The Birthday Book Junior 2018-2021

The Birthday Book Junior: Are We There Yet (2021)

edited by Selina Chong and Sarah Teo Joo

Synopsis

If you could go anywhere, where would it be? 

Sometimes, even if you just stay still, you could be somewhere else...In your thoughts!

In this book, you'll meet some new friends, explore some new (and old) places, and maybe get new ideas about what the future might be.

Go on an adventure with us in the pages within...And on the outside, too! Draw or write where you'd like to go, and who you'd like to go with you. It could be anything or anyone (or even this book!)

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The Birthday Book Junior: 20/20 Seeing Clearly (2020)

edited by Elizabeth Wu and Cherie Tseng

Synopsis

What do a glass eye, a mountain and a cockroach have in common? Would school be more fun if chocolatey drinks were given out free daily? When is wearing a mask like holding an umbrella? What happens when a world of dragons, castles and magic collide with one where animals, well, cross the road? Or when strange viral things live outside, inside and among us?

We live in a world where, for the most part, adults call the shots: they dictate, they determine and they demand. In 20/20: Seeing Clearly, you'll read the works of young writers who offer us an unprecedented look at how things are from their point of view.

The pieces lay things bare, challenge the status quo and propose how it could be , should be. They call attention to the things that matter to children, adults and indeed, the world.

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The Birthday Book Junior: Stories We Must Tell (2019)

edited by Julie Chiang and Cherie Tseng

Synopsis

Once upon a time, there lived a girl who died - and lived to tell the tale. In a land not so far away, was a little boy who lived in a city that was so clean, that no one really quite knew how that was - except he did. Come meet the boy who says he is half-human, half-reptile; the young lady with a special mark. Get acquainted with a special boy that hears like few others, make friends with a young girl and her many-coloured family and listen to another who could tell you something really interesting about, um, well...your poop!

This year's The Birthday Book Jr collection, Stories We Must Tell, is a worthy successor to last year's sell-out The Roads We Take. In these pages are harrowing stories of battle and the quest for survival, heart-warming doggy tales and even mini memoir-esq pieces that will inspire, surprise, thrill and ultimately fill you with a deep sense of hope about the future.

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The Birthday Book Junior: The Roads We Take (2018)

edited by Cherie Tseng and Wu Jiezhen

Synopsis

We always wanted young people to also be part of the conversation, so, in early 2018, we started to work on the inaugural junior edition. We feel that young have amazing stories to tell, lessons to teach and insights to share. Yet, they who own the future of Singapore, are largely only spoken to and talked about, instead of being included in the conversation.

This book contains stories written by mostly 5-12 year-olds for other young people. It celebrates diversity, opinions, thoughts, lessons and perspectives that exist here. As you read, you will see how they form an interwoven fabric that makes this island a home for us.

These are stories of the journeys they have been on, their experiences, their struggles, their triumphs, their musings, their thoughts, their life lessons from the different roads they take – from stories about their pets, to their dreams of becoming a pilot, to thoughts about growing up as a foreigner in Singapore; from reflections about loss of a loved one, about being adopted and finding their way through life changes. They will open a world up for you, as it did for us.