22 May / I See the Sun in India by Dedie King, illustrated by Judith Inglese, translation by the University of Massachusetts Translation Center
Here’s lucky #7 of the bilingual I See the Sun series from internationally-minded boutique press Satya House – lucky because India celebrates the series’ gravitas by being the first to be offered in lasting hardcover. This summer, the rest of the series also reappears in solid incarnation; going hardcover seems to be further reinforcement in the series’ ongoing message that as diverse as individual lives may be from country to country, every child’s basic need for family, friendship, nourishment, education, and happiness is the same throughout the world.
Meet Mila as she awakes at dawn to the squawks of peacocks. She lives in India, in the historic city of Jaipur, “in a huge house that belonged to [her] great-grandparents. Because it is so big, [Mila’s] parents rent out rooms to tourists.” She goes to school in a tuk-tuk driven by her uncle, where she speaks mostly English in class and Hindi with her friends. She drops by her father’s gem shop after school before meeting her friends at the movie theater. At home she shares a few moments with the tourist guests before joining her family for dinner, then finishes her homework while the peacocks “give a couple of tired squawks” in the courtyard. “[A]s the evening turns dark,” readers have shared a vibrant tour through Mila’s home and city, catching glimpses of the rich architecture, the bustling streets and colorful bazaars, while experiencing a few of Mila’s everyday events with family and friends.
Complementing author Dedie King’s text, artist Judith Inglese adds a visual layer of diversity throughout the pages, underscoring India’s vast population of many, many backgrounds, cultures, and languages. [Such diversity, perhaps, explains the choice Mila’s name, which doesn’t seem particularly Indian – a quick internet search suggests Eastern European/Slavic origins.] Minor quibble aside, especially noteworthy is that Inglese’s people arrive on the page in all shades of skin color, even within Mila’s own family. In a modern India that still remains all too aware of (and trapped by) class and caste, that Mila’s mother is considerably darker than her father is quite the social commentary. [Oddly, Mila’s mother’s pigment changes drastically on the page in which she’s talking to the guests.] With his darker skin, Mila’s tuk-tuk driving-uncle is likely her mother’s brother; his career suggests her mother’s family is not of equal social standing to that of her father’s. The palatial quality of the ancestral home (inheritance being predominantly patrilineal) implies Mila’s paternal family tree includes royal branches, making her parents’ marriage that much more unusual.
Of course, children – the intended target audience, after all – are unlikely to even notice such details. Parents, however, will hopefully appreciate the subtle efforts of depicting a more equitable, contemporary India.
Readers: Children
Published: 2014
Unfortunately, the Hindi translation is rife with spelling and grammatical errors. My library will be withdrawing this title, and vetting carefully the remaining titles in this series. We work hard to include multi-national and multi-lingual materials in our collection, but sloppy translations are inexcusable. From our reviewer (who speaks and writes Hindi): “I was dismayed and disturbed to find that the Hindi text had various mistakes in grammar and spelling. Even the title in Hindi on the cover page is grammatically wrong — strangely, on the title page inside it is correctly written! I stopped counting after 7 mistakes, and took it home to have my husband, a native Hindi speaker, check it out as well. He agreed that the Hindi text in this title has many mistakes in grammar and spelling.”
I would hope that the folks at SmithsonianAPA will do a better job of vetting multilingual materials in the future. As a selector who does not speak or read in languages other than English, I make it a point to look at reviews by area experts before purchasing materials including other languages. Your review gives us no indication that this is an issue.
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. I’ve forwarded this to the publisher, and will hope that future printings will be corrected as needed. Given the usual attention the publisher strives to give each of the titles in the series, I’m disappointed to learn that the translation is not accurate. That said, I’ve obviously become too trusting about languages with which I’m unfamiliar (I’m plenty good at ranting about those with which I am!), and will hope to be more careful in the future. Thanks again and all best.
I appreciate it! I’ve sent comments to the publisher as well – we really want to offer bilingual material, but I can’t in good conscience keep this on our shelves.