'The Nobel Prize of Picture Books' Authors Suzy Lee and Choi Deok-gyu Win Bologna Ragazzi Award

Artist Lee Suji, winner of the Bologna Ragazzi Award Photo by Biryongso

Picture books by two Korean authors have won the prestigious Bologna Ragazzi Awards. These are Suzy Lee's picture book Summer Comes and Deokgyu Choi's picture book The Big Hand.

According to the publishing industry on the 23rd, Summer Comes (Bir Publishing) was selected in the fiction category, and The Big Hand (Yoon Edition) was selected in the nonfiction category, both receiving the "Special Mention" (Excellence Award).

Known as the "Nobel Prize of picture books," the Bologna Ragazzi Awards are presented annually in March at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy, divided into fiction, nonfiction, comics, and poetry categories.

Summer Comes, published last year, is a picture book inspired by "Summer" from Vivaldi's "Four Seasons," featuring a work that combines various techniques such as drawing. Scanning the QR code on the book cover's flap plays a video containing "The Four Seasons" and the author's commentary, allowing readers to enjoy the vibrant illustrations in a unique way.

The author was also shortlisted as a finalist in the illustrator category of the Hans Christian Andersen Award, known as the "Nobel Prize of children's literature." This is the second time, following the first nomination in 2016, that a Korean author has reached the final round of the Andersen Award.

The Andersen Award, presented by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), was established in 1956 to commemorate Hans Christian Andersen and is awarded to authors who have contributed to children's literature. The final winner is decided by votes from a panel of 10 judges from around the world.

Photo by Choi Deok-gyu, winner of the Bologna Ragazzi Award Photo by Yonhap News

Deokgyu Choi's The Big Hand is a picture book that tells the story of a son who grows up healthily under his father's care and later becomes an adult who takes care of his aging father.

The author published this autobiographical story independently through Yoon Edition in 2020, and the book gained popularity as a picture book that moves adults emotionally.

The Bologna Ragazzi Award ceremony and the announcement of the Andersen Award winners will take place at the Bologna Children's Book Fair, which opens on March 21.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.