Walker Éireann, an imprint of Walker Books, has recently teamed up with Foras na Gaeilge to bring readers four of their best picture books created by some of Ireland’s foremost book makers, in Irish. This development is a great addition to reading material in Irish for primary school aged children. To begin with, Walker Éireann chose books by four bright and brilliant Irish authors and illustrators – Martin Waddell, Sam McBratney, Chris Haughton and Niamh Sharkey – to be translated into Gaeilge. The purpose of the Walker Éireann imprint is to be both a way to celebrate these great authors’ work, and to build the perfect Irish language library for little ones.
Conor Hackett of Walker Éireann remarked that
“It was so important that the translations not only worked for this young age group but that the rhythm and overall quality of the writing was as good as the original English language editions. I chose Gabriel Rosenstock [to translate them] because he is a picturebook author and a poet and I believed that he could give these stories the delicate touch they required”.
The first four books to be translated into Gaeilge are:
* Ulchabháin Óga (Owl Babies) by Martin Waddell
* Tomhais Méid Mo Ghrá Duit (Guess How Much I Love You) by Sam Mc Bratney
* Stiúcaí Stiúgtha (The Ravenous Beast) by Niamh Sharkey
* Ar Strae Beagán (A Bit Lost) by Chris Haughton
Use the above links for information on how to purchase these books. Walker Éireann has plans to translate a further four books into Gaeilge again next year.
