HÀ NỘI — A bilingual book by foreign authors is among the official nominees for the Dế Men Awards, honouring works by or for children.

The book, entitled Chiếc Dep Thất Lạc (The Lost Sandal), is a picture book for children by Belgian writer Geralda De Vos and Swedish illustrator Sofia Holt. They are living and working in Viet Nam.

The book is a story of a girl named Linh who loses one of her favourite sandals and her adventure to reclaim it. 

De Vos came to Viet Nam in 2017 and has participated in environmental protection activities such as plastic waste reduction and recycling activities.

She has called on people to pick up and return people's lost items. She began picking up lost sandals on the street, which became her inspiration for the book, The Lost Sandal.

Illustrator Holt came to HCM City in 2014. She is now working as a fashion and furniture designer, and an illustrator, creating artworks about a happier and more sustainable world. The book can be bought at the publisher’s website and on online shopping platforms.

The book was translated into Vietnamese by Kim Ngọc and published by Kim Đồng Publishing House.  

The simple story is funny and light-hearted to inspire little readers’ sentiment toward their beloved objects in a consumer society, according to the award organisation board.  

Dế Men Awards was launched by the Vietnam News Agency’s Thể Thao Văn Hóa (Culture & Sport) newspaper in 2020 aiming at honouring the best works by and for children. 

The award title is named after the main character in Dế Men Phieu Lưu Ký (Diary of a Cricket) by To Hoai. 

The awards include one grand prize named Hiep Sĩ Dế Men (Cricket Night) and several other awards called Khat Vọng Dế Men (Cricket Design). 

This year, most of the shortlisted works are long stories and only Nguyễn Vũ An Băng's is a short story collection. 

Băng is also the youngest writer at the award. She is nine years old from Quỳnh Loi Primary School in Hai Ba Trưng District, Ha Noi. 

Six-member jury panel is chaired by poet Trần Đăng Khoa, deputy-president of Viet Nam Writers’ Association.

The awards will be announced on May 31 in Ha Noi. An auction will be held at the award ceremony to raise funds for schools in the mountainous and remote areas. 

The auction items will be a hand-painted Vespa motorcycle by artist Le Kinh Tai; a Swiss-made watch Ernest Borel GS8380C-221; and paintings and other items of pop-cultural significance by celebrities. — VNS