to get books to schools in remote villages, received the IBBY Asahi Reading Promotion
Award. This scheme has been so successful that it has been adopted by neighbouring
Laos. Magazines such as Children’s Voice, Children’s Garden, Kiewkoy and Chaiyapruk
Cartoon provide cheap and accessible reading material for many children.
The majority of the books published each year are for young children, and translations
account for almost half the titles, but workshops and seminars are held to encourage
local authors and illustrators. The didactic element is still strong in Thai children’s
literature. S.Rojanasaroj’s poem, ‘School for Crickets’, for example, is about the
advantages of listening to an adult who can teach children how to survive among
possible dangers. The Origin of Tiger’s Stripes and Rabbit’s Shortened Tail by Thepsiri
Suksopa (1984), a title which has overtones of a ‘Just-So‘story by Kipling, reflects the
popularity of animal stories. Modern writers, however, have also realised the importance
of including modern messages in their fiction. Charoen Malarochana, author of Kheaw-
Sua Fire [The Fang of the Fire Tiger] (1988), is one of the most distinguished of these. In
this 1990 IBBY Honour Book, he tells the story of Kaewhuan, who is very much braver
than most girls, and Kamkong, her brother, who is shy and loves solitude; their parents
are afraid that as they are so different from most children of their sex, they will
encounter difficulties and problems as they grow up. Kaewhuan has got a fang of the
Fire Tiger which people believe is a sacred talisman, and with it her uncle teaches her
the magic which will calm her down and strengthen her brother, and so the two children
learn to behave in the way society expects. Chotiwat Punnopatham’s illustrations for Tod
Sorb Sa-Hai [To Test the Friends] (1989) by Suwanna Kriengkraipetch, won the IBBY
Honour book nomination for illustrator in the same year. This is the story of
Tukammanik, whose millionaire father has taught him not to make friends with bad
people; when his father dies, he decides to test this, finds that his father’s advice was
perhaps wise and all ends well.
The great enthusiasm for children’s literature in Thailand is geared not only to
encouraging the publication of good books, but also to ensuring that the results are
distributed as widely as possible. Despite economic problems, it seems likely that
children’s literature will continue to develop at an impressive rate.
KoreaKorea has a recorded history of 2,000 years but for much of this time it was part of the
Chinese Empire. It was annexed by Japan in 1910, and Japanese literature has also
been a strong influence. However, nationalism was kept alive during the long period of
foreign occupation by the traditional folk literature. Pang Chong-hwan manipulated his
Japanese education to meet Korean needs. He believed that Korean children should be
educated in their own language and, realising that folk rhymes and songs were popular,
he put Korean words to one of the most rhythmic Japanese songs. Yun Sok-chung was
influenced by this and his poems and rhymes constituted the first true Korean literature
for children.
After 1945, when the country was divided, North Korea adopted the Russian pattern
of education and book provision, while South Korea was influenced by the USA. In 1962
an important literary event in South Korea was the publication of Hanguk Adong
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