK, France, Italy and India. Laura has a keen interest in children’s literature and writes regular book reviews for the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative blog as well as for Planet Picture Book the blog she founded in 2017.
What is Planet Picture Book all about?
My aim with Planet Picture Book is to research, read and review a small selection of picture books from every country in the world. As well as compiling a growing collection of physical books, I publish book reviews for featured countries on my blog and shorter posts on Facebook and Twitter. I also strive to find out about the children’s publishing scene in each country and then share the information I have gathered with readers.
The project started as a personal challenge to open up a world of children’s books to readers, like me, with an interest in expanding their book collections beyond the usual choices. I believe that reading widely can help adults and children make sense of our world and be more accepting of similarities and differences. Picture books are also wonderful sources of entertainment, inspiration, comfort and learning for everyone.
How did the idea of creating Planet Picture Book originate?
When my eldest daughter was born in 2012, I plunged back into the wonderful world of picture books. As well as building a small picture book collection at home, we often visited our local library. It was there that I discovered many marvellous picture books written by authors and illustrators who I was not familiar with, some of whom had originally published their books in another country and another language. The decision to take this picture book exploration to another level happened on a whim after I watched Ann Morgan’s TED Talk on reading her way around the world. I felt a need to embark on a similar journey, but with a focus on picture books from every country. Planet Picture Book was born and it has developed into a passion project that could stretch for years!
You have already reviewed books from 42 countries. How is your experience of writers or publishers sending books to you?
It may come as a surprise to you, but I purchase or borrow most of the titles I review on my blog. When I first started out on this picture book journey back in 2017, the children’s publishing industry was very new to me. I didn’t feel ready to approach picture book creators or publishers for books. I also enjoyed the freedom of researching titles from each country and then selecting which ones I wish to take a closer look at without any pressure to deliver a review. That said, I have received books by email and snail mail from a few publishers in the last couple of years, both at my request and at theirs. It has all worked remarkably well despite recent extended delivery times for international post.
Glad to see Nepal as one of the countries you next plan to review books from. What should publishers/writers do to have their books reviewed and what are the terms and conditions?
Yes, I am keen to feature picture books and children’s stories from Nepal in an upcoming series of reviews on Planet Picture Book. I am particularly interested in contemporary illustrated children’s books that readers enjoy – and that are available in English translation. Ideally, I would like to feature a range of authors, illustrators, translators and publishers from Nepal. If this possibility appeals to anyone reading this, please send me (Laura) an email on picturebooktravels@gmail.com to include:
- Basic information about your book, e.g., author, illustrator, year of publication
- A cover image or couple of sample illustrations
- A short summary of the book
If this information is available online, then simply send me a link to relevant webpage. I will then contact to follow up on a possible review and to discuss the best way of receiving a copy of your book(s). Unfortunately, I cannot promise to review all the books put forward to me or specify exactly when my reviews will be posted.
Any form of Nepali literature you came across recently and if yes, how do you find it?
My introduction to Nepali literature came in November 2019, when Dr Sangita Swechcha (who is, of course, interviewing me here) was Guest Editor of the Global Literature in Libraries Initiative (GLLI) blog for the month. The posts she coordinated covered the poetry of Tulasi Diwasa, children’s books by Ananta Wagle as well as book reviews and interviews with publishers and translators. They provided a fascinating insight into the breadth and depth of the literary scene in Nepal and in the diaspora. I would definitely recommend Dr Swechcha’s GLLI blog series to anyone interested in finding out more about Nepali literature.
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Laura Taylor can be reached in the following addresses: Blog: www.planetpicturebook.com, Twitter: @plapibo, Facebook: @planetpicturebook
Sangita Swechcha is a Communications Professional, Researcher and a Fiction Writer based in England. @sangyshrestha
Email: sangyshrestha@hotmail.com