All heads turned in curiosity at the shy blond boy nervously frozen next to Miss Butler, our second grade teacher. I remember being fascinated with Christian, especially because he always wore these strange leather shorts which I learned later were called lederhosen.
Children are often curious about their peers in foreign lands.
Mildred L. Batchelder was a librarian who dedicated her life to satisfying this curiosity for children. She spent 30 years encouraging and promoting the translation of the world's best children's literature. According to Ginny Moore Kruse, author of The Mildred L. Batchelder Award for Translated Children's Books, Batchelder felt children in all countries should have good books in translation from many parts of the world. Translations, Batchelder asserted, developed in the reader a sense of nearness with those in other lands. To honor this dedicated librarian, the American Library Association created The Mildred L. Batchelder award, a citation awarded to an American publisher for a children's book considered to be the most outstanding translated book of the year.