The 62nd Bologna Children's Book Fair kicked off at the BolognaFiere Exhibition Center on March 31, 2025. The original children's science popularization picture book Let's Retrace the Silk Roads was on display. The book was jointly planned and created by the Beijing Allied Fortune International Trade Limited (A&F) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and published by the Hunan Juvenile & Children's Publishing House.

The book consists of two volumes, the Land Journey and the Sea Journey, a set of children's picture books integrating history, culture, and adventure elements. This tells the story of an Italian girl named Sara, a Chinese boy named Yinuo, and a magical kitten named Mimi, who go on an adventure through time and space together. The book's clever interactive page-turning design uncovers hidden illustrations and treasure puzzles. The rich colors, delicate lines, and imaginative compositions allow young readers to feel the mystery and magnificence of the Silk Roads, and to appreciate the charm of the fusion of Eastern and Western civilizations in their reading.

Let's Retrace the Silk Roads was authorized to use the UNESCO logo, and UNESCO also participated in the editorial review. The book received great attention from publishers from various countries and regions upon its debut. Representatives of publishing organizations from many countries held in-depth exchanges on the spot, discussing copyright cooperation and the possibility of multilingual publishing. At the end of the day, four overseas publishers expressed their intention to publish the Italian, English, Slovenian, and Arabic editions of the book.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Yu Jiangjiang

Chinese source: Hunan Daily