How many translated books for young readers are released each year in the U.S.? How many English-language titles were written by non-U.S.-based authors? No one has precise numbers, but even a cursory search clearly shows that the numbers remain minuscule. When we look at what little is available, we encounter deeply skewed geographical and cultural representation: Books from Western Europe are overrepresented, while those from Africa, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and other regions are woefully rare. As a result, American kids are deprived of access to many boundary- and imagination-stretching literary riches. Each of the following works of world literature released in the U.S. over the past year offers something special and well worth exploring.

Saltwater Boy by Bradley Christmas (Walker Books Australia, 2024): In this poignant, complex debut from Australia, Matthew struggles with poverty, his abusive incarcerated father, his mother’s inability to prioritize her son’s well-being, and a move to a seaside town where he’s an outsider. Fortunately, he’s supported in his journey through these complex issues by an older fisherman who becomes a much-needed father figure.

The Hysterical Girls of St. Bernadette’s by Hanna Alkaf (Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster, 2024): The latest from this celebrated Malaysian author is a haunting paranormal thriller that offers insightful commentary into the pressures and scrutiny constraining many teen girls—even those at elite schools like Kuala Lumpur’s St. Bernadette’s. A strange affliction turns some girls into “screamers,” but the cause of (and cure for) the screaming remains a mystery.

The Henna Start-Up by Andaleeb Wajid (Duckbill, 2024): This award winner from a popular Indian author follows ambitious Bangalore college student Abir. She’s inspired to seek justice for her mother (a henna artist whose clients frequently underpay her) by creating an app that she can enter in a pitch contest. This engaging story also contains a swoony romance.

Girls: Life Isn't a Fairy Tale written and illustrated by Annet Schaap, translated by Laura Watkinson (Pushkin Children’s Books, March 4): This translated collection features seven fairy tales originally collected by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm, here retold through a feminist lens by acclaimed Dutch author and artist Schaap. The powerful stories are enhanced by eerie linocut-style illustrations. The courageous young women protagonists encounter challenges and dangers, but they reject passivity.

I Am the Swarm by Hayley Chewins (Viking, March 25): This YA debut by a South African poet, musician, and middle-grade author is an intense, surreal verse novel that immerses readers in the world of a family in which each generation’s girls come into their unique magic at age 15. For Nell, it arrives in the form of insects who represent her suppressed feelings.

First Times: Short Stories About Sex edited by Karine Glorieux and translated by Shelley Tanaka (Groundwood, April 1): In this frank, memorable anthology translated from French, Montreal author Glorieux collects stories on a topic that is for many young adults a rich source of inspiration, regret, anticipation, humor, disappointment, or joy—a first sexual experience. The characters’ experiences, which will feel relatable to many readers, unfold against a diverse backdrop of life circumstances.

Laura Simeon is a young readers’ editor.