Rhymes Round the World

Kay Chorao (2009), 40 pages

Audience: All ages

Format: picture book

From celebrated illustrator Chorao comes Rhymes Round the World, a global compilation of traditional rhymes and songs both familiar and obscure. Translations include rhymes from several cultures and countries such as France’s Are you Sleeping?, Italy’s Cincirenella, Korea’s Wind Last Night, Poland’s Lizzie, Iran’s Morning Song, Greece’s The Girl Wants to Dance, and many more. Chorao’s signature cheerful watercolors bring simple poems, songs, and rhymes alive in her detailed full-page designs. For instance, the traditional Australian song “Kookaburra” illustrates playful laughter as an indigenous eucalyptus tree grows heavy with climbing children and an array of native wildlife (koalas, kangaroos, and the kookaburra bird) ….

“Kookaburra sits in an old gum tree,

Merry, merry king of the bush is he.

Laugh Kookaburra! Laugh, Kookaburra!

Gay your life must be.”

Without a doubt this book is as fun to read as it is to look at! Filled with fun, diverse rhymes, and beautiful images this is a book young audiences will enjoy. Parents and educators can read these rhymes as a way to introduce culture and diversity to children.

Reviewed by: Katharine Quinn, SJSU MLIS Student

If you liked this book, you may like: This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World by Naomi Shihab Nye

Other books by this author: The Baby’s Good Morning Book, The Baby’s Bedtime Book, Knock at the Door and Other Baby Action Rhymes